On World Refugee Day, a mother and her children reveal the crushing reality of displacement: where every day is a battle for water, food, and hope.

The night the bombs came, Neda’a did not have time to gather shoes. She woke her 7 children in the dark, shouting over the explosions, and they ran barefoot, through streets strewn with broken glass and rubble, the younger ones crying as their feet bled. Her eldest son, Ahmed, carried his 7-year-old brother Elyas on his back. By dawn, they reached a UN school-turned-shelter. It was the last time Ahmed would see his family.

The next day, he went to buy shoes for his siblings. He never returned.

Now, Neda’a sits on the floor of a crowded classroom that has become their shelter, recounting the moment she learned Ahmed was gone. “We lost our backbone,” she says.

Around her, the walls are cracked from shelling. There is no running water, no privacy, no space to grieve. This is life for Gaza’s displaced, a relentless cycle of survival where death is routine, and the idea of home is reduced to a single question: How do we make it through today?

Fighting for water

This World Refugee Day, over 122 million people are forcibly displaced worldwide, the highest ever recorded. But displacement is not just a statistic. it’s often a sudden, devastating rupture that overturns entire lives, leaving families scrambling to rebuild amidst chaos.

In Gaza, at least 1.9 million people, about 90% of the population have been forcibly displaced, many of them multiple times. People have fled to try and escape bombs or have been ordered to leave by the Israeli military. Families sleep in tents, in the skeletons of bombed-out buildings, in hospital corridors where the smell of antiseptic cannot mask the stench of overcrowding.

For Neda’a and her children, displacement means waking before sunrise to join the scramble for water. Mousa, her 12-year-old son, describes the daily ritual: the long walk to the well, the fights that break out when the water runs low, the weight of the buckets cutting into his hands as he carries them back. “Before the war, we turned on a tap,” he says. “Now we fight for every drop.”

We have nothing left

Displacement does not end with losing a home. It seeps into every part of life, twisting the ordinary into the unbearable.

For Neda’a’s daughters, it means giving up school to scavenge for firewood, their hands hardened from gathering scraps to burn for cooking. The smoke fills their shelter, making the younger children cough, but there is no gas, no electricity, no other way to eat. For Mousa, it means bearing the burdens of an adult, hauling water, comforting his siblings when the bombs start again, trying to fill the space left by his older brother.

And for Neda’a, it means waking each morning to the same crushing reality: no money, no safe place, no way to protect her children from the war outside or the despair creeping in. “I just want to wake up to news that this is over,” she says. “But even if it ends tomorrow, what then? We have nothing left.”

Islamic Relief delivers aid in Gaza

While the horror continues, Palestinians have shown incredible resilience. Islamic Relief’s team and local partners in Gaza work tirelessly to provide lifesaving aid, even when they are themselves bombed, displaced and grieving. Over the past 20 months we’ve cooked millions of hot meals and distributed hygiene kits and emergency cash. Right now, we’re providing aid such as maternal care for pregnant women and cleaning shelters for displaced people to prevent deadly diseases spreading.

But the need is overwhelming. “We’re not just fighting hunger,” says Programme Officer Yasmin Al-Ashy. “We’re fighting the slow death of hope.”

For Neda’a, hope is fragile. She looks at Mousa, now too serious for his age; Ritag, whose hands are rough from gathering wood; Elyas, who is restless every night, and wonders what future awaits them. “I don’t know if they will ever recover from this,” she says.

They desperately need international governments and world leaders to demand an immediate ceasefire and pressure Israel to end its siege.

This World Refugee Day, stand with families like Neda’s. Donate to Islamic Relief Malaysia’s Palestine Appeal to provide lifesaving aid and hope to those who have lost everything. And call on your politicians and governments to demand meaningful political action to end the atrocities.

Gadarif state was once a quiet agricultural region. Now, it is a reluctant refuge for thousands of families fleeing Sudan’s spiralling conflict.

Among them is mother-of-5 Rayan, whose life has been reduced to a daily struggle for the most basic necessities: food, shelter and safety.

Her story is a snapshot of the global refugee crisis, one that forces us to confront the human cost of displacement, not as a distant tragedy, but as a relentless reality for millions.

The night everything changed

Rayan’s family once had a home in Khartoum, a modest but stable life. Her husband ran a small business, and her children went to school. “It was not luxury,” she recalls, “but it was ours.”

That changed overnight when fighting reached their neighbourhood last year. With bullets flying and shops ablaze, the family abandoned everything they had known. Joining the endless stream of displaced individuals searching for safety, they drove first to Singa in the Blue Nile region and then on to Gadarif after renewed clashes.

“We left with nothing,” she says. “No money, no belongings, no papers, just the clothes we were wearing.”

Today, the family of 7 live crammed into a host family’s compound. Plastic sheeting covers gaps in the walls; a single jerry can stand in place of household furniture.

