<p>According to the latest refugee statistics from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR 2011), the number of people forcibly displaced worldwide has reached 43.7 million, the highest number in 15 years. Roughly 80% of this population are women and children. Afghanistan continues to be the place of origin for the largest number of refugees under UNHCR responsibility across the globe. From 1979 to 1990, the largest and most enduring forced migration in human history occurred when 6.2 million Afghans were displaced and fled their homeland to neighbouring countries such as Pakistan and Iran.</p> <p>During the processes of conflict, upheaval, exile, and resettlement, refugee women face numerous traumatic events and are exposed to various challenges at every stage of their refugee journey. Very little scholarly research has examined their strengths and resiliency during this time.</p> <p>The primary purpose of this study is to provide insight into the challenges that Afghan refugee women have faced during pre-migration, exile, and resettlement. Specifically, this inquiry using feminist theory and method examines (a) their experiences in all three contexts in which they have lived and managed, (b) the significant roles that they have played, and (c) the coping mechanisms that they have used to overcome the problems in these situations.</p> <p>The sample for this interpretive qualitative research was drawn from Afghan refugee women in the city of Hamilton and the Greater Toronto Area in Ontario, Canada. The study was conducted with six in-depth, semi-structured interviews. The results provide contextually laden detail of the Afghan refugee women’s unique lived experiences. The results revealed Afghan refugee women as resilient and as strong leaders. The dominant discourse that portrays Afghan women as weak and oppressed should be challenged. Implications for social work practice, education and policy are identified, and recommendations for improved services are outlined.</p> / Master of Social Work (MSW)

This dissertation examines social, political, and cultural dimensions of displacement, resettlement planning, and climate change adaptation policy experimentation along Louisiana’s Gulf Coast. I draw upon four years of ethnographic research alongside Isle de Jean Charles Biloxi-Chitimacha-Choctaw Tribal leaders, during a period just before and after their resettlement plans garnered $48 million in federal financial support. Through participant observation and interviews with Tribal leaders, their allies, media-makers who covered the Tribe’s experiences, and state planners tasked with administering the federal funds, I examined social encounters produced as the Tribe’s resettlement plans were embraced, circulated, and transformed throughout international media and policy. My analysis points to a number of tensions expressed as Tribal community-driven efforts to address historically produced vulnerabilities collided with government efforts to reduce exposure to coastal environmental hazards. I describe how policies, planning practices, and particular constructions of disaster and community encumbered Tribal leaders’ long-standing struggle for recognition, self-determination and sovereignty, land, and cultural survival. Ultimately, I argue that the state’s allocation of federal resettlement funds has reproduced a colonial frontier dynamic whereby redevelopment is rested upon the erasure of Indigenous histories; identities; and ongoing struggles for self- determination, land, and cultural survival. Using ethnography to interrogate the social encounters produced through adaptation may inform policies, planning processes, and activism in solidarity with those already regenerating social and ecological relationships threatened by racial capitalism, settler colonialism, and climate change. / Anthropology

This thesis asks the question: what roles do local governments and nongovernmental organizations play in resettling refugees in U.S. cities? To answer this question, I conducted a case study of the refugee resettlement structure and process as it occurs in the city of Roanoke, Virginia. I find that two governance structures dictate how refugees are resettled into the city. The first stems from federal refugee policy, which establishes the use of a public-private partnership between federal and state governments and federated civic organizations. The second is an evolving local-level grassroots organizational structure that assesses the needs of refugees in Roanoke following their initial resettlement. In the case study on Roanoke I examine the support roles and practices of government institutions and nongovernmental organizations during the initial refugee resettlement period. Additionally, I examine aspects of long-term service provision and additional supports that move refugees towards social and economic inclusion. I conducted interviews with government and non-governmental leaders to grasp their understandings of existing practices and norms of local-level refugee resettlement. I also examined local survey data, economic and demographic data, media reports, and other public documents prepared by government agencies and nonprofit organizations. I identify who offers, or influences decisions about, specific supports for refugees at different times throughout the resettlement/integration process. I will suggest further implications of the supports provided for how they structure the pattern of refugees' economic and social inclusion. This thesis is designed to contribute to the limited literature on the process of local-level refugee resettlement in U.S. cities. / Master of Arts / This thesis asks the question: How are refugees resettled by government agencies and private organizations at the local level? To answer this question, I examine how the U.S. preference of public-private partnerships to initially resettle refugees in U.S. cities produces a hierarchical structure that flows from federal policies and agency oversight to state and local level policies and practices. This structure exhibits a quasi-governance phenomenon in which both public and private actors make discretionary decisions on policy implementation throughout the resettlement process. I find also that besides the initial federal structure, a second local network structure forms among grassroots organizations that work to extend federal objectives and address service gaps in the formal resettlement structure. These unaddressed gaps primarily concern longer-term supports to promote refugees being socially and economically included in their communities. I performed a qualitative case study analysis of local refugee resettlement as it occurs in the City of Roanoke, Virginia. I conducted interviews with resettlement stakeholders among government agencies and private organizations in order to grasp their understandings of local-level refugee resettlement service provision. I also examined local survey data, economic and demographic data, media reports, and other public documents prepared by government agencies and nonprofit organizations. This thesis is designed to contribute to the limited literature on local-level refugee resettlement and the use of public-private partnerships for the provision of social services in the U.S.

