Ithaca City of Asylum (ICOA) provides sanctuary to writers and artists whose works are suppressed, whose lives are threatened, whose cultures may be vanishing or whose languages may be endangered. An all-volunteer project of the Center for Transformative Action, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization affiliated with Cornell University, ICOA is a member of the International Cities of Refuge Network, which joins communities around the world advocating for freedom of expression.

Formed in 2001, ICOA has hosted nine residents: poet and essayist Yi Ping (China), playwright and novelist Reza Daneshvar (Iran), poet and memoirist Sarah Mkhonza (Swaziland), poet and playwright Irakli Kakabadze (Georgia), journalist and memoirist Sonali Samarasinghe (Sri Lanka), journalist and policy analyst Raza Rumi (Pakistan), editorial cartoonist Pedro X. Molina (Nicaragua), poet, critic, and novelist Dmitry Bykov (Russia), and film director, scriptwriter, puppeteer, and actor Arthur Groys (Russia). 

ICOA serves as a bridge to the community, assisting visiting writers and their families in meeting the challenges of a new environment.

ICOA assists residents for two years in meeting their daily expenses while in Ithaca, including housing, furnishings, transportation, translators’ fees, legal expenses, and performance and publication of new work. ICOA is supported by contributions from individuals and generous grants from the Park Foundation, Cornell University, the Crime Victims & Sexual Assault Survivors Fund of the Community Foundation of Tompkins County.

Watch this short documentary from 2017 by intern Maureen Wietecha. Email us for more information.