The vegetative cover in and surrounding the Rohingya refugee camps in Ukhiya-Teknaf is highly vulnerable since millions of refugees moved into the area, which led to severe environmental degradation. ...In this research, we used a supervised image classification technique to quantify the vegetative cover changes both in Ukhiya-Teknaf and thirty-four refugee camps in three time-steps: one pre-refugee crisis (January 2017), and two post-refugee crisis (March 2018, and February 2019), in order to identify the factors behind the decline in vegetative cover. The vegetative cover vulnerability of the thirty-four refugee camps was assessed using the Per Capita Greening Area (PCGA) datasets and K-means classification techniques. The satellite-based monitoring result affirms a massive loss of vegetative cover, approximately 5482.2 hectares (14%), in Ukhiya-Teknaf and 1502.56 hectares (79.57%) among the thirty-four refugee camps, between 2017 and 2019. K-means classification revealed that the vegetative cover in about 82% of the refugee camps is highly vulnerable. In the end, a recommendation as to establishing the studied region as an ecological park is proposed and some guidelines discussed. This could protect and reserve forests from further deforestation in the area, and foster future discussion among policymakers and researchers.
While the literature on boundary making has mainly documented variations in boundary work between groups and institutional contexts, scholars have paid less attention to boundary work in the context ...of unexpected dislocation of a group to a new context. This article examines how Syrian refugees in Belgium deal with a sudden loss of social status, by analysing how they draw symbolic boundaries among themselves, established immigrants and native Belgians. Drawing on 26 in-depth interviews with 39 Syrian refugees as well as on-going participant observation, we describe how our respondents use ‘comparative strategies of self’ to position themselves as dignified and worthy individuals.
We present two types of moral, and two types of cultural boundary work our interlocutors engaged in. They stressed their moral worthiness by, first, distancing themselves from the bad behaviour of ‘uneducated’ refugees in reception centres, and from established immigrants in materially deprived urban neighbourhoods. Second, especially male interlocutors displayed a strong work ethic highlighting how they renegotiated their masculine worthiness in response to their loss of status and their refugee condition. In addition, they demonstrated their cultural qualities by articulating, first, their personal competences and aesthetic refinement as individuals, and, second, by highlighting the general level of education, wealth and cultural achievements of Syrian people as a whole. In sum, these four boundary-making strategies served to legitimise their presence and strengthen their position vis-à-vis other social groups such as their compatriots, established immigrants and native Belgians. In line with previous studies by Sherman (2005) and Purser (2009), we find that these moral and cultural boundaries are significant in reasserting disadvantaged individuals’ sense of dignity, whilst working against the emergence of solidarity between wider groups of immigrants in similar socio-structural positions.
LGBTQ+ people experience mental health challenges due to their minoritized status, systemic inequities and structural disparities. For LGBTQ+ asylum seekers, refugee claimants and refugees the impact ...on their mental health can be compounding. This study, which featured a series of focus groups with LGBTQ+ asylum seekers, refugee claimants and refugees in Toronto, Canada, was part of a larger international study 'Envisioning Global LGBT Human Rights' that looked at colonising effects on LGBTQ people in the Commonwealth. The migration process, - often forced due to persecution in their country of origin based on sexual orientation or gender identity and expression - produced traumatic experiences involving life-changing decisions, accessing information and resources, cultural shifts, conceptualisation of identities, and navigating the refugees claims process. The specialised experiences of LGBTQ+ asylum seekers, refugee claimants and refugees can have a deleterious effect on their mental health that a critical psychology perspective can address clinically by recognising the particularised needs of this population and systemically by addressing the structural inequities.
We study the effect of local unemployment and attitudes towards immigrants at the time of arrival on refugees’ multi-dimensional integration outcomes. We leverage a centralized allocation policy in ...Germany where refugees were centrally assigned to live in specific counties. To measure sentiments of native residents towards immigrants, we use geo-coded Twitter data, which provides our “negative sentiment index”. Our results show that attitudes towards immigrants are as important as local unemployment rates in shaping refugees’ integration outcomes. A one standard deviation increase in unemployment or in the negative sentiment index predicts five percentage points lower probability of refugees being employed in 2016 to 2018. In additional robustness check, we present an analysis that uses far-right vote share as an alternative measure of sentiments of native residents.
This article studies the extent to which educational services and schooling outcomes of local children are influenced by the presence of a refugee camp in or near their community. Investigating ...Congolese refugees in Rwanda and relying on a mixed‐method approach, we examine schooling rates and access to school‐based feeding programmes in communities closer to and further away from three refugee camps. We conduct cohort analyses to compare the schooling outcomes of Rwandans residing at different distances from each of these camps. Our results highlight that children residing closer to the camps have better schooling outcomes and that locals residing closer to the camps have mostly positive views regarding the effects of refugees on local education. These results contribute to the literature on the effects of refugees on host communities and inform policy debates on how refugees need not be a “burden” if a long‐term vision shapes educational investments.
Child sexual abuse is an important health problem that disrupts the physical and mental health of children. In order to protect children from abuse, the knowledge and attitude levels of their ...families need to be increased.
This study was to determine the knowledge and attitude levels of Syrian refugee parents regarding child sexual abuse who lived in Turkey.
