Setup
Most of us probably harbor preconceived notions about refugees. Maybe it’s a misunderstanding about what drove them from home. Or maybe it’s a lack of understanding about the lives they led before crises upended them. Or possibly, a failure of imagination about the talents and capacities they bring to their new host countries. How do our misconceptions about refugees keep us from fixing our broken refugee system and integrating refugees more fully into our communities? Could it be that one of the worst humanitarian challenges of our time is also replete with opportunities, if only we could see them? Qutaiba Idibl, a Syrian activist forced to flee Damascus after enduring torture at the hands of the Assad regime, is building a new life in the United States. Alexander Betts directs the Refugee Studies Centre at Oxford University. Together, they explore what’s missing in the conversation about refugees around the world.
Explore More
Economy
From the Supreme Court's ruling on abortion rights to public health's role in addressing gun violence to the devastating human toll of the war in Ukraine, this year's Aspen Id...
While the workforce is still adapting to the changing economic landscape, one thing is certain — the traditional blueprints for education and the workplace have been ripped up...
While the workforce is still adapting to the changing economic landscape, one thing is certain — the traditional blueprints for education and the workplace have been ripped up...
From blockchain to back to school and virus-hunting to bridging divides, speakers at the 2021 Aspen Ideas Festival addressed issues in a new kind of world—one touched, and cha...
The highest court often seems distanced from our day-to-day lives, but the rulings that come out of the Supreme Court are woven into the fabric of the nation. Though it aims t...
Gen-Z for Change's Aidan Kohn-Murphy on youth-led movements, his advice for young activists, and why it's impossible to lose hope.
Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, and since then, the war has proven longer and costlier than what the Kremlin might have expected. Ukrainian resistanc...
After two devastating years fighting the pandemic, how do we rebuild and support stronger health care and public health workforces? Dave Chokshi, who helped lead New York Cit...
