Navigating Precarious Terrains: Reconceptualizing Refugee-Youth Settlement

Authors

  • Caitlin Nunn School of Applied Social Sciences, Durham University
  • Sandra M. Gifford Centre for Urban Transitions, Swinburne University of Technology
  • Celia McMichael School of Geography, University of Melbourne
  • Ignacio Correa-Velez Queensland University of Technology

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.7202/1043062ar

Keywords:

Australia, refugees, settlement, youth, social navigation, Good Starts study, longitudinal study

Abstract

Settlement is widely understood as the final stage of the refugee journey: a durable solution to forced displacement and a stable environment in which former refugees can rebuild their lives. However, settlement is shaped by rapidly changing socio-political forces producing contingent, unpredictable, and even hostile environments. This article draws upon Vigh’s concept of social navigation to reconceptualize settlement as a continuation of a fraught journey in which refugee settlers must continually seek new strategies to pursue viable futures. We illustrate with an in-depth case study of the settlement journey of one refugee-background young man over his first eight years in Melbourne, Australia.

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Author Biographies

Caitlin Nunn, School of Applied Social Sciences, Durham University

 

Caitlin Nunn is an assistant professor (research) in the School of Applied Social Sciences at Durham University. The author may be contacted at caitlin.nunn@durham.ac.uk.

 

Sandra M. Gifford, Centre for Urban Transitions, Swinburne University of Technology

Sandra M. Gifford is a professor of anthropology in the Centre for Urban Transitions at Swinburne University of Technology. The author may be contacted at sgifford@swin.edu.au.

Celia McMichael, School of Geography, University of Melbourne

Celia McMichael is a lecturer in the School of Geography at the University of Melbourne. The author may be contacted at celia.mcmichael@unimelb.edu.au.

Ignacio Correa-Velez, Queensland University of Technology

Ignacio Correa-Velez is associate professor of public health at the Queensland University of Technology. The author may be contacted at ignacio.correavelez@qut.edu.au

Published

2017-11-03

How to Cite

Nunn, C., Gifford, S. M., McMichael, C., & Correa-Velez, I. (2017). Navigating Precarious Terrains: Reconceptualizing Refugee-Youth Settlement. Refuge: Canada’s Journal on Refugees, 33(2), 45–55. https://doi.org/10.7202/1043062ar