No / Germany in 1945 was crammed with millions of people displaced by war, deportation, Nazi slave labour, and flight before the advance of the Red Army. Many of them, including Poles and the Baltic peoples of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, refused to return to their communist-controlled homelands. Simultaneously in Italy, the Middle East and Britain, there were more than 100,000 Polish military personnel under British command, along with their dependants. Most of these were survivors of the one and a half million Poles deported to Siberia by the Soviet security police. Based on official documents and the words of the survivors and their children, this book describes the brutal uprooting of these people, their subsequent terrible experiences in the Soviet and Nazi forced labour camps and prisons, and their ultimate settlement in Britain. Here the newcomers created communities, integrated into British life while attempting to preserve their cultures and identities, and experienced how ethnic minorities relate to the host society. 'This book is a fascinating history of the Polish and Baltic communities who arrived in the United Kingdom shortly after the Second World War. The author relies on interviews with elderly members of these communities and on documents from the Public Record Office. It was perhaps the last opportunity to obtain these important oral histories and Lane is the first British researcher to do so.' - International Affairs 'Its originality lies in the author's ability to weave personal stories into the otherwise dry facts concerning population movements. In this respect, the book becomes an inspiring social history.'

Mining-induced resettlements, and local impacts from mining activities, are often associated with a variety of negative outcomes. At the same time, there is a notable growth of ethical guidelines for businesses and an increasing incorporation of international best practices within corporate operations. A resettlement of displaced villages within the Kalumbila area in Zambia was carried out by a multinational mining corporation, which reportedly invested heavily into the creation of an ethically sound resettlement procedure. Yet, a number of issues connected to this resettlement have been continuously reported after its implementation. This study has aimed to investigate two main themes relating to the  resettlement in Kalumbila. First, a comparative examination was done in order to explore differences and similarities in terms of social sustainability between two different resettlement communities in the area. Second, the current status of social sustainability was explored within the two resettlements by applying an analytical framework for strategic social sustainability. The methods consisted mainly of primary research through interviews in the studied area, but was also complemented with qualitative text analysis when suitable. The findings indicated both similarities and differences between the two resettlements in terms of social sustainability-related issues, which were identified through the application of universal social sustainability principles. Policy recommendations were also derived by conducting a backcasting procedure in the analysis of the findings. The study found that there is a presence of the mining company in almost every issue identified within this study. This presence has both positive and negative characteristics. It was concluded that future studies should keep this nuanced view in mind, as well as the complex interrelations in the studied system. As such, it was argued that policy implementors ought to investigate targeted issues with suitable analytical tools before taking any action in order to not create new problems elsewhere within the social system.

Although expected to be beneficial to society, development projects, such as dam construction and mining, often result in the physical displacement of marginalized groups. This is known as Development-Induced Displacement and Resettlement (DIDR) and often has far-reaching negative consequences for the affected peoples (APS). These include further marginalization, increased poverty, identity deprivation and socio-psychological stress. While decades of knowledge inform theory and practice on the mitigation of these consequences, the psycho-socio-cultural (PSC) impoverishment that may result from DIDR is often left unaddressed. Furthermore, qualitative knowledge of the experiences of people affected by DIDR is lacking. This research study aimed to produce an in-depth understanding of how DIDR affects the PSC well-being and identity construction of APS. The research took the form of a qualitative case study, whereby a social constructionist, narrative method of inquiry was used to analyse and gather data. This involved undertaking in-depth, individual interviews with a small sample of APS who had been resettled from a farm to a town in Mpumalanga by a mining house. Briefly, it was found that, contrary to the prevalent finding that DIDR causes further impoverishment, the resettlement actually resulted in development for the APS and as such enhanced their PSC well-being and contributed positively to their identity construction. However, the complexity inherent in resettlement was highlighted, as the participants revealed that the resettlement had not come without some socio-economic costs. It is believed that the findings from this study will complement existing knowledge on DIDR, and inform the design and implementation of Relocation Action Plans (RAPs) that better mitigate the negative PSC effects of DIDR.

