Dear backer,

I am volunteering on Lesvos again. It feels great to be back!

The situation is much changed since I was here last. Numbers of arrivals are currently lower than the huge flows of people we saw back in October/November, although they are still six to seven times higher than this time last year - there have been more arrivals on Lesvos in the first two months of this year than the first seven months of 2015. The recent decision by Austria to greatly restrict its refugee intake has led to a domino effect of border closures across central and eastern Europe. These measures, along with Macedonia's refusal to allow Afghans to cross its border, have led to a bottleneck of thousands of refugees stranded in Greece in dire conditions. There is great concern about what will happen in the coming months as the weather improves and the dinghies start arriving in vast numbers again.

I am again working with the Starfish Foundation. Oxy transit camp has closed since I left and been replaced with an IRC camp which now takes all arrivals in the north of the island. We are responsible for clothes distribution here. We also manage arrivals to Molyvos and Petra harbours which are picked up by Greek and Frontex coastguards. I have also worked shifts in Moria registration camp in the south of the island allocating people to Refugee Housing Units and dormitories for vulnerable people. On the quieter days I have been improving storage space as well as builing a shop display space where donated clothes that are unsuitable for refugees are made available to local Greeks in need - you'd be amazed at what people send! I am excited to start work on renovating an old stone building that will become the new Starfish headquarters. I also have plans to work with a volunteer architect who is developing plans for landscaping and sanitation in Pikpa camp for vulnerable people.

I plan to stay for at least two months until April and I have a continued need for personal funding for food, travel, car hire and fuel and tools and building materials. Any contribution towards these costs, however small is greatly appreciated.

Many thanks.