The study was carried out using a cross-sectional, descriptive, relationship-seeking design. A personal information form and the Child Sexual Abuse Knowledge/Attitude Scale for Parents (CSAKAS) were used.
In the study, the mean age of the participants was 33.0 ± 8.2; 74.7% were women; 93.7%. It was also found that the mean scores of the participants regarding such sub-dimensions of CSAKAS as myths/facts, belief, information, attitudes, services and reporting information and preventive attitudes differed statistically significantly with respect to their education level, income level, family type, employment status and having a disabled child (p < 0,05).
Based on the results, it could be stated that the parents who were university graduates, who had good levels of perceived income, who had a nuclear family, who were employed and who had disabled children had better levels of knowledge and attitude regarding child sexual abuse, and it could also be stated that the participants had moderate levels of knowledge and attitudes regarding child sexual abuse.
This study shows that pediatric nurses can play an important role in protecting, developing and improving the physical and mental health of children by increasing the knowledge and attitude levels of families in order to prevent child sexual abuse.
•Refugee children are at greater risk of sexual abuse than other children.•The physical and mental health of children exposed to child sexual abuse is negatively affected.•Parents' knowledge and attitudes about child sexual abuse can protect the child from sexual abuse.•Parents' knowledge and attitudes regarding child sexual abuse are affected by some socio-demographic data.•It can be said that parents' knowledge and attitude levels about child sexual abuse are at a medium level.
Vaccination refusal exacerbates global COVID-19 vaccination inequities. No studies in East Africa have examined temporal trends in vaccination refusal, precluding addressing refusal. We assessed ...vaccine refusal over time in Kenya, and characterized factors associated with changes in vaccination refusal.
We analyzed data from the Kenya Rapid Response Phone Survey (RRPS), a household cohort survey representative of the Kenyan population including refugees. Vaccination refusal (defined as the respondent stating they would not receive the vaccine if offered to them at no cost) was measured in February and October 2021. Proportions of vaccination refusal were plotted over time. We analyzed factors in vaccination refusal using a weighted multivariable logistic regression including interactions for time.
Among 11,569 households, vaccination refusal in Kenya decreased from 24 % in February 2021 to 9 % in October 2021. Vaccination refusal was associated with having education beyond the primary level (−4.1−0.7,−8.9 percentage point difference (ppd)); living with somebody who had symptoms of COVID-19 in the past 14 days (−13.72−8.9,−18.6ppd); having symptoms of COVID-19 in the past 14 days (11.05.1,16.9ppd); and distrusting the government in responding to COVID-19 (14.77.1,22.4ppd). There were significant interactions with time and: refugee status and geography, living with somebody with symptoms of COVID-19, having symptoms of COVID-19, and believing in misinformation.
The temporal reduction in vaccination refusal in Kenya likely represents substantial strides by the Kenyan vaccination program and possible learnt lessons which require examination. Going forward, there are still several groups which need specific targeting to decrease vaccination refusal and improve vaccination equity, including those with lower levels of education, those with recent COVID-19 symptoms, those who do not practice personal COVID-19 mitigation measures, refugees in urban settings, and those who do not trust the government. Policy and program should focus on decreasing vaccination refusal in these populations, and research focus on understanding barriers and motivators for vaccination.
The events that took place during the 2015-16 refugee crisis in the southeastern EU region boosted unprecedented bordering processes. Borders were reinforced and extended and a costly and difficult ...deal with Turkey was undertaken; the western Balkans were turned into a vast buffer zone made up of multiple buffer states with fences of all types and sizes; while Greece was ring-fenced and to this day struggles to manage thousands of refugees stranded in camps all over its territory. By seeking to contain the refugee flows, the EU turned its southeastern region into a fortified EU borderland.
The internet is a source of health information for many consumers. However, little is known about the availability of online resources about immunisation (for children and adults) directed at refugee ...and migrant populations. The aim of this study was to evaluate the health literacy demand (understandability, actionability & readability) and cultural appropriateness of immunisation resources in Australia for these communities.
Our study involved two search approaches. Firstly, Google trends was used to identify the most common search terms used in Australia. Search terms used included ‘immunisation’, ‘vaccine’ and ‘refugee immunisation’ amongst others. These search terms were entered into: Google, Bing, Duck Duck Go and Yahoo and the first 5 pages of results for each search were examined. Searches were conducted from November 2018 to June 2019. Secondly, requests were sent out directly to key stakeholders in local health districts and state/territory health departments. Understandability and actionability were assessed using the Patient Education Materials Assessment Tool (PEMAT). The Simple Measure of Gobbledygook (SMOG) and the Flesch readability ease tools were used to assess readability. Cultural appropriateness was assessed using additional criteria developed by the Centre for Culture, Ethnicity and Health (CEH), Victoria, Australia.
27/33 resources were included in the analysis. The overall mean understandability score was 70% (range: 50–100%). The overall mean actionability score of the resources was 47% (range: 0–83%). In terms of readability, the mean score was a 10.5, which was indicative of an eleventh grade reading level. The average Flesch-Kincaid readability score was 47.7. The average score for cultural appropriateness was 79% (range: 29–100%).
Our findings suggest that there are currently not many refugee-specific resources on immunisation. Future work needs to better improve the health literacy demand of online immunisation information. Engaging with members from migrant communities is also recommended so that appropriately tailored resources are co-developed.
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