Understanding the Refugee Crisis

The Duke Office of Global Affairs published a feature story that focuses on the growing refugee population in the world today. According to the site, there were about 59.5 million displaced people in the world as of June 2015, branding the current refugee crisis the worst of its kind since World War II. This crisis is especially relevant to the Duke community, as the Triangle Area has become a main settlement location for global refugees.

The Kenan Institute for Ethics has launched a number of programs for students wishing to learn more about and get involved in the refugee crisis. One of these initiatives is a Bass Connections project called Displacement, Resettlement and Global Mental Health, which is part of the Global Health theme. The team performs research in Nepal, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon and the local Triangle region to assess how displacement affects the mental health of refugees. While the project focuses on three main refugee groups – Iraqis, Bhutanese and Syrians – it considers the current state of refugees as a fully global problem.

Read the feature, find out more about the team’s experiences on their research blog and learn how to get involved with Bass Connections.