The Refugees in Towns project (RIT) is proud to announce the 2020 Refugee Integration Conference and Art Festival, to be held online on October 2nd and 3rd, on Zoom.

The Refugee Integration Conference (October 2) will provide a venue for practitioners, policymakers, academic from around the world to share how their city/town/neighborhood is supporting migrant integration, as well as the challenges of exclusion. Participants will include local refugee resettlement coordinators, international aid workers, and refugees/IDPs. Our goal is for all audiences to walk away with fresh ideas for improving migrant-host integration in their community, and with a widened network of people working toward improving inclusivity.

The Refugee Integration Arts Festival (October 2 and 3) is an event that will bring together artists, researchers, and the broader public to explore the integration experiences of refugees and communities. This is a community oriented series of performances and workshops led by artists and guests local to the New England area, who will invite the public to actively engage with different forms of art (dance and music, theater, painting, creative writing, and photography). The guests will learn about the role of art in refugee integration and advocacy for rights in host societies. Through dynamic discussion, the public will also learn about the artists’ process, intention, and the meaning of artmaking for the immigrant experience and integration.

All events are free and open to the public, though registration is required. Please register at https://www.refugeesintowns.org/events to receive the links to the Zoom meetings set up for these events.

Click here to read the program for the conference.

Click here to read the program for the arts festival.

If you have any questions, please contact Stephanie.Khoury@tufts.edu or marinalazetic@gmail.com.

The Refugees in Towns project (RIT) promotes understanding of the migrant/refugee experience by drawing on the knowledge and perspectives of refugees themselves as well as local hosts. The project was conceived and is led by Karen Jacobsen, and is based at the Feinstein International Center at Tufts University. It is funded by the Henry J. Leir Foundation.