Religious roles in refugee resettlement : pertinent experience and insights, addressed to G20 members

Religious entities play significant roles in the current forced migration crisis. These roles include innovative and experience based ideas to address flawed aspects of the humanitarian system, overall advocacy on behalf of refugees and migrants based on humanitarian and spiritual principles, direct action in refugee camps and communities, action in communities that refugees and migrants flee, and support for refugee integration in host countries, including explicit efforts to promote social cohesion and address trauma. Further, assumptions about religion and the religious identity of refugees and migrants play an influential role in societal and policy debates surrounding the crisis, particularly in relation to security and violent extremism. Broadly, however, religious factors and contributions are poorly understood and insufficiently taken into account by policy makers and in think tank analyses of these (among other) issues. In each area of measures to increase religious engagement, including understanding, harmonization and coordination of efforts, and support, could increase impact. G20 agendas and gatherings, as well as those of think tanks, can benefit from purposeful attention to these often neglected dimensions of a central global challenge.