Social Innovation for Refugee Inclusion: A Sense of Home Co-organised conference

EESC building, Rue Belliard 99, 1040 Brussels

Agenda

Day 1: 24 January 2019

01:30 - 02:30 p.m.  Arrival and Registration (EESC reception)

02:30 - 03:00 p.m.  Welcoming remarks (JDE 62)

  • Stéphane Dion, Canadian Ambassador to Germany and Special Envoy to the European Union and Europe
  • Carlos Trindade, President, EESC Group on Immigration and Integration
  • Meghan Benton, Senior Policy Analyst and Assistant Director for Research, International Programme, Migration Policy Institute

03:00 - 04:00 p.m. Panel I: ‘Creating Home? Housing as a Gateway to Integration’ (JDE 62)

  • What is the role of living situations in shaping opportunities for newcomers? How does having a secure, stable, appropriate, affordable, and well-connected home help them settle in?
  • When building a ‘home’, what other needs should be factored in, such as community participation, employment, healthcare, and family?
  • What are the main challenges that newly arrived refugees (and migrants) face in terms of housing and rebuilding a sense of home?
  • How can we reduce receiving communities’ anxieties concerning social change or strained services and resources, resulting in some local populations feeling like their sense of ‘home’ is changing or under threat?

Moderator: Meghan Benton, Senior Policy Analyst and Assistant Director for Research, International Program, Migration Policy Institute                 

  • Anila Noor, Member of the European Migrant Advisory Board, Netherlands
  • Tariq Tarey, Director of Refugee Social Services at Jewish Family Services, United States
  • Doug Saunders, Journalist and author, Canada/UK
  • Fuad Mahamed, Founder, Ashley Community Housing, United Kingdom

04:00 - 04:20 p.m.  Coffee break

04:20 - 06:00 p.m. Breakout Session I

1.  Co-Housing: Does Inclusion Start in Shared Homes? (JDE 3252)

  • What is co-housing for refugees, and what is innovative about it? Is it there more to co-housing than just home sharing?
  • What are the benefits co-housing initiatives have had on social mixing, and where have they encountered difficulties?
  • What actors need to be involved in a successful co-housing initiative?

Moderator: Alliyah Ahad, Associate Policy Analyst, MPI Europe

  • Jolien de Crom, Project Manager, CURANT- Co-housing and case management for Unaccompanied young adult Refugees in Antwerp, Belgium
  • Fleur Eymann, Communications Advisor,De Key, Startblok Riekerhaven, Netherlands
  • Friedemann Bumblies, Senior Project Manager, Give Something Back to Berlin/ Sharehaus Refugio, Germany

2.  Beyond Employment: Social Inclusion Through Professional Life (JDE 62)

  • What role does employment play in creating a sense of ‘home’? And how can employment-focused projects maximise social inclusion gains, e.g. by fostering personal empowerment and harnessing opportunities for social interaction, mutual learning, and trust-building within local communities?
  • On the other hand, ‘bad work’ may hinder rather promote social integration — through exploitation, insecurity, and social isolation. How can social innovators counter these risks?
  • What role do professional mentoring and buddy systems have in promoting social inclusion as well as access to the labour market?
  • How can social innovators improve employment outcomes of refugees, by mobilising local community networks and resources in creative ways?

Moderator: Ben Mason, Researcher and project lead, Betterplace lab, Germany

  • Julie Bodson, Advocacy Coordinator, DUO for a JOB, Belgium
  • Hugo Ortiz Dubon, Co-founder and diversity strategist, We Link Sweden, Sweden
  • Tariq Tarey, Director of Refugee Social Services at Jewish Family Services, United States

3.  Urban Planning for Refugee Inclusion (JDE 63)

  • How can urban planning and design support the integration of newcomers into existing communities, and counteract social and spatial exclusion?
  • What do inclusive cities look like, in theory and in reality? And how can we muster the political leadership, public support, and financial resources to advance spatial inclusion in our local communities?

