I wad delighted to present a High Sheriff’s Award to Bengisu Sevik from the Dialogue Society in Birmingham.
Bengisu serves as a lead storyteller in “Life of a Chickpea” sessions that the Dialogue Society run in schools across the Country to introduce children to themes of empathy, coexistence and responsibility in support of key values of kindness, respect and community awareness. Bengisu delivered over 50 of these sessions during 2025, many of which were in the West Midlands and she consistently gets fantastic feedback from the teachers with whom she engages.
In addition Bengisu has continued to work in developing meaningful interfaith projects that bring people together to build trust, dialogue and friendship. In recent years, Bengisu has made particular efforts to build relationships between the Muslim and Jewish communities to keep the city cohesive, welcoming and resilient.