Resettlement and Processing of Haitian Refugees

Political violence and human rights abuses are escalating in Haiti, as the country’s nascent democracy deteriorates. Already, the United States and countries in the Caribbean region are developing and implementing policies designed to deter and prevent the arrival of Haitian asylum seekers, despite the fact that the flow of asylum seekers has not yet significantly increased from past years. This paper raises concerns about the failure of the United States to offer protection to Haitian refugees and proposes the implementation of a resettlement program as a partial solution to this systemic failure. The paper endorses the concept of in-country processing of Haitian refugees if done with significant safeguards to prevent further abuses against such applicants.Alors que la démocratie naissante périclite à Haïti, la violence politique et les abus des droits humains sont en nette croissance. Mais déjà, les États-Unis et d’autres pays de la région des Caraïbes érigent des politiques visant à dissuader et à empêcher l’arrivée de demandeurs d’asile haïtiens, et cela malgré le fait que le flot de réfugiés n’a pas augmenté de façon appréciable par rapport aux années précédentes. Cet article exprime de fortes inquiétudes devant l’échec des États-Unis à offrir des protections aux réfugiés haïtiens et propose, comme solution partielle à cette défaillance systémique, la mise en oeuvre d’un programme de réinstallation. L’article donne son aval à l’idée de traitement sur place des réfugiés haïtiens, à la condition expresse que des mesures solides soient mises en place pour garantir la sécurité de tels demandeurs et empêcher qu’ils ne soient victimes d’abus additionnels

Leadership models and community resilience to climate change events: A case study of an Alaskan bush village

ABSTRACT Climate change in the Arctic is happening at twice the rate of the rest of the world. Arctic communities are struggling to survive as the effects of these changes threaten the very fabric of their communities. Resilience to these climate change events is determined by many factors. Communities must be able to act collectively, use local knowledge, have access to financial resources, and participate in the decision making processes. All of these factors are determined by the effectiveness of the leadership models employed to reach specific community goals. Climate change events and leadership both occur at the local level. Studying the results produced by different leadership models employed in one Alaskan, Inupiaq village yields important insight into climate change and community resilience. The case study village uses three concurrent leadership styles to build community resilience for three different climate change events. The Native leadership model is being used for emergency preparedness and response to the increasing severity of fall storms and flooding. The rational bureaucratic leadership model is being used to build a protective sea wall to preserve and stabilize the eroding shoreline. The adaptive co-management model is being used to manage failing moose populations. Understanding the key role leadership has played in this community will provide pertinent insights for communities throughout the world suffering the effects of climate change

Aboriginal students and postsecondary education: A participatory exploration of experiences and needs at a university and community college in northeastern Ontario

Aboriginal people are increasingly seeking forms of post-secondary education that meet their cultural, political, social and spiritual needs. Universities and colleges have a responsibility to become involved in the decolonization process by taking a proactive stance in relation to the changes which are required to meet these needs. The research described in this dissertation is a bicultural, participatory action project which sought to document the experiences and needs of Aboriginal students at a university and community college in North Bay, Ontario in order to lay the groundwork for new programs and services which might be developed. Research Circles and Individual Interviews were held to gather participants’ stories. The circles and interviews were tape recorded and transcribed and the results shared with participants. In two data analysis circles the participants identified acceptance, sharing, awareness, and support as key categories into which to organize their experiences. The medicine wheel became a useful model for understanding and portraying these experiences and fit with the circular nature of the research process as well as with traditional Native teachings. The research circles became important sources of support and learning in themselves and one of the recommendations that came out of the research was that they should continue to be available for support purposes after the research concluded. This confirmed the empowering potential of the participatory action research process. Experiential analysis provides justification for a dissertation which goes beyond research results to include a discussion of the research process and a personal narrative related to the experience of the primary researcher with the research. Popular Education, Feminist, Aboriginal, Critical Ethnographic and Qualitative research literature also provide theoretical justification for this circular participatory action research project. The participants’ stories and comments are presented verbatim in order to preserve the authenticity of the reporting and to confirm their legitimate role as co-researchers in this participatory project. Their oral testimonies are powerful historical documents that will be important sources of learning for anyone who reads them. The research adds to a growing body of literature that argues that culture and control are intertwined and that institutions of the dominant society such as universities and colleges have an important role to play in the reattainment of a balanced and harmonious relationship between Native and non-native people

