Some conversations leave you thinking long after the microphones are off. My discussion with Ola Sobieraj is one of those. It’s the kind of conversation that reminds me why this podcast exists: to honour the quiet, persistent, and deeply human work that drives real change.
Ola is a community organiser, immigration advisor, linguist, facilitator, and a powerful advocate for EU citizens in the UK. But more than any title, she is someone who understands—intimately—what it means to navigate a system not built with you in mind. She arrived in Northern Ireland more than 25 years ago, one of the only Polish migrants in her town, and her story began not with policy work but with a personal desire to help others find the welcome she once received.
What began as interpretation support and English classes evolved, over the years, into something much larger: advocacy, community organising, and ultimately challenging the very systems that create barriers in the first place. As Ola beautifully puts it, her work shifted from “jumping over hoops to removing the hoops.”
The Human Cost of Systems
In our conversation, Ola breaks down the EU Settlement Scheme in a way only someone working on the ground can: the confusion, the digital exclusion, the fear, and the emotional burden carried by people who suddenly found themselves subject to immigration control after years—sometimes decades—of life in the UK.
She reminds us that access to justice isn’t just about courts or legal letters. It’s about dignity. It’s about being able to understand your rights, to feel safe enough to ask for help, and to believe that you belong. And it’s about seeing the person before the paperwork.
From Fear to Agency
One of my favourite moments was when Ola shared how members of a peer‑support group—people who once feared turning their cameras on during Zoom calls—eventually began writing to MPs, attending meetings, and speaking publicly about their experiences. It is a powerful illustration of how courage grows in community, and how lived experience can transform someone from “service user” into organiser, advocate, and leader.
This is the heart of her work at the3million: shifting power from institutions back to communities, and proving that people most affected by policies should be the ones shaping them.
Why Migrant‑Led Organising Matters
Ola speaks honestly about how large-scale change can feel painfully slow. But she also reminds us that transformation often happens in the invisible moments—explaining a letter, translating a form, creating a safe space to share a story.
These small acts build something extraordinary: connection, agency, and hope.
She also talks about her growing mission to ensure migrant communities are politically visible, represented, and taken seriously in Northern Ireland. From organising Polish community networks to helping establish the cross-party Friends of Poland group at Stormont, Ola is working to ensure that belonging isn’t conditional, temporary, or something people must constantly prove.
Holding Hope in Hostile Times
We also talk about the reality of today’s political climate, where hope can feel scarce for migrants in the UK. But Ola’s faith is rooted not in government promises, but in people—real people, working together, supporting each other, and refusing to disappear into the “other” category.
Her story is a reminder that change is relational. It’s collective. And it begins with someone daring to say: this system isn’t working—and we deserve better.
Why Ola Is an Agent of Change
In her humility, Ola initially resisted the idea of being called an agent of change. But if you listen closely—if you hear the countless lives she has touched, the systems she challenges, the courage she cultivates in others—you’ll realise she embodies it fully.
Change doesn’t have to be loud to be transformative. Sometimes it looks like a migrant woman—who once arrived alone in a small town—helping thousands reclaim their voice in a system designed to silence them.
And that is exactly why I am honoured to share this conversation with you.
Listen to the full episode here
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