E.g., 11/30/2023
E.g., 11/30/2023
Refugees & Resettlement

Refugees & Resettlement

_RefugeeResettlement

The world has millions of refugees who are unable to go home or unwilling to do so in the face of persecution. Resettlement to a third country is considered for only a fraction of refugees, those whose conditions are so perilous or whose needs cannot be met in the country where they first sought protection. Only a small number of states take part in UNHCR resettlement programs—among them the United States, Australia, Canada, the Nordic countries, and increasingly some countries in Europe and Latin America. The research here examines refugee protection and resettlement policies.

Recent Activity

Twin sisters from Syria shared their experience of living in exile. - Jesuit Refugee Service International
Multimedia
November 14, 2023
Engaging Local Voices: Letting Cities Inform National Refugee Resettlement Goals
World of Migration Ep 18 - Adhieu Achuil Kueth and Jackie Keegan.p
Multimedia
November 15, 2023
A Passport to Opportunity: The Importance of Refugee Access to Travel Documents
Cover image for Migration and Displacement in Secondary Cities
Reports
November 2023
Migration and Displacement in Secondary Cities: Insights from Côte d’Ivoire and Uganda
By  Samuel Davidoff-Gore and Camille Le Coz
A woman and child walk in the Somali region of Ethiopia.
Articles
November 16, 2023
Climate Migration 101: An Explainer
By Lawrence Huang
Cover image for Immigration and Integration in the Ever More Diverse Houston Area
Reports
November 2023
Immigration and Integration in the Ever More Diverse Houston Area
By  Valerie Lacarte, Michael Fix and Jeanne Batalova
A Syrian woman in Turkey
Articles
November 1, 2023
The World’s Leading Refugee Host, Turkey Has a Complex Migration History
By Ayhan Kaya
2023 Immigration Law and Policy Conference
Multimedia
September 18, 2023
20th Annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference
The U.S. Coast Guard interdicts a vessel with Cuban migrants.
Articles
October 25, 2023
Can the Biden Immigration Playbook Be Effective for Managing Arrivals via Sea?
By Muzaffar Chishti, Kathleen Bush-Joseph, and Colleen Putzel-Kavanaugh

Pages

Cover image for Migration and Displacement in Secondary Cities
Reports
November 2023
Migration and Displacement in Secondary Cities: Insights from Côte d’Ivoire and Uganda
By  Samuel Davidoff-Gore and Camille Le Coz
Cover image for Immigration and Integration in the Ever More Diverse Houston Area
Reports
November 2023
Immigration and Integration in the Ever More Diverse Houston Area
By  Valerie Lacarte, Michael Fix and Jeanne Batalova
Cover image for Why Matching Matters
Policy Briefs
October 2023
Why Matching Matters: Improving Outcomes in Refugee Sponsorship and Complementary Pathways
By  Craig Damian Smith and Emma Ugolini
Cover image for From Safe Homes to Sponsor policy brief
Policy Briefs
October 2023
From Safe Homes to Sponsors: Lessons from the Ukraine Hosting Response for Refugee Sponsorship Programs
By  Susan Fratzke, Viola Pulkkinen and Emma Ugolini
Cover image for Attracting, Retaining, and Diversifying Sponsors
Reports
September 2023
Attracting, Retaining, and Diversifying Sponsors for Refugees in Community Sponsorship Programs
By  Maria Belen Zanzuchi, Nadja Dumann, Florian Tissot and Admir Skodo
Cover image for Improving Stakeholder Coordination in Refugee Resettlement
Reports
June 2023
Improving Stakeholder Coordination in Refugee Resettlement: A Path to More Effective, Inclusive Programs
By  Admir Skodo and Maria Belen Zanzuchi
Cover image for Building Meaningful Refugee Participation
Reports
June 2023
Building Meaningful Refugee Participation into Protection Policymaking
By  Uwezo Ramazani
Cover image for Displaced Ukrainians in European Labor Markets
Reports
May 2023
Displaced Ukrainians in European Labor Markets: Leveraging Innovations for More Inclusive Integration
By  Maria Vincenza Desiderio and Kate Hooper

Pages

A woman and child walk in the Somali region of Ethiopia.
Feature
November 16, 2023
Climate Migration 101: An Explainer

Is climate change a major driver of migration and displacement? From where are people leaving, and where are they going? This informative primer, a Climate Migration 101 of sorts, provides answers to basic questions about climate change and migration, starting with how and where climate change triggers human movement.