The relationship between individual differences, training in second language aural comprehension strategies and performance in year 9 Indonesian language students

There are three distinct but interrelated parts to this research. The first part measures language learning strategies (LLS) and other individual differences (IDs), as well as the relationship between LLS and the other IDs of year 9 students of Indonesian as a foreign language (L2). The second part measures differences in use of LLS between the control and experimental groups, and then over time. The third part measures the effects of training in LLS on listening comprehension. The study had three main aims. One was to determine the relationship between participants\u27 LLS use and their language learning background, affective factors, learning styles and aptitude. A second was to determine changes to strategy use following training in certain LLS. The third was to find what changes occurred to strategy use following the training

Exploring the nature of intimate relationships: A Māori perspective

The 2002 World Report on Violence states that violence occurs in about 70 percent of intimate relationships (Krug, Dahlberg, Mercy, Zwi, & Lozano, 2002). New Zealand research indicates that more than a quarter of relationships have experienced intimate partner violence (IPV), with Māori (Indigenous people of New Zealand) women three times more likely to experience IPV in their lifetime. Utilising Kaupapa Māori (Māori-centred approach) and narrative methodologies, this paper explores the nature of intimate relationships from a Māori perspective, investigating how Māori initiate intimate relationships, attempt to maintain positive intimate relationships and when applicable, exit intimate relationships. The findings from two case studies reveal that intimate relationships involve identity negotiation and an incorporation of cultural values. Communication processes are highlighted as a facilitating factor of intimate relationships

Children Asylum Seekers Face Challenges in the United States

This article outlines U.S. policy toward children asylum seekers. It highlights the gaps in U.S. detention and asylum policy which jeopardize the protection of children. It also discusses advances made in recent years, such as issuance of the U.S. “Guidelines for Children’s Asylum Claims” which establish evidentiary, procedural, and legal standards for asylum adjudicators dealing with children’s claims. Finally, it suggests reforms that are necessary to bring the United States into compliance with international law and to ensure that children are provided the refuge they deserve.Cet article donne les grandes lignes de la politique des États- Unis vis-à-vis des enfants demandeurs d’asile. Il met en exergue les lacunes de la politique américaine sur la détention et le droit d’asile, qui constituent une menace pour la protection des enfants. Par ailleurs, il discute aussi des progrès accomplis au cours des dernières années, comme par exemple, la délivrance par les États-Unis des « Directives concernant les demandes d’asile soumises par des enfants », document qui établit des normes procédurales, juridiques et en matière de preuves à l’intention des juges pour le droit d’asile appelés à statuer sur des demandes soumises par des enfants. Pour terminer, il propose des réformes nécessaires pour amener les États-Unis en conformité avec le droit international et pour assurer aux enfants la protection qu’ils méritent

Māori women and intimate partner violence: Some sociocultural influences

Intimate partner violence (IPV) has recently been acknowledged as a worldwide phenomenon, with approximately one in four intimate relationships containing some form of violence. This study explores the interaction between relationship dynamics, IPV and whānau and community influences. We completed narrative interviews with two Māori women in December 2010. Our findings confirm the results of earlier studies which have found that childhood experiences of violence, actual or witnessed, have a powerful effect that reverberate within adult lives and into the formation of intimate relationships. Our interviews show that Māori whānau and women are textured by the same patriarchal expectations that privilege men in the Pākehā world. We also found that seeking help from whānau to escape a violent relationship may not be the most welcomed course of action. We conclude with a discussion of future research directions

Promoting engagement in active-learning classroom design

While the interior design of classroom spaces has evolved to support active learning methods, few studies have isolated environment changes from curriculum changes to understand the impact of space on behavior (Brooks, Walker, & Baepler, 2014).  Adapting an observation instrument from the Brooks (2012) study, “Space and Consequences”, this research  extends previous work in a unique circumstance that allowed the observation of a course which alternated class meetings between two differently designed spaces.  We gathered perspectives from 296 students and 9 instructors along with classroom observations which highlighted eye contact as important to both instructors and students in promoting engagement