Fly With Me: a multi-city kite festival

On the 20th August 2022, in an epic aerial act of solidarity and togetherness, help us fill the skies with colour, celebrate the ancient Afghan craft of kite-making and mark one year on since the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan through joining Fly With Me's multi-city kite festival.

Alongside Afghan artists and theatre company Good Chance, we invite you to help celebrate Afghan culture through the simple joy of kite flying. Together, we can come together to call for equal and fair treatment of all people seeking safety as well as for greater support for people still living in Afghanistan.

Afghanaid is thrilled to be the official charity partner of Fly With Me, with all proceeds of the kite-flying festival going towards our By Her Side appeal, through which the UK government is matching donations made until 30th September 2022.

How can I get involved?

Fly With Me invites you to make and help us fill the sky with thousands of traditional Afghan kites - with 16 events already happening across the UK and Europe and lots of resources to get you started, it's easy to get involved:

Make your own kite 

Follow Fly With Me's downloadable instructions and watch their step-by-step film guide to make an authentic Afghan kite alongside master kite-maker Sanjar Qiam. Head to a park, hill, or public centre on 20th August and launch your handmade kite into the sky to show that you have not forgotten people in Afghanistan.

Download a free digital kite-making instruction pack    Watch Sanjar Qiam's tutorial

Join a festival near you!

With your kite in hand, head along to an official kite-flying event near you. As well as public kite making workshops in the lead up to the event, Fly With Me have festivals on the 20th August happening in:

• Bradford - in partnership with National Literacy Trust Bradford;
• Dover - in partnership with Future Foundry, Kent Refugee Action Network and Samphire: Market Square, Dover;
• Folkestone - in partnership with Creative Folkestone and Folkestone Fringe;
• Glasgow - in partnership with Citizens Theatre: The Rose Garden, Gorbals, Glasgow;
• London - produced by Good Chance: Parliament Hill, London;
• Manchester - in partnership with Manchester International Festival, HOME Manchester, Community Arts North West.

Plus UK-based community events in locations including Anglesey, Bangor, Isle of Wight, Lichfield, Liverpool, Manningtree, Scunthorpe, Sheffield, Shambala Festival in Northamptonshire, and Europe-based events in Berlin, Copenhagen, Paris and Pas-de-Calais.

These events are free and open to all!

Find your nearest Fly With Me Event

Or why not host your own kite-flying event?

Can't find an event in your area? Keen to bring together your community, family, school or sports team to stand with Afghans at this challenging time? If you're thinking of hosting your own event, drop us a line.

Why not turn your kite-flying event into a fundraiser for Afghanaid by taking inspiration from our fantastic six- and three-year-old fundraising heroes, Fonzie and Rocco, who are climbing 10 North-Yorkshire peaks (the equivalent height of Afghanistan's tallest mountain, Noshaq), to fly their kites as high as they can.

Check out what they're up to & lend your support

Spread the word & show us your kites!

Thousands of kites will fly across the UK and Europe in solidarity with the people of Afghanistan. A thousand kites can become a million kites if we all spread the word, and share our moments of hope in the sky.

1. Help us spread the word about the 20th August: download the Fly With Me flyer here and shout from the rooftops!
2. We want to see you making and flying your kites. Follow the events on social media, share a photo or video of your kite using the hashtags #FlyWithMe #RememberAfghanistan, and don't forget to tag @afghanaidhq, @Afghanaid, @goodchancetheatre @goodchancecal.

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If events like these are up your street, you might also be interested in joining us for our Afghan Cultural Festival with Elaha Soroor.