A Syrian woman in Turkey
Profile
November 1, 2023
The World’s Leading Refugee Host, Turkey Has a Complex Migration History

Turkey is home to the world’s largest refugee population, a fact that has been a source of pride, a geopolitical tool, and a logistical challenge. This article shows how the millions of Syrians who have arrived since 2011 comprise just one aspect of Turkey’s rich and complex migration history. The country has been a significant host, a transit point for individuals heading to Europe, and a source of migrant laborers.

The U.S. Coast Guard interdicts a vessel with Cuban migrants.
Policy Beat
October 25, 2023
Can the Biden Immigration Playbook Be Effective for Managing Arrivals via Sea?

Amid the highest Caribbean maritime migration levels in a generation, the Biden administration is relying on a carrot-and-stick strategy it honed amid record unauthorized migration at the U.S.-Mexico border. The approach, combining limits on asylum, expanded legal pathways, and international enforcement partnerships, could be increasingly important if maritime migration rises, as this article explains.

A Vietnamese family in the kitchen.
Spotlight
October 11, 2023
Vietnamese Immigrants in the United States

The more than 1.3 million Vietnamese immigrants in the United States are the result of nearly 50 years of migration that began with the end of the Vietnam War in 1975. While early generations of Vietnamese immigrants tended to arrive as refugees, the vast majority of recent green-card holders obtained their status through family reunification channels. This article takes a look at the sixth-largest U.S. immigrant population.

Calle Ocho en el barrio de la Pequeña Habana de Miami.
Spotlight
September 21, 2023
Inmigrantes cubanos en los Estados Unidos

Los cubanos constituyen el mayor grupo de inmigrantes caribeños en Estados Unidos. La población está creciendo, ya que en los últimos años se ha producido la mayor oleada de emigración de la historia moderna de Cuba. Este artículo ofrece estadísticas clave sobre los 1.3 millones de inmigrantes cubanos en Estados Unidos.

Pages

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Sign for the 2019 Global Refugee Forum in Geneva
Commentaries
September 2023
Achieving Meaningful International Cooperation on Displacement: Can the 2023 Global Refugee Forum Deliver?
By  Susan Fratzke and Hannes Einsporn
Photo of a mural at Las Americas, a legal assistance nonprofit in El Paso, Texas
Commentaries
May 2023
Regional Processing Centers: Can This Key Component of the Post-Title 42 U.S. Strategy Work?
By  Andrew Selee
A woman in a winter coat receives food from a woman in an orange safety vest at a train station in P
Commentaries
May 2022
The Ukrainian Conflict Could Be a Tipping Point for Refugee Protection
By  Meghan Benton and Andrew Selee
Image of Central American migrant caravan passing through Chiapas, Mexico
Commentaries
April 2022
Beyond the Border: Opportunities for Managing Regional Migration between Central and North America
By  Ariel G. Ruiz Soto and Andrew Selee
A U.S. service member helps an older Afghan woman off a plane at a naval air station
Commentaries
March 2022
Straight Path to Legal Permanent Residence for Afghan Evacuees Would Build on Strong U.S. Precedent
By  Julia Gelatt and Doris Meissner
Photo of Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken meeting with Afghan evacuees in Germany
Commentaries
September 2021
Different Statuses, Different Benefits: Determining Federal Assistance for Afghan Evacuees
By  Mark Greenberg, Celia Reynolds and Essey Workie
Women and children outside of home in Sohadat, Afghanistan
Commentaries
August 2021
The International Community Must Develop a Well-Coordinated Protection Strategy for Afghan Refugees
By  Hanne Beirens and Camille Le Coz
Bhutanese refugee sits on bed in family's apartment in New York
Commentaries
June 2021
A Solvable Challenge: Improving Asylee Access to Health and Other Benefits
By  Essey Workie, Mark Greenberg and Lillie Hinkle
State of the EU 2020
Commentaries
October 2020
The EU Pact on Migration and Asylum—A Bold Move to Avoid the Abyss?
By  Hanne Beirens
MPIEurope MoriaCommentary UNHCR Flickr
Commentaries
September 2020
Greece’s Moria Tragedy: The Crash Test for the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum
By  Hanne Beirens

Pages

Explainer_LegalImmigrationSystem Legal Immigration Pie_small
Explainers
April 2019

Explainer: How the U.S. Legal Immigration System Works

Through which visa categories can immigrants move temporarily or permanently to the United States? What are the main channels by which people come, and who can sponsor them for a green card? Are there limits on visa categories? And who is waiting in the green-card backlog? This explainer answers basic questions about temporary and permanent immigration via family, employment, humanitarian, and other channels.

World of Migration Ep 18 - Adhieu Achuil Kueth and Jackie Keegan.p
Expert Q&A, Audio
November 15, 2023

A Passport to Opportunity: The Importance of Refugee Access to Travel Documents

Travel documents play an important role in international mobility, and for refugees serve as an essential gateway to a world of opportunities, from pursuing education and employment to reuniting with family. This episode unpacks the complexities around travel documents and their pivotal role in refugees' livelihoods. 

