Thesis advisor: Shawn McGuffey / Historically, the U.S. has been among the top nation-states of global refugee resettlement, and it continues to be, despite recent domestic political rhetoric against this policy. The U.S. welfare state provides resources to contracted nonprofit immigrant-serving organizations to carry out the U.S. resettlement policy. However, scholars under-examine front-line welfare policy practices with refugees. This area is critical to examine in this historical moment, because scholars argue the rise of neoliberalism has negatively affected the nonprofit human service sector’s capacity to provide social rights to the most vulnerable (Hasenfeld and Garrow 2012). Drawing on participant-observation at a northeastern resettlement organization and 50 semi-structured interviews with front-line bureaucrats and refugees between 2010-2015, I examine how bureaucrats perceive and shape refugees’ initial processes of resettling in the U.S., and how refugees also view this experience. My dissertation found competing restrictive and inclusionary perceptions of and practices with Iraqi, Darfurian, and Bhutanese refugees, which calls into question how, and why, welfare subjects with legal refugee status, are perceived distinctly by their social locations in the shrinking and stigmatized U.S. welfare context. Additionally, my dissertation illuminates how refugees evaluate their resettlement experiences and belonging in the U.S. I present my research in three articles: My first article, Rights and Responsibilities: Bureaucrats’ Competing Frames about U.S. Resettlement Objectives for Refugees, examines the salient frames that bureaucrats used to describe the objectives of U.S. resettlement for refugees. I found two competing frameworks informed their perceptions: market citizenship responsibilities and human rights. By this, I mean local level bureaucrats discussed their role to provide services either geared at making refugees responsible on a path to self-sufficiency, or to provide them with human rights. While I found the responsibilities frame was more dominant, contrary to past findings (Clevenger et al. 2014; Nawyn 2007), frame usage differed depending on one’s professional status and level of experience. Experienced (paid) bureaucrats tended to emphasize the responsibilities frame as most important for assisting refugees with becoming self-sufficient in American society. In contrast, less experienced, temporary (unpaid) bureaucrats generally emphasized the rights frame as most important to assist refugees with gaining membership in the U.S. These insights expand recent immigrant welfare scholarship by illuminating how different local level bureaucratic roles, in contrast to organizational (Nawyn 2010) or city level differences (Clevenger et al. 2014), correlate with distinct frames about refugees. Finally, I discuss how frame usage informs competing notions of the street-level politics of refugee belonging in American society. My second article, Refugees Will Be Poor! Managing Diverging Mobility Transitions to the American Welfare Class, explores how local level bureaucrats evaluate Iraqi and Bhutanese refugees’ “deservingness” of resettlement benefits in the U.S., based on their compliance with self-sufficiency resettlement goals. I argue that bureaucrats divide refugees into “deserving” and “undeserving” poor categories using ethnic and social class distinctions. Specifically, I examined how bureaucrats made decisions to discipline refugees to adhere to a self-sufficiency path. Consequently, these decisions revealed their distinct perceptions of refugee deservingness. Contrary to past scholarship that found race as most salient in informing welfare disciplinary practices and notions of deservingness (Schram 2005; Soss, Fording and Schram 2008), I found bureaucrats used refugees’ ethnicity as a marker for class origins to make decisions to discipline them. They identified Iraqis as having professional class origins; thus, they experienced “unwanted” downward mobility in the U.S. welfare class. In contrast, they viewed Bhutanese as having low class origins; thus, they experienced “desired” upward mobility in the same welfare class. As a result, bureaucrats thought more discipline was needed with Iraqis, compared to the Bhutanese because of their distinct behavioral reactions to their respective mobility shifts. Thus, bureaucrats marked Iraqis as “undeserving” and Bhutanese as “deserving” in their processes of resettling in the U.S. My third article, Waiting for Mobility: Refugee Incorporation as a Process of Temporal Belonging, examines Iraqi and Darfurian refugees’ sense of belonging, on their path toward social mobility in the U.S. I found Iraqis perceived waiting as a lasting obstacle on a generally blocked mobility path; consequently, they felt a sense of enduring social insecurity and a lack of belonging. In contrast, Darfurians perceived waiting as a temporary obstacle to achievable mobility; thus, they felt a sense of belonging, despite feeling a temporary state of social insecurity. Refugees who reconstructed a generally secure past professional class origin (Iraqis), compared to their insecure U.S. class location, expressed more frustration about waiting for mobility. In contrast, refugees who reconstructed a more politically and economically insecure past origin (Darfurians), compared to their secure conditions in the U.S., expressed positive hope for mobility. Bridging welfare theories of waiting (Auyero 2011; Reid 2013) with theories of belonging (Nawyn 2011; Yuval-Davis 2006), I build an immigrant incorporation process theory of temporal belonging to illuminate how refugees’ perceptions of waiting for mobility inform their feelings of belonging in the U.S. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2016. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Sociology.

