Se La Vi #4: Hope – or mere survival – in impossible times

20 Aug 2025 | Se La Vi

“I try to dream more… try to extend that small period of dreams between sleep and waking up to what is real.”

As we move into the second half of 2025, we reflect on a year that already has brought unimaginable suffering to many around the world. We focus on that in an uneasy conversation with colleagues caught up in the Hell which is Gaza.

This Newsletter also captures a few examples of survival, resilience and inspiration – be that in the Democratic Republic of the Congo or in some of the many terms and expressions people across the world use to describe mutual aid and community led self-help initiatives.

In June, L2GP met with colleagues in Gaza and listened as they shared their experiences, struggles, fears, and dreams. The conversation with Yousef, Fayza, and Ahmed (pseudonyms) took place in early June – just before Eid Al Adha. It was a frank and often uneasy conversation about living in a place where hope is reduced to trying to survive, but also on both the strengths and the limitations of community-led responses in Gaza.

Since we spoke with them, the situation in Gaza has only continued to worsen, with large numbers facing starvation, increased ground offences, and the continued displacement of people to increasingly small areas of land.

“The bombing and killing is random. You walk in the street and the next moment you are dead. It is chaos. People don’t have any money left – yet you need cash for everything. It is chaotic.”

“As the war continues, what came from communities and volunteer groups was the most constructive of all. When all the institutions break down or fail, the work by community groups was the most successful.”

Hope? In Gaza hope is standing in a 2km long line for water. Hoping to survive. Hoping you’ll bring water back to your children… is available here in Arabic, English, and Hebrew.

Al Baqa Cafe, Gaza Beach, Palestine 2022 #63 – 64

a cafe lit with brightly coloured neon lights bt te ede of the water, cars and people are outside the main arch.

a black and white image of a cafe lit with bright lights bt te ede of the water, cars and people are outside the main arch.

On June 30, 2025, Israeli air force hit Al Baqa café with a 230 kg US-made bomb during the busy afternoon hours at the beachside café. More than 30 girls, boys, women and men were killed and many more wounded during that air strike. Before the bombing al Baqa had been one of the last spots where people in Gaza could turn their backs to the war and destruction, look out towards the sea and feel momentarily different.

In Mwenga, Democratic Republic of the Congo local action is a fertile seed, whose fruits ripen in all seasons, whether it rains or the ground is dry.

The children of the village used to study on the ground, in a shelter without walls or a roof. They were exposed to all forms of weather and uncertainty. A recent community group project transformed this abandoned place into a solid and welcoming school. Today, the children learn in a safe, dignified, and enriching environment. A testament to local commitment and action transforming realities and building lasting hope.

A structure with a rusty corrugated iron roof and open sides sits amid green grass in front of mountains

Mwenga school after, the roof has been replace and the building has wooden sides and windows and a door

Around the world, sclr is known by many different names that capture this feeling from Mwenga, that community-led responses and mutual aid build on natural impulses to help each other, like the rain that comes after the drought, or the yeast that helps the bread to rise. These names and terms are often an inspiration in themselves, so we continue to collect and share them. If you have examples to add please get in touch via the e-mail below. See some of these different names here.

Community-led responses continue around the world, facing new and different challenges. Yet within the increasing challenges faced by the entire humanitarian sector, Chrisitan Aid reflects on the lessons learnt from implementing sclr in Ukraine.

Over the past few months L2GP has been doing research in Sudan to learn from community-led responses and experiences there. For now, the working title is “Game changing and saving lives… support for mutual aid in White Nile, Sennar and al Jazira, Sudan. Just one quote from the research here may give you an idea of what to look forward to: “Mutual aid groups have proven that they can work when and where the old aid systems did not work. It has shown itself to be more effective at saving lives than traditional aid.”

A summary of this research will be shared in our next newsletter. In the meantime however you may want to turn to an earlier video that reflects on women-led community responses in the Nuba Mountains in 2014 – an experience which has influenced our thinking and practice ever since: Fighting Bombs with Perfume.

A figure on a pile of large rocks holding a large canister

Sclr Deep Dive

Keen to learn more about supporting community-led crisis response? As interest grows in community-led responses across the sector, we are offering a three-day online workshop to introduce humanitarian, peace, and development professionals to the key principles, concepts and tools of sclr. Join us to learn from practice to date, and explore the value and potential impacts of these methodologies across different crisis and response contexts. The number of participants may have to be limited, so please don’t wait too long to register.

Dates: Tuesday 23rd – Thursday 25th September 2025

Location: Online (Zoom)

Register Now

“Se la vi” is L2GP’s newsletter. With a focus on supporting community led responses, it is published 3 – 4 times a year. “Se la vi” takes its name from Haiti, where the banner photo was shot a few weeks after the 2010 earthquake. At L2GP we believe in people, poetry, and good visual art – rather than relying too heavily on LogFrames and policy papers. Thus, you may come across the occasional poem, quote or photograph with little or no explanation.