Twin sisters from Syria shared their experience of living in exile. - Jesuit Refugee Service International
Video, Audio
November 14, 2023

Engaging Local Voices: Letting Cities Inform National Refugee Resettlement Goals

With the Global Refugee Forum approaching, this webcast explores how municipalities and other key stakeholders can be engaged in informing and delivering on the 2024 resettlement and complementary pathways pledges. 

WoM-podcast-episode-tile
Expert Q&A, Audio
September 26, 2023

The Power of Refugee Sponsorship: A Sponsor’s Story

How is refugee resettlement evolving? As more countries turn to private or community sponsorship, MPI speaks with Erin Schutte Wadzinski, who leads one of the pioneering private sponsorship groups in Worthington, Minnesota, under the Welcome Corps initiative.

2023 Immigration Law and Policy Conference
Video
September 18, 2023

20th Annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference

The 20th annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference, organized by MPI, Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc., and Georgetown University Law Center, features fresh, thoughtful policy and legal analysis, and discussion of some of the top immigration issues by leading government officials, attorneys, researchers, advocates, and other experts. 

Volunteers entertain refugees on trip to museum
Video, Audio
September 14, 2023

Strengthening Refugee Engagement in Community Sponsorship Programs

Speakers, including a resettled refugee, examine the challenges that hinder refugee participation in sponsorship program design and operation and explore meaningful ways, tools, and mechanisms for effectively expanding refugees’ role in current and future programs. They also discuss innovative initiatives that are already making strides in refugee involvement.

Pages

Recent Activity

Video, Audio, Webinars
November 14, 2023

Engaging Local Voices: Letting Cities Inform National Refugee Resettlement Goals

With the Global Refugee Forum approaching, this webcast explores how municipalities and other key stakeholders can be engaged in informing and delivering on the 2024 resettlement and complementary pathways pledges. 

Expert Q&A, Audio
November 15, 2023

A Passport to Opportunity: The Importance of Refugee Access to Travel Documents

Travel documents play an important role in international mobility, and for refugees serve as an essential gateway to a world of opportunities, from pursuing education and employment to reuniting with family. This episode unpacks the complexities around travel documents and their pivotal role in refugees' livelihoods. 

Reports
November 2023

Migration and Displacement in Secondary Cities: Insights from Côte d’Ivoire and Uganda

Small and mid-sized cities are some of the fastest growing in many parts of the world, including sub-Saharan Africa. Yet life in these cities can present a variety of challenges for migrants and displaced persons. This report examines these challenges in secondary cities in Côte d’Ivoire and Uganda, and how local, national, and civil-society actors are working to address them.

Articles
November 16, 2023

Climate Migration 101: An Explainer

Is climate change a major driver of migration and displacement? From where are people leaving, and where are they going? This informative primer, a Climate Migration 101 of sorts, provides answers to basic questions about climate change and migration, starting with how and where climate change triggers human movement.

Reports
November 2023

Immigration and Integration in the Ever More Diverse Houston Area

Nearly one-quarter of residents of the Houston metro area are immigrants. These foreign-born Houstonians come from an ever-wider range of countries and are well represented in high-demand industries, and make up a sizeable share of parents. This report sketches a profile of the Houston area’s immigrant population overall, and takes a closer look at the number and characteristics of those eligible to naturalize.

Articles
November 1, 2023

The World’s Leading Refugee Host, Turkey Has a Complex Migration History

Turkey is home to the world’s largest refugee population, a fact that has been a source of pride, a geopolitical tool, and a logistical challenge. This article shows how the millions of Syrians who have arrived since 2011 comprise just one aspect of Turkey’s rich and complex migration history. The country has been a significant host, a transit point for individuals heading to Europe, and a source of migrant laborers.

Video
September 18, 2023

20th Annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference

The 20th annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference, organized by MPI, Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc., and Georgetown University Law Center, features fresh, thoughtful policy and legal analysis, and discussion of some of the top immigration issues by leading government officials, attorneys, researchers, advocates, and other experts. 

Articles
October 25, 2023

Can the Biden Immigration Playbook Be Effective for Managing Arrivals via Sea?

Amid the highest Caribbean maritime migration levels in a generation, the Biden administration is relying on a carrot-and-stick strategy it honed amid record unauthorized migration at the U.S.-Mexico border. The approach, combining limits on asylum, expanded legal pathways, and international enforcement partnerships, could be increasingly important if maritime migration rises, as this article explains.

Pages