Thesis advisor: Margaret Lombe / Thesis advisor: John Cawthorne / Social service delivery to refugees in the United States may vary depending on the different cultural and historical backgrounds that people bring with them to the resettlement process. The Kunama ethnic group from Eritrea, who fled their country for refugee camps in Ethiopia, provide a particularly challenging case as they most often have limited English-language skills, no employment experience outside of farming and herding, and a complex political history. This study contributes to the knowledge base of refugee resettlement and adjustment into the U.S. To gain an understanding of challenges faced by refugees as they settle in the U.S., two Kunama refugees from Boston were interviewed to provide their own stories. In addition, a literature review of the conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea, Kunama culture, and the refugee situation was conducted. The findings are included. The Kunama in the U.S. are faced with the challenges of finding jobs to become economically self-sufficient, limited access to furthering their education, language barriers in health care, and learning to navigate the American environment and way of life. Culturally sensitive and informed social services are vital sources of support for equipping the Kunama and other refugees with transitional help in each of these areas, particularly in maintaining physical protection, well-being, and guarding against potential mental health problems. / Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2008. / Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Social Work, Graduate School of. / Discipline: Education, Lynch School of. / Discipline: College Honors Program.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-28T20:37:33Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Celso Roberto Nunes.pdf: 6695304 bytes, checksum: c7942f4a2b9fbf9b3d524fca9759f292 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-10-06 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / The work consists of a psychosocial study of the meanings of technical and resettlement for relocated families and an assessment of the residential satisfaction of these families, from a case study: the Residential Zilda Arns in Teresina, Piauí. This is a qualitative study used semi-structured interviews, which was performed content analysis by computer program NUD-IST and had its analysis and interpretation 15 families resettled, 4 technicians, equivalent to 5% and 50% respectively. The study it indicated that the joined meanings had turned around terms such as: in a social constructionist view of the critical and environmental psychology based largely on Lincoln (1994), Ibáñez (1994), Scott (2006), Amérigo (1995) and Wiesenfeld (1997), since these approaches allow us to understand the power relations and exploitation found among the actors involved, the follows: solution, output, need, requirement and satisfaction. The study also showed that the resettlement process represented a gain for professional technicians and improvement of housing conditions for families affected, but put them in vulnerable situations causing a high psychological cost. We observed an overall satisfaction level is high, especially in the components meet with neighbors and with the locality (supported by CAPES) / O trabalho consiste em um estudo psicossocial dos significados do reassentamento para técnicos e para famílias reassentadas e uma avaliação da satisfação residencial dessas famílias, a partir de um estudo de caso: o Residencial Zilda Arns em Teresina-Piauí. Trata-se de uma pesquisa qualitativa com utilização de entrevistas semi-estruturadas, das quais foi realizada a análise de conteúdo pelo programa computacional NUD-IST e que teve sua análise e interpretação numa visão socioconstrucionista crítica e da Psicologia Ambiental. Fundamentada, sobretudo, em Lincoln (1994), Ibáñez (1994), Scott (2006), Amérigo (1995) e Wiesenfeld (1997). Essas abordagens nos permitem compreender as relações de poder e exploração encontradas entre os atores envolvidos, a saber: 15 famílias reassentadas e 4 técnicos, o equivalente a 5% e 50% respectivamente. O estudo indicou que os significados encontrados giraram em torno de termos como: solução, saída, necessidade, obrigação e satisfação. O estudo também evidenciou que o processo de reassentamento representou um ganho profissional para os técnicos e um melhoramento das condições de habitabilidade para as famílias afetadas, contudo colocou-as em situação de vulnerabilidade, ocasionando um alto custo psicológico. Observou-se um alto nível de satisfação global, sobretudo nos componentes satisfação com os vizinhos e com a localidade (apoio CAPES)

This research investigates if the resettlement in the Upper Paunglaung dam affected men and women differently. The purpose is to identify gendered risks and show how the processes of the resettlement are different according to gender. To understand the results and analysis it includes a background chapter of women in Myanmar society. There are five aspects this research implies are crucial for a successful resettlement project which are information, compensation, economic impacts, social impacts and remedy. These five aspects are part of the process of being relocated. This allowed the research to explore each aspect in a descriptive manner and from a gendered perspective. It uses two reports from the case and a socio-economic survey with responses from 2013 and 2016. This allowed the research to see if there are patterns between the years. The findings show that women are excluded from information meetings regarding the resettlement, losing the female perspective when discussing compensation. Economic stress impacted the households differently depending on gender and social roles were jeopardized, creating stress and unease. Women face both labor work and domestic work while their husbands worked elsewhere and sent remittances. Remedy was not met with failure of delivering compensation packages. However, households found that the housing standards and religious buildings had improved. The research call attention to the exclusion of women in the resettlement projects and what risks they are more exploited to and why.

