How to support a colleague whose home country has an ongoing crisis?

Text terhi hautamäki image getty image english translation marko saajanaho

War or violence is happening in a colleague’s home country. They are certainly sad and worried about their loved ones. Should this be brought up in conversation, or would that just cause even more stress?

An Iranian researcher living in Finland, staying anonymous in this Acatiimi article for safety reasons, has encountered the difficulty of talking about such matters when working at the university. The researcher says Iranians in Finland are physically safe but live through the events of their homeland emotionally. This is crushing.

The researcher’s Iranian acquaintances have said that coworkers do not always even ask how she is doing. Perhaps they are being timid – not knowing Iranian politics, they do not want to offend. The coworkers of the researcher interviewed by Acatiimi fortunately do talk about the topic. One even actively follows the situation in Iran and asks about the interviewee’s family.

“They say they cannot help at all, but I truly appreciate this human connection. People do not have to be politically correct. If they listen and are interested, that gives me support.”

Should this be brought up in conversation, or would that just cause even more stress?

The researcher says no one wishes for war. Many Iranians, the interviewee included, still find outside pressure the only way to get rid of the administration stamping on human rights. The situation is complicated and evokes conflicted emotions. There is sadness when the administration’s propaganda ends up on the news – or when the university acknowledges Iranians due to the war but stayed silent during previous mass arrests and executions.

At the time of the interview, Iranians had been without internet connectivity for over two months. Phone calls to Iran fail to go through, and calling from Iran is extremely expensive. Once, the researcher was informed via Telegram that the street her parents live on was bombed. She heard an Iranian student talking on the phone and asked if the student’s mother could call the researcher’s mother.

“When my daughter wished me a happy Mother’s Day, I cried because I could not say the same to my own mother. My mother was able to call that evening, and I wanted to hear her voice for longer. At the same time, I wondered how much the call cost her. The worst part was that even on Mother’s Day, I thought they were listening to our call.” The researcher being interviewed says she does not always open up about these matters at work. Sometimes, it is easier to smile and say”I’m fine”.

The work community can provide support by being flexible when their colleague is not at their best.

“I often avoid going to lunch or coffee because it feels terrible to make people sad by talking about Iran. Maybe if they invite me themselves, I get the feeling that they want to hear about it. Even an invitation to lunch or coffee can show support and mean a lot.”

According to the researcher, the work community can provide support by being flexible when their colleague is not at their best. Support is also needed by grant-funded researchers lacking access to occupational health services, and young students living through the crisis while separated from their families.

Peer reviews and workshops

Postdoctoral researcher Vadim Romashov has been organising workshops to consider the effect of crises on the university community. He has also heard how hard talking can be:

“Some say they have an Iranian colleagues who must be affected by the events in Iran, but do not know how to approach or what to say. At the same time, I have been hearing from Iranians that nobody seems to care. They wish their colleagues would come talk about these matters.”

Romashov works at the University of Eastern Finland, but the subject emerged for him in 2022 when he was teaching in a master’s programme at the Tampere University’s Tampere Peace Research Institute (TAPRI). Russia had invaded Ukraine, and growing anxiety was evident among the students and staff.

The students asked for the matter to be addressed. Romashov heard that the University of Helsinki’s Aleksanteri Institute has a peer support group where people can talk in an informal and confidential setting. He organised an equivalent group in Tampere, along with a series of workshops with his colleagues.

In addition to war and genocide, people at universities are affected by matters such as natural disasters in their home countries.

The Tampere University Association of Researchers and Teachers (TATTE) joined Romashov’s work, supported the organisation of workshops, and created a permanent working group to address the topic.

In addition to war and genocide, people at universities are affected by matters such as natural disasters in their home countries. TATTE Chair Derek Ruez says that crises have a personal dimension and a more general one. Some feel fear or grief for their loved ones. Others feel hatred over the injustice of a conflict. Others still feel loneliness when a crisis does not affect people around them in the same way. This topic already came up in TATTE’s international staff survey in 2021.

“We did not ask about it, but in their open responses, people commented they felt isolated. A conflict or crisis in their homeland raised negative emotions.”

Crises also affect work in a more general sense, such as travel opportunities and field work safety. Teachers must consider sensitivity when their students have families in warzones. A group may include students whose homelands are in conflict with each other.”

“In addition, increased safety measures the university takes to respond to geopolitical tensions may challenge academic freedom. These measures may have discriminatory effects on academic personnel based on their heritage”, Ruez mentions.

Directing to a psychologist is not enough

According to Romashov, it is essential for the university to understand the problem and offer psychosocial support. It is not enough for the administration to list parties that can be contacted when necessary.

“Often, the university directs you to services like occupational health or student health services. Even though a psychologist can be a great help, that alone is not enough. That makes an issue with global effects and structural dimensions psychological and personal.”

Romashov highlights the importance of support from the work community. Geopolitical crises should not simply be lumped with international staff as a matter for them. In a global world, crises can affect one regardless of their nationality.

World conflicts can also create tensions within the university. Romashov says many are quick to make assumptions about someone’s thoughts or feelings based on their nationality.

Geopolitical crises should not simply be lumped with international staff as a matter for them. In a global world, crises can affect one regardless of their nationality.

“It is important to organise facilitated dialogue, meet, and talk in a confidential environment so people do not withdraw into themselves and assume what a member of their community may think about them.”

Ruez says the workshops have been useful because they have offered the opportunity to consider matters as a community. It is also good to bring up the subject with a close colleague and ask how they are doing. That shows you care but gives the other room to choose when and how they want to talk.

“If you have a good relationship with the colleague, they probably appreciate you asking how they are, especially if it can be done in a way that does not put pressure on them to answer in a certain way.”

Translator’s note: This translation is based on the Finnish version of the article. Any interview quotes originally in English have been translated from Finnish back into English, so there may be differences in the wording and sentence structure compared to the original responses.