Call for Participation

The Arizona Refugee Resettlement Program Annual Conference is an exciting opportunity for refugees, refugee service organizations and members of the general public to learn and share about the changing dynamics of refugee resettlement, and best practices that are helping refugees to successfully transition to life in Arizona.

The planning committee is currently soliciting abstracts for the 2008 conference.

2008 Conference Tracks Are:

Track 1: Understanding the Refugee Resettlement Process
Presentations in this track will address the “nuts and bolts” of refugee resettlement in the U.S. including basic information members of the general community need to know about refugees and refugee resettlement. Topics may focus on, but are not limited to, areas such as:

• “Refugee 101” training – shedding light on the “why, how, when, where, and what” of U.S./Arizona refugee resettlement

• “Refugee 202” training – shedding light on refugee resettlement beyond the “where refugees come from and why” (sometimes known as “it seems like refugees are just dumped here”)

• Effective messaging around refugee resettlement

• Current arrival trends

• How to assess adequate community capacity for refugee resettlement

• Affordable housing issues facing refugees

• Addressing urban transportation challenges, finding affordable childcare solutions, and surmounting other barriers to successful long-term employment

• What happens to refugees who do not become self-sufficient?

Track 2: Skill Development for Refugee Resettlement Practitioners
Presentations in this track will focus on innovative methods of increasing the cultural competency and organizational capacity of organizations and service providers, such as medical professionals; social workers, counselors and other human services staffs; educators; law enforcement and judicial system professionals; other community-based organizations and volunteers. Topics may include, but are not limited to:

• Innovative and comprehensive refugee service delivery paradigms

• Professional case management for refugees

• Professional employment development for refugees

• Coordinating refugee service systems and services delivery within communities

• Effectively bridging refugee-specific and mainstream services

• Developing enhanced employment opportunities for refugees (employment upgrades, professional recertification and other economic opportunities for refugees)

• Effectively addressing refugees’ physical and mental health needs

• The role of Mutual Assistance Associations

• Successful organizational development and capacity building for Mutual Assistance Associations (MAAs) and ethnic Community Based Organizations (CBOs)

• Resource and funding development for refugee-serving organizations

Track 3: Culturally Responsive Approaches to Refugee Integration Issues
Integration is a long-term process starting from the refugee’s time of arrival in the U.S. extending until the refugee is fully engaged in the economic, social, cultural, and civil aspects of society. The goal of successful refugee integration is to bestow a sense of belonging and membership in society. Topics related to this track might include, but are not limited to:

• Understanding political and social climates of communities and their effects on refugee resettlement

• Nurturing welcoming communities for refugees and strategies for organizing effective community involvement

• Developing effective messaging around refugee resettlement

• Developing new resettlement communities

• Issues of equal access and delivery of services through mainstream frameworks

• Counteracting misinformation related to refugee resettlement myths

• Lack of professional interpreter services and translation resources

• Transition and integration issues of secondary migrants

• Involving previously resettled groups in current resettlement strategies

• Effectively addressing threats to refugee resettlement

• Legal immigration services and citizenship acquisition

Track 4: Modern Day Slavery
Human Trafficking or Modern Day Slavery is the act of subjecting a person to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage or slavery, for labor or commercial sexual services, through the use of force, fraud or coercion. Presentations in this track may focus on, but are not limited to, topics such as:

• Human trafficking overview and case scenarios

• How to identify and report potential victims of trafficking

• Investigation considerations and legal issues

• Providing culturally and linguistically appropriate services to victims of human trafficking

• How federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies work together

• How agencies and nongovernmental organizations can work together

Track 5: Education for Refugee Children and Youth
Presentations in this track will address some of the challenges refugee students are facing, as well as, how communities can best promote the educational success of refugee school-aged children. Topics in this track might include, but are not limited to:

• Ensuring equal access within school systems for refugees

• Assisting refugee parents with understanding and navigating education systems

• The home/school factor and its impact on refugees’ educational success

• Psychological adaptation issues of refugee school-aged children

• Age-appropriate placement, language barriers and other challenges to refugee education

• School system requirements vs. an educational “wish list” for refugee youth

How to Submit:
Formal abstracts must be submitted by November 12, 2007 via fax at (480) 893-7775 or e-mail to refugeeresettlement@kc-a.com. Final presentations will be due on January 15, 2008. Authors must be available to present during the conference on March 31 - April 1, 2008 in Phoenix.

Please include the following:
-Name
-Contact information (organization, job title, e-mail address and phone number)
-Attach a brief description of the presentation theme and content. No more than one page in length.
-Presentation title
-Track

• Track 1: Understanding the Refugee Resettlement Process

• Track 2: Skill Development for Refugee Resettlement Practitioners

• Track 3: Culturally Responsive Approaches to Refugee Integration Issues

• Track 4: Modern Day Slavery

• Track 5: Education for Refugee Children and Youth

Submissions will be judged by the conference planning committee. The most outstanding and informative abstract authors will be contacted by November 30, 2007 to develop a presentation for the conference.