 Identifying Empowering Changes to Promote Civic Engagement in the Cincinnati, Ohio Refugee Community
Researchers, refugees, and community partners have come together to understand challenges faced by the refugee communities and create community changes that would support more civic engagement in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Each year, 200 to 300 refugees typically move to the Greater Cincinnati area. More than half of the incoming refugee population is under the age of 18. In recent years, studies have found that mental health, youth suicidality, neighborhood violence, workplace challenges, and navigating new systems are among the obstacles many in the refugee community face. Civic Action for Refugee Empowerment in Cincinnati was created to identify the root causes of these challenges that refugees face. Findings made by Civic Action for Refugee Empowerment help to inform and improve the lives of refugees and support the empowerment of refugee communities and their capacity to make a positive impact in their neighborhoods.
COVID-19 did not stopped these efforts. Principal investigators, Drs. Anjali Dutt and Farrah Jacquez of the University of Cincinnati, their team of refugee co-researchers, and their community partner, Cincinnati Compass, conducted surveys with nearly 200 local refugees about their experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. The surveys identified employment, housing, healthcare, education, and access to food as respondents' most pressing needs. The teams distributed their findings to local government, health workers, and community organizations to ensure support services equitably included refugees.
Civic Action for Refugee Empowerment developed and implemented a Civic Leadership Program to support refugee integration into community leadership positions. They are working on an "insider’s guide” video series to help refugees across the seven Greater Cincinnati communities’ access available resources.
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