Esta tese desenvolve um estudo teórico a respeito do instrumento do reassentamento em políticas públicas urbanas sob o ponto de vista de sua abordagem aos conceitos de capital social e das redes sociais. Dessa forma, a pesquisa procura realizar uma ampla análise bibliográfica sobre estes elementos enquanto conceito: reassentamento, capital social e redes sociais. Em seguida procura utilizar essa plataforma conceitual para propor uma base de indicadores com o objetivo de se obter uma modelo de análise de políticas públicas urbanas, particularmente políticas de habitação, em seu aspecto da sua eficácia enquanto promotoras de desenvolvimento ao invés de meros provedores de abrigo. A base de indicadores é aplicada a três estudos de caso concretos: O Programa Guarapiranga, na Região Metropolitana de São Paulo, o Programa Favela-Bairro, no Rio de Janeiro e o Programa de Obras con Participación Ciudadana de Bogotá, Colômbia. / This thesis develops a theoretical study regarding the instrument of the resettlement in urban public politics under the point of view of its boarding to the concepts of social capital and social networks. Therefore, the research looks for carrying through an ample bibliographical analysis on these elements as concepts: resettlement, social capital and social networks. After that it looks for using this conceptual platform to consider a base of indicators with the objective of getting an analysis model of urban public policies, particularly housing policies, in its aspect of effectiveness while promotional of development instead of mere suppliers of shelter. The base of indicators is applied to three concrete case studies: The Guarapiranga Program, in the Metropolitan Region of São Paulo, the Program Favela-Bairro, in Rio de Janeiro and the Programa de Obras con Participación Ciudadana of Bogota, Colombia.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-25T20:21:23Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Viviane Mozine Rodrigue.pdf: 3105848 bytes, checksum: b3835c3067ea7e39ec6120caadd09898 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-03-06 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Geographically divided in two states, São Paulo and Rio Grande do Sul, in 2007 Brazil received 108 Palestinians from a refugee campsite in Rweished, Jordan, through the Brazilian solidarity resettlement program. For this thesis, the spatial area of the subjects is focused on the refugee group resettled at Mogi das Cruzes, São Paulo. Generally, this study pursuits to present the Brazilian context in resettlement of Palestinians and their local integration, enlightening institutional limitations (government agencies, of civil society and the international community) and policies (internal and international legislations and public policy), therefore using an transdisciplinary approach from Political Science, International Relations, Sociology, History, Geography and Law. The resettlement and the local integration are two durable solutions to the UNHCR, meaning, they are two more lastingly, perhaps permanent solutions to the issue of refuge in cases which return to the country of origins is out of question. The issue presented with the Palestinians is that the resettlement was not followed by a local integration of the group, reason why it was marked by tensions and protests concluding with the diminish of the Brazilian quota granted to the resettlement program and, at least temporarily, the negative perception of Palestinians refugees in the same program. To investigate the answer to this question, interviews were conducted which allowed us a general characterization of the Palestinians refugees resettled and also the opinions of institutions that deal directly with the refuge matter. Brazil is a country that host refugees showing great solidarity, however the great contradiction is this solidarity in incomplete or restricted, because it does not automatically inserts these groups in its social policies, depriving them of economic, cultural and social rights. What we attain is that the action of the Brazilian State in favor of the refugees is still insufficient, resulting in the local integration being very dependent on the interaction of the civil society. However, if in one hand the Brazilian Government is being inefficient in executing and elaborating public policies towards the refugees protection, on the other hand it reveals it self-conscious of its limitations, since it has been creating new institutional spaces. Nonetheless, still has to abandon the paternalistic view, which makes refugees passive recipients, transforming them in protagonists, reversing the current logic. That way, the State makes an evident mistake when not interfering with propper mechanisms and tools so the refugees can be able to study, qualify and integrate themselves to the labor market. The same way, the UNHCR can provide a more assertive participation within local integration. Thus, rethink the resettlement and local integration of refugees in Brazil goes essentially through overcoming institutional limits and inclusion barriers in current public policies / Divididos geograficamente em dois