Rayan’s husband searches the market each dawn for day labour. On good days, he earns approximately £2.50 (RM14) loading grain sacks and stacking produce carts. On the many bad days, he returns empty‑handed.

The world’s largest displacement crisis

The speed of displacement in Sudan has been staggering: the United Nations estimates that over 11 million Sudanese are now uprooted, the largest internal displacement crisis on record.

Yet Sudan is only one fault‑line in a global pattern. Worldwide, 122.6 million people – three‑quarters of them women and children – live in limbo after fleeing conflict, persecution and disaster.

Displacement triggers a chain reaction of suffering. Children drop out of school, families sell all they have, and illness spreads where healthcare is scarce.

In Gadarif, the hot nights lead to increased health risks for displaced families, including young children who are particularly vulnerable to malaria. Rayan’s 2 -year-old daughter has already fallen ill.

For adolescent girls, the crisis brings an additional layer of anxiety. Sanitary pads are expensive luxuries, and makeshift alternatives raise health risks and keep girls indoors.

Islamic Relief delivers lifesaving aid

Islamic Relief distributed aid to Rayan’s neighbourhood supported by the Humanitarian Emergency Fund (HEF). Each household received a dignity kit, which included 2 mosquito nets, sanitary pads, toothbrushes, soap, blankets and headscarves, plus a cash grant.

“The mosquito net was a small thing that gave us much peace,” Rayan says. Her youngest now sleeps through the night. The cash covered a month’s rent and also stretched to cooking oil and lentils. “For the first time in many weeks,” she adds, “I bought meat.”

Islamic Relief colleagues in Sudan emphasise that cash restores choice and dignity. “It allows families to decide what they need most,” explains Adam Yagoub, Islamic Relief Sudan’s communication officer. “Some buy food, some pay medical bills, some save a little for the journey home, when return is possible.”

A fair chance at survival

Sudan’s conflict shows no sign of abating; humanitarian corridors remain volatile, and funding gaps widen as new crises compete for attention. Islamic Relief’s latest Sudan appeal is only 42% funded.

Rayan understands these numbers translate into rationed assistance. “We do not expect comfort,” she says, “just a fair chance.”

Her wish list is simple: regular food parcels, safe shelter, mosquito spraying across the settlement, and, above all, peace so her children can return to school.

Donate to our International Emergency now to help families like Rayan’s survive with dignity.

On World Environment Day, Jamie Williams, Islamic Relief’s Senior Policy Advisor on Poverty Reduction, discusses the dangers of plastic pollution in the world’s oceans and the need for large companies to be held accountable for the plastic waste they produce.

This World Environment Day, Islamic Relief is signing Faith in the Ocean, an international multifaith declaration recognising the profound relationship between humanity and the ocean, uniting all people of faith or spiritual tradition in our commitment to protect and preserve the ocean.

Among the many concerns about our oceans is pollution from plastic waste.

Driven by public concern about plastic pollution and increasing scientific evidence of the resulting harm to human health and the environment, the United Nations in 2022 convened an Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee, INC, to produce international laws to control plastic pollution. This included the 10-15 million tonnes of plastic leaking into the marine environment each year – a number expected to more than triple by 2050.

Plastic drives climate change

Plastic pollution, including micro – and nano – plastics, has been found at the Earth’s highest heights and the ocean’s deepest depths. It is creating an ever-growing health crisis, with ‘forever’ chemicals in plastic products and waste leaching into the human body and the natural environment, creating havoc for hormone, digestive, and nervous systems. In 2022 there were reports of plastic particles found in human lungs and blood, and a 2021 report found microplastics in human placenta.

Discussions at the fifth session of INC-5 in November last year were meant to reach a new agreement to end plastic pollution. They didn’t. As we wait for the meeting to restart this year, the mountain of pollution, which grows through the whole life cycle of plastic, continues to grow and wreck to our environment and our bodies.

Plastic production relies on oil, making corporate plastic use a direct driver of climate change. Progress towards a treaty on plastic pollution has been hindered by a row over the need to include cuts to the $712 billion (approx. £610 billion) plastic production industry in the treaty. 

At previous talks, high-income countries were accused of bowing to pressure from fossil fuel companies and industry lobbyists to steer clear of any reductions in production. Instead, they argued that reducing pollution is a question of how the plastic is made and what happens after it is sold and used.

Coca-Cola, the world’s top branded plastic waste producer, acknowledged in 2022 that reusable packaging was “among the most effective ways to reduce waste” and committed to a goal of reaching 25% reusable packaging by 2030.

But that pledge was quietly dropped in its latest sustainability roadmap, released in December 2024. The company’s updated goals instead focus on increasing recycled content in packaging and boosting collection rates – while stressing the significant challenges in recycling soda bottles and shifting consumer habits.

