Our 2026 annual publication focuses on the topic of sustainability.  We present projects supported by our foundation in different fields of activity that foster critical thinking, encourage realignment, create meaning and inspire hope for renewal.

The focus of the annual report is our “Cultural Participation” funding vehicle, which was launched in fall 2023. The Stanley Thomas Johnson Foundation supports cross-disciplinary participatory cultural projects by associations, organizations and professional artists in collaboration with laypeople or various population groups. Some of the 22 supported projects are presented in this issue.  It is impressive to see how culture can repeatedly promote social interaction and have a healing effect in crisis situations.

The annual report presents psychosocial support services for refugees in Switzerland and UK that are supported by our foundation. Organizations such as Psy4Asyl in Aarau provide low-threshold services specifically for young, unaccompanied refugees who find themselves in particularly fragile situations. The results show how important this institution is for young clients who are looking for an apprenticeship or job. A report about London's Baobab Centre for Young Survivors in Exile makes it clear how cultural activities can support refugees to process their trauma and to create social connections.

Download PDF

The focus topic of the annual report is health management in the context of armed conflicts and migration. Since 2019, our foundation has been supporting two projects of the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute in refugee camps in Chad and Ethiopia. This involves long-term research projects that develop and test the use of digital technologies in medical care. With contributions from the head of the Tropical Institute, Dr. Daniel Paris and other experts from the fields of global health, humanitarian aid and technology, the current challenges in this area are described. In addition, nurses, patients and a midwife report directly on the situation in the refugee camps.

The focus topic of the annual report revolves around the topic of cultural participation in our support areas of culture as well as conflict and violence. It provides an insight into the current discourse and presents selected projects from our funding areas. These include the Bernese cultural and gastronomic center Heitere Fahne, the inclusive dance ensemble BewegGrund and the cultural activities of STEP UK for Syrian children and young people in a refugee camp in Kurdistan.

In the year 2020 which was marked by the corona pandemic, the annual report focuses on special support measures of our foundation in the areas of ​​culture and victims of conflict and violence. Selected supported projects are presented and project participants comment on their situation.