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Little by Little: EXPLORING the IMPACT of SOCIAL ACCEPTANCE on REFUGEE INTEGRATION INTO HOST COMMUNITIES ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

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Little by Little: EXPLORING the IMPACT of SOCIAL ACCEPTANCE on REFUGEE INTEGRATION INTO HOST COMMUNITIES ACKNOWLEDGMENTS STUDY BRIEF The dance group at the Scalibrini mission, welcoming visitors. The Scalabrini Mission has been in Ecuador for 23 years, partnering with CRS to serve about 1700 families annually. The Scalibrini mission focuses on integration and sustainability with dignity. Photo: Simmons, Ryla 2016 Little by Little: EXPLORING THE IMPACT OF SOCIAL ACCEPTANCE ON REFUGEE INTEGRATION INTO HOST COMMUNITIES ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Writers Beth Maclin Consultant Causal Design Designer Carol Moskot Consultant We would like to thank the team at Causal Design, particularly Beth Maclin, who led the research and authored this report, and Keith Ives, who lent a keen eye to the direction of the research. We are also incredibly grateful for the CRS country teams in Ecuador, India, and Jordan for their expert facilitation in the field. We are further indebted to each key informant who took time away from their important work to share their knowledge and perspective on refugee integration and pathways forward to address the needs that exists in each of these countries and beyond. Finally, and most importantly, we would like to recognize each of the community members who shared their opinions, expertise, and experiences to help us better understand the challenges facing their communities. For any questions, comments and requests regarding this report, contact Emily Wei at [email protected]. Catholic Relief Services is the official humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. Founded in 1943 by the Catholic Bishops of the United States, CRS was created to serve World War II survivors in Europe. Since then, we have expanded in size to reach more than 120 million people in more than 100 countries on five continents. Our mission is to assist impoverished and disadvantaged people overseas, working in the spirit of Catholic social teaching to promote the sacredness of human life and the dignity of the human person. Although our mission is rooted in the Catholic faith, our operations serve people based solely on need, regardless of their race, religion or ethnicity. Within the United States, CRS engages Catholics to live their faith in solidarity with the poor and suffering people of the world. Causal Design is a social enterprise specialized in data-driven policy analysis. We partner with international development clients, donors, and local counterparts to provide rigorous independent program evaluation, expand cultures of evidence within organizations, and support efforts to relieve human suffering and end poverty. Our service delivery is focused on Impact Evaluation, M&E Capacity Building, and Growth Diagnostics. Catholic Relief Services 228 West Lexington Street Baltimore, Maryland 21201 3413 1.888.277.7575 www.crs.org © 2017 Catholic Relief Services. All rights reserved. This material may not be reproduced, displayed, modified or distributed without the express prior written permission of the copyright holder. For permission, contact [email protected]. TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 5 INTRODUCTION 7 BACKGROUND 8 METHODS & DESIGN 10 FINDINGS 13 Manifestations of Social Integration: What does acceptance look like? 14 Enablers of Social Integration: What helps refugees and members of the host 17 community build relationships with one another? Barriers to Social Integration: What blocks the development of integrated, cohesive communities? 20 CONCLUSION 24 RECOMMENDATIONS 25 BIBLIOGRAPHY 26 APPENDIX 1. OVERVIEW OF STUDY PARTICIPANTS 28 Table 2. Community Participants Included in Focus Group Discussions 28 Table 3. Organizations Included in Key Informant Interviews 29 3 “All of us need friends. We need our families. It is important to have friends, acquaintances who can help you find a job, be more open, get to know the city, etc. You need to let people get to know you. It is very difficult here. There is discrimination, so people get to know you little by little.” — Male Colombian refugee 4 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY of refugees are displaced for more than five years (UNHCR, 2012), policymakers and practitioners must BACKGROUND respond with an approach that supports integral Conflict and crisis leaves an unprecedented 22.5 human development in addition to addressing million people living in exile today. The sheer number immediate humanitarian needs. of people seeking international protection and This study reinforces what the New York Declaration the capacity of host countries to cope with those and past research has shown: host communities play numbers are changing the conversation around how a significant role in the integration of refugees. What the international community should best respond. As has been somewhat ignored in the past, however, is outlined in the New York Declaration for Refugees that the presence of refugees has deep implications for and Migrants—a set of commitments to enhance the host communities’ everyday lives. Just like refugees, protection of refugees and migrants unanimously host communities require support that reflects the adopted at the UN General Assembly last year—new multifaceted ways—economic, political, social, and approaches are needed to reflect the long-term developmental—in which their lives are affected. displacement of refugees, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. These efforts must address Further, the study elucidates a variety of tools and the immediate humanitarian needs of new arrivals means for donors, practitioners, and host governments while also incorporating and reflecting the long-term to foster social acceptance and relationships between needs of both refugees and host communities. members of both communities. These include utilizing existing community spaces, such as schools, To better understand how local integration plays out or creating new opportunities, such as community within communities, particularly the process of social savings groups, where refugees and members of the integration, Catholic Relief Services contracted the host community can get to know one another on a DC-based research firm Causal Design to undertake personal level. Recruiting thought leaders, developing a three-country qualitative study. This investigation education campaigns, and influencing the media consisted of a series of focus group discussions and can further help to inform the public about refugees key informant interviews with community members and dispel stereotypes and misinformation. These (host and refugee), practitioners, government and opportunities for personal interaction and greater UN officials, and leaders from civil society in three community awareness can also counter the spread different contexts: Ecuador, India, and Jordan. of stereotypes and misinformation, which inherently block social integration. RESULTS The unprecedented number of people forcibly The process of settling in a new place and the role of displaced from their homes today demands a social connections in informing and facilitating that reexamination of what has been done in the past and process is universal. What amplifies the importance the consideration of new approaches going forward. of those connections for refugees living outside Although formal integration is a non-starter in many camps is that their ability to survive, and ideally host countries, informal integration, including social thrive, depends on establishing new relationships with acceptance, offers a pathway for refugees to pursue the host community. This study strongly suggests dignified lives while waiting to return home or resettle that social acceptance is an integral component of in a third country. Creating opportunities for refugees a refugee’s integration process and thus should be to contribute to and engage with the host country prioritized in programming and policy development. also has the potential to reduce the burden placed on While promoting social integration does not directly the local community, a key component in fostering address an immediate survival need, it can facilitate the development of meaningful relationships. access to other components of the integration process, such as housing and employment, and potentially improve other outcomes of interest, such as mental health. Given that almost 75 percent 5 RECOMMENDATIONS host community interact with one another. This lack of exposure hinders the development of personal TO DONORS AND PRACTITIONERS: relationships and can allow stereotypes to flourish. • Fund and pursue programs that support and Programming that addresses community-wide serve refugees through an inclusive and holistic needs should be provided in ways that intentionally model. Social acceptance is a critical component facilitate and promote social engagement. Through of a refugee’s integration process. Promoting these interactions, community members may programs that take into account the integral start to view refugees as individuals rather than as human development of both refugees and host threats. This approach prioritizes social acceptance communities will likely improve the access to and and community cohesion. impacts of essential services, including housing, employment, and education. Donors should enable TO HOST COUNTRIES: integrated, rather than sectoral, responses to • Sensitize the host community to refugees’ refugees and host communities. This also includes struggles. Host governments define the parameters addressing the psychosocial needs of communities, of refugees’ lives within their borders. The decisions particularly of those who have experienced violence they make regarding refugees
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