Estados, São Paulo e Rio Grande do Sul, em 2007 o Brasil recebeu 108 palestinos, provenientes do campo de refugiados de Rweished na Jordânia, através do programa de reassentamento solidário brasileiro. Para esta tese, o recorte espacial do objeto de estudo se concentra no grupo de refugiados reassentados em Mogi das Cruzes no interior paulista. Em linhas gerais, o trabalho busca apresentar o contexto brasileiro do reassentamento dos palestinos e sua integração local, revelando as limitações institucionais (órgãos governamentais, da sociedade civil e da comunidade internacional) e de políticas (legislação interna e internacionais e politicas públicas), tendo para isso utilizado uma abordagem transdisciplinar na Ciência Política, nas Relações Internacionais, na Sociologia, na História, na Geografia e no Direito. O reassentamento e a integração local são duas soluções duráveis para o ACNUR, dito de outra forma, elas são duas soluções para a questão do refúgio de modo mais duradouro e quiçá permanente em casos nos quais não é possível o regresso ao país de origem. A questão que se coloca quanto aos palestinos é que o reassentamento não foi acompanhado de uma integração local desse grupo e, por isso, sua estadia foi marcada por tensões e protestos que culminaram na diminuição da quota brasileira concedida ao programa de reassentamento e, pelo menos temporariamente, na negativa de recepção de refugiados palestinos pelo mesmo programa. Para investigar a resposta a essa questão, foram realizadas entrevistas que nos permitiram uma caracterização geral dos refugiados palestinos reassentados e também as opiniões das instituições que lidam diretamente com a temática do refúgio. O Brasil é um país que acolhe refugiados demonstrando grande solidariedade na questão, porém, a grande contradição é que essa solidariedade é incompleta ou restringida, porque esta não insere automaticamente estes grupos em suas políticas sociais, privando-os dos seus direitos econômicos, culturais e sociais. O que constatamos é que a ação do Estado brasileiro a favor dos refugiados ainda é insuficiente, estando a integração local muito dependente da atuação da sociedade civil. Entretanto, se, por um lado, o Governo brasileiro tem sido ineficaz na execução e elaboração de políticas públicas voltadas para a proteção dos refugiados, por outro, ele tem se revelado consciente das suas limitações, já que tem criado novos espaços institucionais. Por outro lado, ainda falta abandonar a visão paternalista que torna os refugiados beneficiários passivos para transforma-los em protagonistas, invertendo a lógica atual. Assim, o Estado comete um erro evidente, ao não intervir com mecanismos e instrumentos necessários para que os refugiados possam estudar, se qualificar e se integrar no mercado de trabalho. Da mesma forma, o ACNUR pode ter uma participação mais assertiva no âmbito da integração local. Assim, repensar o reassentamento e a integração local de refugiados no Brasil passa essencialmente por uma superação dos limites institucionais e de inclusão nas políticas públicas existentes

Refugee resettlement to the United States has decreased tremendously since 2017. This study investigates whether, and how, resettlement and health organization in New York are facilitating the distribution of health resources and how they are integrating refugees into becoming self-sufficient in the United States. Refugees have a right to many resources upon arrival in the United Stated especially health resources. Through case studies, this thesis examines two organizations contribution to changing the health status of refugees and the strategies that they implement to help refugees. Findings show that both organizations examined contribute to assist refugees to improve access to the health care. Findings also reveal many strategies for the facilitation of integration, the most prominent factor being interaction between organizations and refugees upon resettlement.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-26T14:55:18Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Viviane Mozine Rodrigue.pdf: 3105848 bytes, checksum: b3835c3067ea7e39ec6120caadd09898 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-03-06 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Geographically divided in two states, São Paulo and Rio Grande do Sul, in 2007 Brazil received 108 Palestinians from a refugee campsite in Rweished, Jordan, through the Brazilian solidarity resettlement program. For this thesis, the spatial area of the subjects is focused on the refugee group resettled at Mogi das Cruzes, São Paulo. Generally, this study pursuits to present the Brazilian context in resettlement of Palestinians and their local integration, enlightening institutional limitations (government agencies, of civil society and the international community) and policies (internal and international legislations and public policy), therefore using an transdisciplinary approach from Political Science, International Relations, Sociology, History, Geography and Law. The resettlement and the local integration are two durable solutions to the UNHCR, meaning, they are two more lastingly, perhaps permanent