Shifting the blame

Environmental advocates have long warned against over-reliance on recycling, arguing that it often serves to shift blame on to consumers rather than addressing the root of the crisis

By 2030, Coca-Cola products will account for an estimated 602 million kilograms of plastic waste entering the world’s oceans and waterways each year, according to a stark new analysis published by the non-profit Oceana.

That is enough plastic to fill the stomachs of 18 million blue whales.

Food and beverage companies are disproportionately large polluters. Coca-Cola, followed by PepsiCo, Nestlé, Danone and Altria, and other companies have been identified as producing 50% of the plastics polluting the environment.

Brand names can be used to hold plastic companies accountable for their items found polluting the oceans. Phasing out single-use and short-lived plastic products by the largest polluters would greatly reduce global plastic pollution.

We can all take a look at our own habits and refrain from purchasing plastic packaged food and drinks. Bottled water is often just tap water in plastic. Each soda, juice or yoghurt will add to the plastic mountain. Together, we can put pressure on the brands to change their policies.

And this World Environment Day, we should be aware of international efforts to eliminate this deadly pollution and urge lawmakers to act in the name of creation, not profit.

We need, as the Faith in the Ocean declaration says, to ensure a healthy, sustainable, and thriving ocean in the web of life for future generations.

In Laba-Adle village, Somalia, Mulki’s days used to revolve around collecting water. Each morning, the 30-year-old would set out before dawn, her feet kicking up dust as she walked 8 kilometres to the nearest water source. When she returned, it would be with just enough water to last her 5 children another day.

But when droughts in her area worsened, Mulki joined the growing number of Somalis forced to buy water in plastic containers from distant towns, watching helplessly as the empty bottles piled up around their village.

“The water kept us alive, but the plastic was choking us,” Mulki says, standing beside the borehole that changed everything for her family.

Mountains of plastic

When drought soaks up natural water sources, people in this climate-vulnerable part of Somalia turn to packaged water – creating mountains of single-use plastics with little or no way to manage the waste.

Islamic Relief’s team saw this firsthand when launching the Building Resilience and Adaptation to Climate Change project in 2023. “We came to address water scarcity,” says project coordinator Abdifatah Adam. “But we quickly realised that we had to tackle 2 crises at once – both the lack of clean water and the growing plastic waste problem.”

The project drilled a new borehole, which did more than provide clean water – it broke the plastic dependency cycle. Where plastic waste once accumulated in toxic piles, the village became noticeably cleaner. And families, who once had to spend their meagre incomes on bottled water, had a little bit more money in their pockets thanks to their new sustainable water source.

A day in the new normal

Mulki’s morning routine has now transformed. At sunrise, she walks just minutes from her home to fill containers at the borehole, while her goats drink deeply from a trough nearby.

“Before, I spent 6 hours each day fetching water,” Mulki says. “Now I have time to milk the goats, sell the milk at market, and still help my children prepare for school.”

Mulki’s husband, Ahmed, tends their new vegetable garden, irrigated with borehole water, another change for the family.

These changes go beyond the family home. At the local market, plastic water bottles are becoming less common as more families gain access to safe, refillable water.  Children now play where plastic waste once littered the ground. Most remarkably, the village has begun repurposing discarded plastic bottles as planters for drought-resistant crops, a grassroots innovation born from necessity.

The bigger picture

Standing by the borehole at dusk, Mulki reflects on how much has changed, and how far there is still to go. “We have water now, but our children need schools,” she says, watching her daughters chase fireflies. “We need healthcare. Better homes.”

These aren’t just development needs – they are the next frontiers in climate resilience. Access to education empowers communities with knowledge to adapt to a changing environment. Reliable healthcare helps families withstand the physical toll of drought, disease and displacement. Safe housing protects against climate extremes. Islamic Relief is already working on solutions that integrate these priorities, recognising that resilience goes beyond water, laying the groundwork for safer and more informed communities.

But for today, in this small village where plastic bottles no longer outnumber trees, there is hope where once there was only thirst.

This World Environment Day 2024, as global attention turns to ‘Ending Plastic Pollution’, This village’s story reveals an uncomfortable truth: our plastic waste crisis often begins where basic needs go unmet. In communities like Mulki’s, plastic water bottles were a desperate solution to the deeper crisis of water scarcity.

The implications are profound. While cleanup efforts remain vital, Somalia’s experience shows that the most effective solution to plastic pollution may lie upstream – quite literally. By addressing the root causes that force communities to rely on disposable plastics, we can stop the problem at its source. Islamic Relief’s borehole project demonstrates this powerfully: where sustainable water systems exist, plastic waste reduces.

As we mark World Environment Day, perhaps our greatest opportunity lies not just in cleaning up plastic waste, but in removing the need for it altogether – one community, one water source at a time.

Mulki’s story shows what’s possible. With your help, we can turn this single borehole’s success into a wave of change. Donate today to support bringing sustainable solutions to more communities, because no mother should have to choose between her family’s survival and the planet’s health.