O reassentamento involuntário é uma forma de intervenção que promove a remoção forçada de uma população de suas casas para uma nova casa em outra localidade, visando à implementação de um projeto de habitação. Sendo um processo que envolve mudanças de casa, espaço e comunidade, o presente trabalho busca uma maior compreensão sobre a dimensão psicológica do reassentamento involuntário a partir da perspectiva de famílias reassentadas sobre a sua experiência e os sentidos atribuídos ao processo. Assim, foram entrevistados quatro reassentados do Programa de Aceleração do Crescimento/Projetos Prioritários de Investimento, do município de Pinhais do estado do Paraná, em diferentes estágios do reassentamento. Considerando o espaço como simbólico e a casa como referência do indivíduo no mundo, verificou-se a grande mobilização de conteúdos emocionais a partir da experiência do reassentamento para estes sujeitos. A ausência de participação na execução do programa e as perdas inerentes às mudanças exigidas, em especial da casa, mobilizaram imagens de sofrimento e morte por parte dos reassentados-independente de uma concordância anterior dos entrevistados pelo reassentamento. Assim, antes que possam se ver como beneficiários de uma casa nova, os reassentados enfrentam perdas profundas e uma morte simbólica, necessitando de uma elaboração da experiência para conseguir reconstruir a sua vida, seu lar e, por fim, renascer / Involuntary resettlement is a form of intervention that promotes the forced removal of a population from their homes to a new home in another location in order to implement a housing project. Being a process that involves home changes, and community space, this paper seeks a greater understanding of the psychological dimension of the involuntary resettlement from the perspective of resettled families about their experience and the meanings attributed to the process. Consequently, we interviewed four resettled PAC program / PPI in the city of Pinhais / Paraná, at different stages of resettlement. Considering the space as a symbol and the house as the individual reference in the world, there was a great mobilization of emotional content from the resettlement experience for these persons. The lack of participation in the program implementation and losses of the inescapable changes, especially the house, mobilized suffering and death images by the resettled - regardless of a previous agreement of the interviewed about the resettlement. So, before they can see themselves beneficiaries of a new home, the resettled must deal with deep losses and a symbolic death, requiring an elaboration of experience to be able to reconstruct their life, their home and finally reborn

Esta pesquisa teve como proposta discutir a respeito dos custos sociais nos empreendimentos hidrelétricos, com base em uma análise teórica a respeito do tratamento concedido às populações afetadas por Usinas Hidrelétricas (UHEs), quando se abordam questões como indenização e compensação financeira dos meios de sobrevivência. No primeiro momento, fez-se um breve levantamento bibliográfico sobre o conceito de custos sociais e a política energética da dam industry. Posteriormente, realizou-se um Estudo de Caso da UHE de Irapé (MG), com um breve relato sobre o processo ambiental para a obtenção da Licença Prévia (LP), Licença de Instalação (LI) e Licença de Operação (LO), assim como o desenvolvimento do Termo de Ajustamento de Conduta (TAC) depois denominado de Termo de Acordo (TA). Na prática, tentou-se perceber como foi o acordado entre a CEMIG e a população e o realizado pela população, perante dados obtidos por meio de pesquisa de campo. Por meio desses dados, buscou-se uma contraposição entre o discurso técnico e o saber local para a formação do custo social nos empreendimentos hidrelétricos. É importante ressaltar que na presente pesquisa foi realizada uma análise de documentos. Isso equivale a dizer que não se pretende generalizar o caso apresentado, apenas apontar especificidades, a fim de se questionar as totalidades. / The purpose of this research was to apresented what are the social costs in hydroelectric plants, from a theoretical analysis of how populations are affected by Power Plants (HPPs) are treated when, we talk about compensation and compensating financial means of survival, according to the Brazilian constitution are social rights of any Brazilian access to education, health, work, housing, leisure. The data acquired from the Energy Company of Minas Gerais (Cemig), allow questions about the relationship between entrepreneurial and involuntarily displaced population. First, it made a brief literature review on the concept of \"social costs\" and energy policy of \"dam industry. It was later made a case study of UHE Plant, MG, with a brief account of the environmental process for obtaining the Preliminary License (LP), Installation License (LI) and Operation License (LO) and the development of the Term of Conduct Adjustment (TAC) after called the Settlement Agreement (TA). We tried to realize in practice, as was planned by Cemig and lived by the population today before data obtained from field research. In addition, research also shows some testimonials of people who live in the region that were affected as well as the technicians of the Federation State of the Environment (FEAM) who participated in the development and monitoring of the Settlement Agreement and the representatives of the entrepreneur. Using these data, we sought a contrast between the technical discourse and local knowledge for the formation of social cost in hydroelectric projects. Importantly, this research is an analysis of documents. That is to say that it is not intended to generalize the presented case, only specific point in order to question the totalities.

