Archive for the 'TASK GROUP RELATED' Category

Traumatic Stress Training for refugee workers

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by
Editor
on February 27, 2008
in Book Recommendations, GENERAL, RESOURCES, Refugee Training and ministry tools
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It is not news that refugee workers in the field and in agency offices undergo a high degree of stress in their work. But, it is good to know that there is an agency that makes courses available on-line (and free of charge) that refugee workers and field staff can access from anywhere in the world. There are also stress self-examinations, monthly tips and notices of regional training.

The Headington Institute’s mission is to make resources on humanitarian work and traumatic stress available to a wide audience. This free multimedia online curriculum on humanitarian work and stress is being designed for those who are interested in these topics but who may not have immediate access to training and other resources.

This program provides two related types of online training:

Online modules: E-booklets containing study text and personal reflection questions.
E-learning courses: Interactive online courses based on our online modules. These courses can also be downloaded to CD and completed offline.

Three of the courses currently offered online at Headington Institute are:

Understanding and coping with traumatic stress
Humanitarian work is physically and emotionally demanding, and many humanitarian workers struggle to find a healthy balance between the demands of the work and the need to pay some attention to their own well-being. The goal of this module is to provide an overview of traumatic stress as it is related to humanitarian work, and helpful coping strategies for dealing with it.

Trauma and critical incident care
International humanitarian work in the current global context is an inherently dangerous undertaking. Whether it is the result of natural disaster, civil conflict, or domestic crime, few humanitarian workers escape without becoming a target of violence or witnessing violence and its aftereffects. The goal of this module is to explain trauma reactions and explore how to best care for yourself and others after a traumatic event.

On the road again: Coping with travel and re-entry stress
Travel is a normal part of life for many humanitarian workers, but they are not protected from finding it stressful just because they are working for a good cause. This module explores the dynamics of the transitions that humanitarian work demands and coping strategies for dealing with travel stress.

As an additional resource for training, trauma counseling or consulting for your refugee agency or ministry contact Glenn Goss, MSW, at northlinkg@gmail.com.

NZ refugees and mental health screenings

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Editor
on February 27, 2008
in Africa, Asia, Refugee Training and news
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Refugees will soon be screened for mental health problems before they get to New Zealand in an effort to reduce the chance of “surprises” such as last week’s attempted aircraft hijacking by a Somali woman.

A review of New Zealand’s refugee resettlement system by accountants PricewaterhouseCoopers is believed to recommend mental health assessments at “point of source”, and intensive case management for traumatised refugees for at least two years.

The Labour Department refused to comment on the report yesterday because it “has yet to be finalised”.
Read full report.
By Simon Collins with the New Zealand Herald, 02/12/08.

U.S. Legislation - “Material Support”

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Editor
on February 27, 2008
in Advocacy, North America and news
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Recent, encouraging changes in U.S. legislation redefines who is barred from admission to the U.S. due to their “material support” of terrorist organizations, and allows more waivers to be granted. Read more.

Inviting you to the Roundtable in Uganda

Published
by
Editor
on February 27, 2008
in Advocacy, Africa, Asia, Europe, GENERAL, Latin America, Middle East, North America, REGION RELATED, RESOURCES, Refugee Training, events, ministry tools, needs and opportunities and news
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Refugee Highway Partnership Roundtable in Entebbe, Uganda


June 18 - 22, 2008

The Refugee Highway Partnership was launched at a historic Consultation in 2001 in Izmir, Turkey. Nearly 200 church leaders from around the globe gathered to build connections, collaborate, and develop strategies to respond to the incredible need of refugees in our world. Since then, annual leadership meetings and roundtables have been held to continue to build and grow the partnership. The RHP’s mission is to mobilize the worldwide church to bring hope and provide refuge for over 30 million refugees and internally displaced people around the world through collaborative strategies. For more information about the RHP visit our website at: http://refugeehighway.net

The Uganda Roundtable, hosted by the Association of Evangelicals of Africa (AEA) – a member of the World Evangelical Alliance – has been designed for participants to:

> Learn more about the RHP and ways to engage their church in refugee initiatives
> See first-hand the impact of refugee movements and internally displaced persons in the host country
>Partner with the African church through prayer, encouragement and engagement
> Participate in World Refugee Sunday celebrations in a “hotspot” in our world

Roundtable Participants:
Our target participants are strategic church leaders which includes pastors, denominational leaders, mission body representatives, and para-church organization leadership. We are intentionally capping the number of participants to allow for strong connections to take place. Our goal is to limit total attendance to approximately 60 to 80 people. The Africa region (as host) will have 10 to 15 church leaders from across Africa in attendance. Other regions and issue group areas have room to include approximately 5 to 10 leaders. Our goal is to involve decision makers who have the motivation, the influence and the ability to mobilize church involvement in refugee ministry when they return; leaders who have had some prior exposure to refugee issues and for whom this event could be the catalyst to greater involvement; and influencers who will share what they learn at this event to engage others.

