Start With A Friend Austria

Start with a Friend is a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing refugees and locals together as equals through friendship.

In 2014, Franziska Birnbach came up with the idea for the project, inspired by her friendship with a Syrian man. Together with two friends, Marten Kaspar and Sarah Rosenthal, she developed the concept of creating “tandems” — one refugee and one local — to build meaningful friendships while fostering a growing community.

Guided by the core belief that “strangers can become friends,” the initiative quickly gained support. The volunteer team expanded, and in 2015, “Start with a Friend e.V.” was officially founded as a registered non-profit organization.

Since its founding, Start with a Friend has connected around 10,000 people in friendships across 21 locations in Germany. In August 2018, Start with a Friend Austria began operating at its 22nd location in Vienna.