At last week's Olympic opening ceremony in Rio, the first-ever Refugee Olympic Team marched in the Parade of Nations carrying flags emblazoned with the five-ring Olympics logo. It was a powerful unifying gesture in a time marked by global unrest; these ten athletes were representing not just their war-torn countries, but the world. But in a certain light, assigning this team the most universal sporting symbol on Earth was to deprive them an identity of their own. What this group really needed was its own symbol.

Now, members of the Refugee Olympic Team have that option. A non-profit called The Refugee Nation commissioned artists to develop a flag and national anthem for the Olympic team that would represent the athletes and the growing number of refugees around the world. "We felt we could do more," say Artur Lipori and Caro Rebello, the co-founders of The Refugee Nation. "We felt they deserved a more unique identity."

The flag is a banner of bright orange crossed by a single black band—colors that evoke the life jackets so many refugees have worn on their journeys to safety. “If you’ve worn a lifejacket as a refugee, you will feel something when you see this flag,” says Amsterdam-based Syrian refugee Yara Said, who designed the flag. “It’s a powerful memory.”

Yolande Mabika, a member of the Refugee Olympic Team, with the flag. The Refugee Nation

Shortly after graduating from Damascus University in 2014, Said left Syria to embark on a nearly year-long journey that took her across the sea and into nine different countries before she landed in Amsterdam. There, she learned about the effort to create a flag for the Olympic team. The concept came to her immediately. Said wanted the flag to be universal and inclusive. “It had to be international,” she says, and it had to be simple. Above all else, “it had to leave an impression."

Though the International Olympics Committee won't permit the athletes to wear the flags during competition, The Refugee Nation has distributed thousands of flags around Rio to rally support for the displaced competitors. It’s currently circulating a petition to allow the athletes to carry the flag during the Games. Even if that doesn't work out, Said says she's proud to have helped make a symbol that represents her community. “The flag is a statement,” she says. “We are here, we are strong, we are human, and we’re going to go on.”