Draft Schedule:
Wednesday, June 18 - Participants arrive
Thursday, June 19 - Full Day Session
Friday, June 20 - Site Visit to Kampala
Saturday, June 21 - Full Day Session
Sunday, June 22 - Refugee Sunday Celebrations

Monday, June 23, Tuesday, June 24 - Optional site visit to Northern Uganda

The schedule is being designed for optimum learning, listening, engaging, and connecting.

Location:
Imperial Botanic Beach Hotel in Entebbe, Uganda.

The hotel is located just 10 minutes from the international airport in Entebbe and provides free airport shuttle service. The hotel is considered one of the finest meeting facilities in Uganda and boasts visits from both U.S. Presidents Clinton and Bush. More information about the hotel is available at: Imperial Botanical Beach Hotel, Entebbe, Uganda

Optional site visit to Northern Uganda:
Participants will have the opportunity to visit a refugee camp – to view the programs and conditions and to engage with personnel and people living in the camp.

Cost:
Approximately $100 per day for full room and board, local transportation and use of meeting facilities. Travel costs to and from Uganda are in addition.

This is an invitation-only event. Applications to attend can be downloaded below:
APPLICATION (Adobe)
APPLICATION (Word)

Please return this form by: Friday, March 7, 2008. You will be notified if your registration is accepted. Please DO NOT reserve flights or make other arrangements unless your reservation is accepted.

For questions, contact Linda Moorcroft of the Refugee Highway Partnership at Linda_Moorcroft@christiestreetrc.com

Sincerely,

RHP Leadership Team

Contribute to Trafficking in Persons Report

Published
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Editor
on February 26, 2008
in Advocacy, needs and opportunities and research
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A letter from Ambassador Mark Lagon is below. Note March 15, 2008 deadline for submitting information!
(The questionnaire can be downloaded - see links at the bottom of the post.)

Dear Friend in the Fight to Abolish Modern Day Slavery:

The 2008 Trafficking in Person Report cycle has begun and we rely on information received from NGOs to provide a source different than the data supplied by foreign governments. In years past, the information obtained from NGOs has significantly contributed to the tier placements of several countries.

We are interested in any trafficking-related research, field work, databases, or any other pertinent information that you think would be useful in our annual assessments. We would also welcome research or information documented or drafted within the past year. In particular, we are interested in data on trafficking trends and anti-trafficking efforts in some countries where we perceive a dearth of adequate outside information: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, China, France, Macau, Pakistan, Russia, South Africa, and Vietnam.

I have attached and pasted below a questionnaire for NGOs to use in compiling information for the 2008 Trafficking in Persons Report. We realize that your time and resources are precious, but this information is crucial. Please complete the questions for which you have information. You may return this survey via email to TIPReport@state.gov or fax to 202-312-9637 by March 15, 2007.

Thank you for all you do to ensure that modern day slavery is prevented, that victims are protected, and, that traffickers are put in jail. We look forward to your participation in the information collection effort.

Sincerely Yours,

Ambassador Mark P. Lagon
Director, Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons
U.S. Department of State
www.state.gov/g/tip
www.gtipphotos.state.gov
(202) 312-9640
TIPOutreach@state.gov

(Adobe) 2008 TIP Report Questionnaire
(Word) 2008 TIP Report Questionnaire

Removal of Ethnic Tamils’ from Sri Lanka - Stayed!

Published
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Editor
on December 10, 2007
in Advocacy, Asia, Europe, GENERAL and news
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“Removal of Ethnic Tamils from Sri Lanka - Stayed!”
“The European Court of Human Rights has asked the UK Government to put a stay on removal of refused asylum seekers from Sri Lanka, pending the hearing by the Court of several communicated cases relating to forced returns by EU countries to Sri Lanka of refused ethnic Tamils’.

“The Court has made it clear, ‘Having regard to the current security situation in Sri Lanka, *Rule 39 has been applied on each occasion an interim measure has been requested by an ethnic Tamil’.

“Which means that if the Home Office (UK) try to remove any ethnic Tamil who has been refused asylum and all legal avenues exhausted, the individual can apply to the ECHR to have the removal stayed, pending any ruling by the ECHR.

“If you know of any Tamils’ in the UK (refused asylum) whether in the community or in detention facing removal and the Home Office has not stayed the directions/ and if the person is in detention, not released the person from detention, please contact admin@ncadc.org.uk.

“*Rule 39 is a ‘Interim measure’ served on a EU government by the ECHR, preventing that Government taking any actions against the person named, pending a decision by the ECHR.

“There are two documents that must be filled in and faxed to ECHR in applications for ‘Interim relief’, under Rule 39.”

For the two documents referred to above, visit the website from which this report was taken:

 http://www.ncadc.org.uk/archives/filed%20newszines/newszine87/Tamils’.html.  

book recommendations anyone?

Published
by
tom
on March 22, 2007
in Advocacy, Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, Middle East, North America, RESOURCES, Refugee Training, ministry tools and research
. 3 Comments

i’m looking to build a list of recommended reading related to the Highway. my guess is that several of us have existing lists. would you be willing to share what your top refugee-related reading resources are? if so, please share them using the “comment” option to this post. thanks!

book cover:

here are some of the printed resources i’ve found worthwhile…

i look forward to seeing what others add to this list!