Moderator: Marie Baleo, Head of Publications, La Fabrique de la Cité, France

  • Doug Saunders, Journalist and author, Canada/UK
  • Viviana d’Auria, Team Coordinator, Designing Inclusion, KU Leuven, Belgium
  • Elena Schütz, Architect, Something Fantastic, Germany
  • Jonathan Darling, Assistant Professor, Durham University, United Kingdom

4.  Community-driven Innovation: Kitchens and Living Rooms as Sites of Inclusion (Atrium 6)

  • How do community-based civil society projects foster interaction between groups, and what challenges do they face?
  • How can the support of receiving communities be sustained long term, and instil the sense that receiving communities have a voice? What does innovation mean for community-building initiatives?

Moderator: Kenny Clewett, Director, Hello Europe Initiative, Ashoka, Spain 

  • Rami AlMidani, Founder, Our House, Belgium
  • Agnes Disselkamp, Project Lead, Kitchen on the Run, Über den Tellerrand, Germany
  • Cerise Vandenkerckhove, Co-director, SINGA, Belgium

5.  Private Citizens for Refugees: Private Sponsorship (JDE 2252)

  • What factors can help prepare local communities for receiving refugees and secure their sustained support in the long term?
  • How does private sponsorship of refugees impact the integration trajectories of newcomers, and what innovations have developed from within sponsoring communities?

Moderator: Adam Kittl, Asylum Unit, DG Home, European Commission  

  • Hannah Feldman, Programme Officer, Citizens UK
  • Dorota Blumcynska, Executive Director, Immigrant and Refugee Community Organization of Manitoba, Canada
  • David Manicom, Assistant Deputy Minister, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
  • Leila Bodeux, Policy and Advocacy Officer, Caritas Europe, Belgium

06:00 - 07:30 p.m. Breakout Dinners (Atrium 6)

  • Catered by newcomer businesses

Day 2: 25 January 2019

08:30 - 09:00 a.m.  Arrival and Registration (EESC reception)

09:00 - 10:15 a.m. Parallel Panel I: ‘Innovative Cities and Rural Communities.’ (JDE 62)

  • What are the respective advantages of cities and rural communities when it comes to housing and social inclusion of refugees, and what are their respective weaknesses? Beyond all differences, what can they learn from each other?
  • So far, social innovation for refugee inclusion has been a mostly urban phenomenon. What does it need to successfully ‘go rural’? Do rural communities require radically different models and approaches than urban centres, or can both profit from the same type of social innovation?

Moderator: Haroon Saad, Lead Expert, Local Urban Development European Network, Belgium                 

  • Eleftherios Papagiannakis, Vice-Mayor for Migrants, Refugees and Municipal Decentralization, Municipality of Athens, Greece
  • Mari Bjerck, Researcher, Eastern Norway Research Institute, Project SIMRA (Social Innovation in Marginalised Rural Areas), Norway
  • Antoine Savary, Deputy Head of Unit for Legal Migration and Integration, DG Home, European Commission

09:00 - 10:15 a.m. Parallel Panel II: ‘Holistic Homes: Addressing Vulnerabilities, Gender Issues, & Mental Wellbeing’ (JDE 63)

  • What are innovative ways to link housing to other forms of support, in order to address the multidimensional needs and vulnerabilities of refugees, such as those related to mental health and/or gender?
  • How can more holistic accommodation solutions help refugees maximise the positive synergies between different areas of wellbeing and dimensions of inclusion? And how can these models be scaled?

Moderator: Abderrahim Khairi, Membership & Events Officer, Migration & Integration Policy Assistant, Housing Europe           

  • Antigone Kotanidis, Project coordinator on behalf of the Municipality of Athens, Curing the Limbo, Greece
  • Louise Ebeltoft, Manager of Operations and Refugee Services, Carty House, Canada
  • Maryam Gardisi, Deputy Director, IPSO, Germany
  • Lina Attar, Co-Founder and CEO, Karam Foundation, USA

10:15 - 10:40 a.m.  Coffee break

10:40 - 12:00 p.m. Breakout Session II

1.  Defining Success: How to Measure and Define What Works (Atrium 6)

  • What are the main hallmarks of successful social integration and how can these be measured?
  • For social enterprises in the area of refugee inclusion, what are the advantages, costs, and risks of investing in impact evaluation?
  • Evaluation in social innovation is crucial for continuing learning, adaptation, and improvement. How can we ensure as many innovations as possible are able to measure their impact? What timeframe, indicators, and methods should we use when measuring social impact?
  • How can the private sector support data collection and impact measurement for integration outcomes?

