2024 Recap: Expanding Horizons, Deepening Impact – RED NOSES International’s Year of Connection and Resilience
The year 2024 was a defining chapter for RED NOSES International’s Emergency Smile programme. Building on the experiences and lessons of 2023, we responded to new challenges, deepened our impact in regions facing multiple crises, and continued our mission to bring joy and emotional relief where it was needed most.
Emerging themes across Emergency Smile 2024 missions
Our 2024 missions spanned across five countries—Lesvos, Türkiye, Georgia, Morocco, and Italy—each one offering unique opportunities to bring psychosocial support to communities marked by adversity.
Emerging themes of building relationships, empowering aid workers, playfulness as a universal bridge and adaptability shaped every mission this year, allowing us to connect with people in profound ways, transcending cultural and linguistic barriers to provide moments of relief and joy in even the most challenging circumstances.
Meaningful relationships over metrics
The teams emphasized the importance of depth over breadth. Small, consistent interactions often left the most significant impact, fostering trust and building lasting memories for both displaced individuals and aid workers.
Empowering aid workers
Aid workers, often the unsung heroes in displacement settings, were a focus of each mission. Workshops and moments of humour were offered as tools for stress relief and rejuvenation, ensuring that those on the front lines felt supported.
Playfulness as a bridge
By embracing a spirit of play and open-heartedness, the teams connected with people of all ages and backgrounds. This approach transcended cultural differences, transforming even the simplest exchanges into moments of joy and connection.
Adaptability as a core value
Across all the missions, flexibility proved indispensable. Whether addressing logistical changes or fluctuating community needs, the teams approached each challenge with creativity and openness.
Focusing on Türkiye
2024 saw a significant expansion of our work in Türkiye. After the devastating earthquakes that rocked the region in 2023, we returned with a renewed commitment to provide long-term relief. Our team was able to reach over 8,000 people through multiple missions, with a special emphasis on schools and displacement camps. Many of the individuals we worked with were Syrians who had not only fled the ongoing conflict in their homeland but were also directly affected by the earthquake, compounding their trauma and need for support. Our work in the Hatay region, one of the hardest-hit areas, was particularly impactful, as we focused on relief for children and families who had lost so much.
Strengthening partnerships in Lesvos
Our missions on Lesvos continued to be a cornerstone of our work in 2024. With five missions throughout the year, we built on the relationships we had formed in previous years and focused on strengthening collaborations with local partners like Iliaktida, Because We Carry, and the Paréa Community Centre. These relationships allowed us to provide more targeted and effective support for displaced people, including women, children, and aid workers.
In addition to our clown shows and Circus Smile workshops, we developed and expanded our Humour Relief Workshops—a key achievement of the year. These workshops not only supported aid workers but also medical professionals, introducing techniques inspired by healthcare clowning to enhance interactions with young patients. The response to these workshops was overwhelmingly positive, and they have become a key tool in our ongoing mission to bring laughter into both humanitarian and healthcare contexts.
2024 in numbers
Join us in bringing more smiles
None of this would have been possible without the generous support of our partners, donors, and supporters.
As we look ahead to 2025, we remain committed to our mission and to the people we serve. We will continue to build on the lessons of 2024, adapt to new challenges, and bring more smiles, laughter, and hope to those who need it most.
The power of humour is undeniable, and your support can help us continue this vital work.
Together, we can bring more moments of joy to communities in crisis and ensure that laughter remains a key part of the healing process. Visit our Emergency Smile website to learn more about how you can support RED NOSES International in making the world a brighter, more joyful place.
