Beland /bɪ’lænd/
noun m.

A place that brings meaning to a person’s life, where one feels truly at home, safe, and at peace.

This olive tree is my beland
We all have a beland #Beland Get your copy now! Beland, mi lugar en el mundo is here Discover the story of Daniel and his grandmother, two endearing characters who show us how we all need the word #beland. *Only available in Spanish Solidarity book announcement

What #Beland is

#Beland is the place that makes you feel at home. It can be your neighborhood, a bench in the park, or your grandparents’ house.

 

#Beland is a universal concept that connects all human beings: we all have (or should have) a place that makes us feel protected and at peace.

 

#Beland is a reminder that the land is not there to be taken or exploited. The land is there so people can just be.

Origin of the word
The land is there so people can just be.

The #Beland Movement

The word #Beland is a symbol. A way to raise awareness about a fundamental human right that is far from guaranteed today: the right to have a place of safety.


If we were to internalize how hard it is to leave your beland behind—or to not have access to one at all—would we treat migrants the same way? Would it be possible to bomb Gaza without consequences?


For us, the answer is no. We believe words matter. They open minds, move crowds, drive change. That’s why, above all else, #Beland is a social movement.

We stand for:

Defend the right of every person to have a place where they can be safe and build a life.

 

Counter polarization and fear with a social language that fosters coexistence, solidarity, and collective responsibility.

Reclaim the power of ordinary, anonymous people—who are nothing less than the majority of the world.

Manifesto
#Beland stands for
coexistence, solidarity, and collective responsibility.

Our goal: to shape 2026

Our goal is to become Word of the Year 2026 by Oxford University Press.

 

A "Word of the Year" is one that shapes and embodies the significance of a given year. For example, Covid-19 and lockdown were Words of the Year in 2020.

 

What word will define 2025? Difficult choice. It has been a year of admirable solidarity and social mobilization. But it has also been a year of censored words, like genocide; complex words, like multipolarity; and heartwrenching words, like climate-displaced people.

 

We want 2026 to set a different course. We envision a future in which the main focus is on our rights and on the things that unites us. Since we believe words shape reality, #Beland is our way of starting to build that future.

 

Defending #Beland as Word of the Year 2026 is a way to send the world a message of hope, solidarity and collective responsibility.

How to become Word of the Year
Real help now

Words must be accompanied by action. Especially now, when millions of people do not have access to a safe place.

 

Behind the #Beland movement is the Alba Torres Carrera Foundation , focused on helping children, especially in situations of vulnerability. The Foundation’s commitment to the youngest has led us to launch a challenge with Save the Children: we aim to raise €10,000 before December 2025 for the Children’s Emergency Fund.

Challenge with Save the Children
Support our goals
Spread

Help us become Word of the Year 2026 and keep up with all the latest news about #Beland.

Spread the word
HELP

How much more do we need to reach €10,000? Check it out and join our efforts in any way you can.

Join the challenge
TOGETHER

Learn more about the Alba Torres Carrera Foundation and how to become part of the #Beland movement.

Bring your voice

Spread to become
Word of the Year

Every autumn, OUP identifies the most used and representative terms of the year

Out of those terms, OUP creates a shortlist with a few of them

The shortlist becomes open to the public: everyone can vote for their favourite word

The most voted word is named “Word of the Year”

How can you help?

OUP takes public feedback into consideration. Social media plays a key role: to be shortlisted, we need at least one million mentions of the hashtag #Beland worldwide.

And it is not just about words, it is also about shaping 2026. Next year should be a time to care for our beland for the beland of others.

2026: a year to care for the beland of others

Share

Share and

interact with our

content

Use

Make #Beland

part of your

conversations

Create

Write, paint,

photograph your

own #Beland

Build

Tag us in any

action that shares

the #Beland spirit

Help with the challenge

The Alba Torres Carrera Foundation has launched a challenge with Save the Children to help children in Gaza, Ukraine, and other areas undergoing conflict.

We aim to raise €10,000 before December 2025. We made an initial donation of €3,000 but now we need your collaboration.

Make a direct donation
We all have the right to a #Beland,
a place of home and safety
New #Beland solidarity t-shirts

To reach our goal with Save the Children, we have launched the solidarity t-shirts #beland. Our t-shirts are 100% cotton, they are sustainably made in Portugal, and the full cost of their production is destined to the Children’s Emergency Fund of Save the Children.

Get your solidarity t-shirt
A book with purpose: Beland, my place in the world

Beland it’s a universal feeling that stays with us throughout life, even from childhood. Now, this special idea has come to life in a beautifully illustrated storybook: Beland, my place in the world.

Follow Daniel, a curious boy who loves learning new words. One day, he stumbles upon one that turns his world upside down: move. Afraid of leaving behind his friends, his school, his neighborhood, and everything he knows, Daniel’s grandmother shares with him a word even more powerful: Beland.

With heartwarming illustrations full of color and tenderness, this story reminds us all (children and adults alike) that everyone needs a place where they feel safe.

Get your copy and make a difference

Illustrations by Raquel Aparicio

Together

#Beland is a people’s movement. The idea is that it will take on a life of its own, and anyone anywhere in the world can be part of it. #Beland is a reminder that all people are equal, and that all people have the right to live safely. It is also a reminder about the power of social collaboration and solidarity. Together, we can move the world.

How to join the movement
About us

#Beland is launched by the Alba Torres Carrera Foundation. Created in 2004 by the communication consultancy Torres y Carrera, the Foundation is named after the daughter that Paula Carrera and Xurxo Torres lost in 2002. 

 

For all its history, the Foundation has focused on helping children, especially those in vulnerable situations. It has done so with small actions at a very local level, and with little public impact.

Today, 20 years later, we cannot stand still in the face of the repeated violation of human rights and the horror suffered by thousands of children. No borders. We care about all of them. It is time to wake up and act beyond our immediate environment.

 

We will contribute our knowledge and our power (that is, our words) to activate a philanthropic initiative with a vocation to spread globally through a wide network of volunteers.

Alba Torres Carrera Foundation

Thank you

Adelaida Soriano, Agustín Lamas, Alejandra Alonso, Álvaro Sánchez,  Ángela Gómez Caruncho, Ana Otero, Ana Rego, Ania Galasinska, Belén Rodríguez, Betina Pons, Cristina Langa, Eva Rancho, Georgina Leibovich, Jordi Guillén, Juan Carlos Fité, Laura López, Laura Torres, María Yurrita, Mario Seoane, Marta Muñoz, Marta Serrano, Mónica Muela, Noa Soto, Paula Carrera, Paula Giménez, Rosa López, Santi Domínguez, Xurxo Torres.