Moderator: Meghan Benton, Senior Policy Analyst and Assistant Director for Research, International Programme, Migration Policy     

  • Alessandro Valera, Director, Ashoka Italy
  • George Sarelakos, Athens Coordination Centre, Greece  
  • Jolien de Crom, Project Manager, CURANT- Co-housing and case management for Unaccompanied young adult Refugees in Antwerp, Belgium                              

2.  Innovative Financing (JDE 2252)

  • Continuing the conversation from the previous year, what new funding tools show promise in supporting social innovation?
  • What are the pros and cons of different funding models, such as public grants or Social Impact Bonds? And how can innovative ‘hybrid financing’ solutions—e.g. combining grants, loans, and equity investments—support social impact for refugee inclusion?
  • What innovative financing models have been developed from the private sector?
  • Early-stage initiatives often face particularly high obstacles to accessing funding. How can we close this early-stage financing gap, particularly in the field of refugee inclusion?
  • What kind of guidance do social innovators need in order to find the right financing models and sources?

Moderator: Liam Patuzzi, Migration Policy Institute; ebb Bildung

  • Fuad Mahamed, Founder, Ashley Community Housing, United Kingdom
  • Filippo Addarii, Founding Partner & CEO, PlusValue, Italy/UK
  • Tim Caulfield, Director, Urban Innovative Actions, Belgium

3.  Innovative Partnerships (JDE 62)

  • What kinds of partnerships are best for generating, transferring, and scaling innovative ideas, and moving innovative approaches into the mainstream?
  • How should governments decide which organisations to partner with? What are the challenges and opportunities inherent in public-private partnerships?
  • What are ‘smart networks’, and what role can they play in promoting experimentation, identifying/spreading successful innovations, and facilitating cross-sectoral engagement in migrant and refugee inclusion?

Moderator: Kenny Clewett, Director, Hello Europe Initiative, Ashoka, Spain

  • Antigone Kotanidis, Project coordinator on behalf of the Municipality of Athens, Curing the Limbo, Greece
  • Hugo Ortiz Dubon, Co-founder and diversity strategist We Link Sweden, Sweden
  • Viola Zabeti, Press and Opinion (Public Affairs), Union of Sweden, Stockholm

4. First Reception as a Launchpad of Integration (JDE 63)

  • How well do reception and accommodation facilities address the multifaceted needs and aspirations of asylum seekers and refugees?
  • What innovative models exist for expanding the role of reception and first accommodation centres beyond tackling basic accommodation needs and boosting their potential as launchpads for social integration?
  • How can we make the most of the transition period between reception and long-term accommodation?

Moderator: Jonathan Darling, Durham University, UK

  • Louise Ebeltoft, Manager of Operations and Refugee Services, Carty House, Canada
  • Bieke Machiels, Head of Unit for Policy and Research, FEDASIL, Belgium
  • Rory O'Neill, Integration Project Manager, Irish Refugee Council, Ireland

5.  Housing Beyond Status (JDE 3252)

  • What barriers do unsuccessful asylum seekers and irregular migrants face in accessing accommodation?
  • How can homelessness and destitution among migrant and refugee populations be prevented?
  • What are the broader social impacts of homelessness among migrant and refugee populations?

Moderator: Hanne Beirens, Acting Director, MPI Europe

  • Marco Striano, FEANTSA, Belgium
  • Hazel Williams, National Director, NACCOM – No Accommodation Network, United Kingdom
  • Maria Iglesias, Praxis Community Services, United Kingdom

12:00 - 01:00 p.m. Reflection on Key Themes, Next Steps (JDE 62)

Moderator: Elizabeth Collett, Director, MPI Europe (on leave of absence); Special Adviser to the Director General, International Organization for Migration

  • David Manicom, Assistant Deputy Minister, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
  • Laura Corrado, Head of Unit, Legal Migration and Integration, DG Home, European Commission
  • Sorcha Edwards, Secretary General, Housing Europe

01:00 - 02:00 p.m. Lunch 

 

Join the discussion online:  #SI4RI3
 

All sessions in room JDE62 are interpreted from EN, FR, ES, DE, IT, PT into EN, FR, PT.
All sessions taking place in other rooms are in English only.

Downloads

2019-01-24 & 25_SI4RI_A Sense of Home_Agenda
2019-01-24 & 25_SI4RI_A Sense of Home_Draft agenda