nÃo hà / O presente trabalho resulta de uma pesquisa de campo empreendida em Nova Jaguaribara-CE, cidade projetada e construÃda pelo Governo do Estado do Cearà como alternativa para reassentar a populaÃÃo deslocada de Jaguaribara (municÃpio histÃrico e com grande zona rural), devido à construÃÃo da Barragem do CastanhÃo. Busquei nessa investigaÃÃo compreender as representaÃÃes dos moradores sobre o modo de vida na cidade planejada, pois devido ao novo modelo, formas de sociabilidade diversas daquelas que os moradores estavam habituados passaram a existir. Diante do exposto, a intenÃÃo foi compreender como o modo de vida dos moradores foi alterado no contexto da nova configuraÃÃo urbana. Para descrever e analisar tal problemÃtica reuni dados qualitativos, colhidos por meio de entrevistas semi-estruturadas, gravadas com moradores locais; de conversas informais e de observaÃÃes registradas em diÃrio de campo. Analisei ainda, documentos oficiais do governo do Estado sobre o projeto da Barragem e da nova cidade, bem como recortes de jornais sobre o assunto. Nos relatos analisados està presente a percepÃÃo dos entrevistados acerca da cidade planejada, que oscila, entre elogios à estrutura ampla e moderna do espaÃo e a insatisfaÃÃo por terem que conviver com pessoas âde foraâ que transitam pela cidade. Outros entrevistados se referem a problemas, como: vizinhanÃa, sobrevivÃncia, limpeza urbana, estÃtica e distÃncia espacial. / This work results from a field research undertaken in Nova (New) Jaguaribara, a city designed and built by the state government of Cearà as an alternative to resettle the displaced population of Jaguaribara (a historic city with a large rural zone) due to the construction of The CastanhÃo Dam. This investigation sought to understand the representations of residents about the way of life in the planned city. This is because the new model has brought new forms of sociability, different from what the residents were accustomed. Given the above, the intention was to understand how the lifestyle of the residents has changed under the new urban configuration. To describe and analyze this problem, I gathered qualitative data collected through semi-structured interviews, recorded with local residents, informal conversations andobservations recorded in field journal. Also researched official documents of state government on the Dam project and the newcity as well as newspaper clippings on the subject. We can find in the reports analyzed the views of respondents about the planned city, ranging from praise to the large and modern structure, to dissatisfaction about having to live with "outsiders" that move around the city. Other respondents referred to problems such as: neighborhood, survival, urban sanitation, aesthetics and spatial distance.

This study explored the resettlement-related challenges that refugees encounter in the United States (U.S.). It utilized a qualitative research design with semi-structured interviews with three refugee families from different countries of origin: Afghanistan, Burma, and Iraq. The interviews were analyzed through a system of coding and categorization in order to develop themes of commonly reported challenges across participants. Six dominant themes of resettlement‑related challenges were identified: employment, financial insecurities, bureaucracy, English language competency, family separation, and unfulfilled expectations and hope. The participants also reported that these challenges had negative effects on their mental health and described feeling worried and depressed. The data was conceptualized utilizing Berry’s (2008) acculturation framework, and it was found that the families utilized the acculturation strategy of integration. Recommendations are provided for volunteer programs in which Americans assist newly resettled refugee families as well as for policies that are more adaptive to refugees’ needs and that uphold the values of diversity and create a welcoming environment for refugees.

