The first ever Community Radio Awards took place in the UK last night at Birmingham’s City University, and #hexology is delighted to announce that the Jaibli Salaam Radio Series sponsored by #hexology and produced by Gilly Smith for Radio Reverb, won a Silver Award in the Speech and Journalism Category.

Created for Syrian refugees the radio series is a message of hope from Brighton’s Syrian community. Using the free hexology app, the five hour-long programmes were written into QR codes, and transported to the refugee camps in Calais via The School Bus Project for the people to discover.

Conceived when the burgeoning Syrian refugee crisis started to unfold, the Jaibli Salaam project was born out of a realisation that #hexology could be used to send information to travellers, or people in the camps. Although many have lost their possessions, a large majority of refugees have Android phones and are using them to navigate their way across borders, and so we hatched a plan to send them a message of hope.

Setting up the content inside hexology is quick and easy to do, hexology takes the pain out of assembling a page and sharing it via a QR code. What’s more, the information shared is open for others to join and suddenly it’s a conversation!

Kate McAllister of the School Bus Project had successfully crowdfunded the money she needed to kit out a school bus and take it to the Calais Jungle, she kindly offered to stick the QR codes around the bus and also distribute them in the camps.

Founded on a series of interviews with Syrian families living in Brighton who share their thoughts, feelings and experiences, the Jaibli Salaam radio series is made up of five, one-hour programmes. The programmes explore Syrian culture through memories, music and food, and culminate in a house party which brought all of the Brighton-based families together.

Broadcasted on Radio Reverb the programmes have also been posted in the GPS location of the Calais Jungle, for anyone in that location to discover. It’s our hope that these programmes will inspire fellowship and bring hope to those in need.

Congratulations to Gilly Smith who recorded and edited the radio programmes. Gilly is a prolific writer, producer and journalist and has in the past contributed to this blog, she is currently writing a book and #hexology wishes her luck!

To find out how you can use #hexology to parachute your messages around the world get in touch.