Ukrainian Roma Advocacy Alliance (AURA) Established

February 18, 2025, marked an important milestone for the team of the Youth Agency for the Advocacy of Roma Culture (ARKA).
In partnership with the German organization Society for Threatened Peoples (GfbV), they founded the Ukrainian Roma Advocacy Alliance (AURA).

The new organization unites Roma and non-Roma activists from Ukraine and Germany who have been working for many years in the fields of human rights, research, cultural representation, and the fight against antigypsyism.

AURA aims to strengthen support for Roma communities in Ukraine and Roma refugees across Europe, particularly in Germany, by bringing together the experience, partnerships, and resources of several like-minded organizations.
The Alliance is currently in the process of registration as a non-profit organization (e.V.) in Germany.

AURA’s mission is to empower Roma and ensure their equal participation in social, cultural, and political life.
Its core goal is to combat antigypsyism and to build sustainable mechanisms for protecting Roma rights through a combination of advocacy, research, education, and cultural diplomacy.

“We created AURA so that Roma voices — in Ukraine and beyond — would be heard clearly, professionally, and on equal terms with others.
It’s about the right to be heard, about mutual support, and about a new standard of Roma advocacy in Europe,”
the founders of the Alliance stated.