Thesis (M. Dev.) --University of Limpopo, 2011 / This study was conducted in Limpopo province in Makhado municipality, Vhembe district. It concentrated on Levubu farms. There are seven Communal Property Associations (CPAs) which occupy about 258.7889 hectares of land; there are Ravele, Masakona, Tshakhuma, Shigalo, Tshivhazwaulu, Tshitwani, Ratombo but this study will concentrate only on Shigalo CPA. Two hundred and seventy respondents in Shigalo land restitution project in Makhado municipality were interviewed on sustainability of the restitution projects. It is argued that for a sustainability of restitution project, a number of requirements must be met. These include a clear and coherent vision, full participation and ownership by the beneficiaries of the project; political support at the highest level; appropriate mechanisms for implementation; sufficient funding; mutually- supportive linkages with other relevant areas of policy, Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and the intended beneficiaries as well as taking care of the environment for the future generation. The case study was conducted to investigate the sustainability of restitution project in Shigalo restitution community. The results obtained in this study show that Shigalo beneficiaries have ownership and full participation in the land restitution farms. It also pointed out that Shigalo beneficiaries were capacitated to increase the level of farm production and farm management skills, and they were assisted by strategic partnership. With reference to environmental conditions, the results show that the sustainability of agricultural project is also controlled by good agricultural practices that are environmental friendly. There were environmental constrains that affected farming in Shigalo projects such as drought, veld fire and frost. Shigalo restitution farms get advice on environmental problems from the Department of Agriculture. Industrial, financial and technical support will play a vital role in sustaining restitution projects.

This dissertation provides an authoritative account of reconstruction in the water sector after the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami in coastal, deltaic South India. In particular, this study examines 14 newly constructed housing settlements in the adjacent study areas of Nagapattinam District, Tamil Nadu, and Karaikal District, Puducherry. There is currently a paucity of literature dedicated to water components of reconstruction. Thus, this study expands the discourse and posits water elements of post-disaster processes as unique and therefore deserving of increased scholarly attention. The study is informed by a multi-methods approach and a geographical perspective. The methodologies include, inter alia, qualitative and quantitative survey instruments; key informant interviews; focus group discussions; the employment of primary documents; and environmental analyses through bacteriological and chemical water quality testing. Geographically, data, information, and actions are perceived as the coalescence of localized socio-cultural, politico-economic, and environmental fabrics. This approach to viewing circumstances is imperative for dissecting the outcomes of reconstruction processes in a specific context, and consequently for understanding problems, identifying solutions, and gauging the appropriateness of particular configurations in place-based systems. This dissertation critiques the models utilized for reconstruction in the two study areas. The scales of inquiry are demographically and geo-physically similar, yet differ in political organization. It is argued that Nagapattinam executed a model of reconstruction founded on collaborative governance, while Karaikal exercised a single agency approach. Thus, various governmental agencies were responsible for specific reconstruction activities in Nagapattinam, whereas a single agency was responsible for all activities in Karaikal. In general, the latter approach, which was less layered, produced comparatively better outcomes. Moreover, both jurisdictions implemented 'hard' paths for water management and operationalized panoptic and revenue-based methods of reconstruction, albeit inefficiently. Numerous shortcomings in reconstruction outcomes were uncovered (e.g., water quality, quantity, and pressure), as were an array of organic coping mechanisms established by affectees in order to surmount such inadequacies. To that end, it is contended that: the coping mechanisms fail to remedy the condition; much of the waterscape is beyond the control of the subjects; and the governments are ultimately deficient in responding to the needs of their citizens. The post-tsunami waterscapes are also analyzed quantitatively through the development of a contextualized, multi-scalar Water Poverty Index (WPI). The WPI is deployed with three distinct weighing schemes and reveals that, on the whole, the sites situated in Karaikal generally perform better than those in Nagapattinam. Interestingly enough, the sites located in rural Nagapattinam outperform their urban counterparts. This case--primarily a product of different water treatment processes--challenges conventional rural-urban dichotomies. Given the occurrence of poor water quality, an investigation of boiling as a method of household water treatment (HWT) surfaces several barriers to and caveats of its adoption. Data indicate that boiling is less effective than could be; thus, it is argued that boiling may not be the optimal strategy for HWT. Lastly, advised by the corpus of data, this dissertation presents a novel framework for managing water components of post-disaster reconstruction. The framework identifies common project failures, can be harnessed independently or alongside existing instruments, and possesses diagnostic, management, and evaluative potential.