Bridging divides: the role of ethnic community based organisations in refugee integration

How are organisations founded by refugees helping others who have escaped violence and persecution abroad to adjust to life in the United States? This study, released for World Refugee Day on June 20, paints an overall portrait of refugee resettlement in the United States by highlighting the size and composition of refugee arrivals. It provides an overview of the different dimensions of refugee integration and discusses a range of programs offered by ethnic community based organisations (ECBOs) that address these issues. Some programs are specifically designed to integrate refugees, while others are de facto integration programs. The report profiles each ECBO that took part in this study and highlights one or two of their innovative programmes. Additionally, the authors specify the challenges faced by ECBOs and their clients, as well as by Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR).

The report finds that culturally appropriate services and daily interaction with refugees make ECBOs an essential player in the refugee integration process. Therefore it is important to consider how ECBOs can sustain themselves and enhance their capacity to offer more and improved services, events, and activities that foster integration. Sustainability depends on securing diverse funding sources, building effective management, recruiting experienced staff, and constructing mutually beneficial partnerships with organisations, funders and governments.

The authors highlight that refugee integration is not a uniform process and that the recommendations offered in the report for ECBOs and other stakeholders in refugee integration must be adjusted to local contexts. Some of the various and extensively explained recommendations are:

• ECBOs should develop strategies to diversify their funding sources among federal and state government grants, foundations and corporate donations, individual donors, and other partners
  when appropriate
• ECBO leaders should be creative in offering programmes, and broaden the types of programmes offered
• ECBOs should look for partners with other refugee/immigrant, community, non-profit, and educational organisations in order to increase funding, capitalise on comparative advantages, and increase knowledge and skills