solutions to the issue of refuge in cases which return to the country of origins is out of question. The issue presented with the Palestinians is that the resettlement was not followed by a local integration of the group, reason why it was marked by tensions and protests concluding with the diminish of the Brazilian quota granted to the resettlement program and, at least temporarily, the negative perception of Palestinians refugees in the same program. To investigate the answer to this question, interviews were conducted which allowed us a general characterization of the Palestinians refugees resettled and also the opinions of institutions that deal directly with the refuge matter. Brazil is a country that host refugees showing great solidarity, however the great contradiction is this solidarity in incomplete or restricted, because it does not automatically inserts these groups in its social policies, depriving them of economic, cultural and social rights. What we attain is that the action of the Brazilian State in favor of the refugees is still insufficient, resulting in the local integration being very dependent on the interaction of the civil society. However, if in one hand the Brazilian Government is being inefficient in executing and elaborating public policies towards the refugees protection, on the other hand it reveals it self-conscious of its limitations, since it has been creating new institutional spaces. Nonetheless, still has to abandon the paternalistic view, which makes refugees passive recipients, transforming them in protagonists, reversing the current logic. That way, the State makes an evident mistake when not interfering with propper mechanisms and tools so the refugees can be able to study, qualify and integrate themselves to the labor market. The same way, the UNHCR can provide a more assertive participation within local integration. Thus, rethink the resettlement and local integration of refugees in Brazil goes essentially through overcoming institutional limits and inclusion barriers in current public policies / Divididos geograficamente em dois Estados, São Paulo e Rio Grande do Sul, em 2007 o Brasil recebeu 108 palestinos, provenientes do campo de refugiados de Rweished na Jordânia, através do programa de reassentamento solidário brasileiro. Para esta tese, o recorte espacial do objeto de estudo se concentra no grupo de refugiados reassentados em Mogi das Cruzes no interior paulista. Em linhas gerais, o trabalho busca apresentar o contexto brasileiro do reassentamento dos palestinos e sua integração local, revelando as limitações institucionais (órgãos governamentais, da sociedade civil e da comunidade internacional) e de políticas (legislação interna e internacionais e politicas públicas), tendo para isso utilizado uma abordagem transdisciplinar na Ciência Política, nas Relações Internacionais, na Sociologia, na História, na Geografia e no Direito. O reassentamento e a integração local são duas soluções duráveis para o ACNUR, dito de outra forma, elas são duas soluções para a questão do refúgio de modo mais duradouro e quiçá permanente em casos nos quais não é possível o regresso ao país de origem. A questão que se coloca quanto aos palestinos é que o reassentamento não foi acompanhado de uma integração local desse grupo e, por isso, sua estadia foi marcada por tensões e protestos que culminaram na diminuição da quota brasileira concedida ao programa de reassentamento e, pelo menos temporariamente, na negativa de recepção de refugiados palestinos pelo mesmo programa. Para investigar a resposta a essa questão, foram realizadas entrevistas que nos permitiram uma caracterização geral dos refugiados palestinos reassentados e também as opiniões das instituições que lidam diretamente com a temática do refúgio. O Brasil é um país que acolhe refugiados demonstrando grande solidariedade na questão, porém, a grande contradição é que essa solidariedade é incompleta ou restringida, porque esta não insere automaticamente estes grupos em suas políticas sociais, privando-os dos seus direitos econômicos, culturais e sociais. O que constatamos é que a ação do Estado brasileiro a favor dos refugiados ainda é insuficiente, estando a integração local muito dependente da atuação da sociedade civil. Entretanto, se, por um lado, o Governo brasileiro tem sido ineficaz na execução e elaboração de políticas públicas voltadas para a proteção dos refugiados, por outro, ele tem se revelado consciente das suas limitações, já que tem criado novos espaços institucionais. Por outro lado, ainda falta abandonar a visão paternalista que torna os refugiados beneficiários passivos para transforma-los em protagonistas, invertendo a lógica atual. Assim, o Estado comete um erro evidente, ao não intervir com mecanismos e instrumentos necessários para que os refugiados possam estudar, se qualificar e se integrar no mercado de trabalho. Da mesma forma, o ACNUR pode ter uma participação mais assertiva no âmbito da integração local. Assim, repensar o reassentamento e a integração local de refugiados no Brasil passa essencialmente por uma superação dos limites institucionais e de inclusão nas políticas públicas existentes