Online
Date
4 February 2026
Time
18:00 Kabul time, 19:30 Bishkek time
Abstract
This conversation explores the economic integration of refugees, with a focus on Afghan refugees in Iran. Drawing on academic research and field-based evidence, the discussion examines labor, poverty, education, and housing outcomes. It also situates these findings within Iran’s political, economic, and social context, and considers how shifting state policies and public attitudes shape refugee lives.
The session concludes with a discussion on political uncertainty and its implications for Afghan refugees.
About Speaker
Mitra Naseh is a forced migration scholar and serves as Assistant Professor and Founding Director of the Forced Migration Initiative (FMI) at the Brown School, Washington University in St. Louis. Her research focuses on the social and economic integration of forcibly displaced populations, informed by interdisciplinary training, lived experience as an immigrant, and extensive fieldwork with NGOs and United Nations agencies in the Middle East and South Asia. She is the co-author of Best Practices in Social Work with Refugees and Immigrants (Columbia University Press, 2019).
She is actively engaged in academic and community service, co-chairing the Immigrants and Refugees Cluster of the Society for Social Work and Research (SSWR) and serving on the Advisory Board of the International Institute Community Development Corporation (IICDC).
Moderator: Dr Lutfi Rahimi, Director of Afghanistan Research Initiative, University of Central Asia
Format: Online
Language: English