This document announces an event on October 10th from 3-5 PM at VU Amsterdam to discuss the shift towards early inclusion of refugees in the Netherlands. The event will focus on individual stories and experiences with both recent inclusion initiatives and the historical experiences of newcomers. Participants will reflect on challenges of moving from initial welcoming phases to building common citizenship and discuss how to connect inclusion approaches to refugees' realities. The goal is to support inclusive community spaces through combining research and practice.

1. 10th
of October 2017, 3 -5 PM – Agora 1, VU Amsterdam
Early Inclusive Reception: Where do we come from and where do we go?
Refugee Academy, in cooperation with Stichting Ondertussen
The Dutch approach to the reception of refugees has gone through some changes since the war
in Syria and the publication of images of thousands of people trying to reach safety in Europe.
Reception has been institutionalized and bureaucratic, characterized by long periods of waiting
in seclusion and insecurity. However, since 2015 pilot projects and other experiments have
begun focused on early inclusion and participation. It is timely to reflect on the dilemmas and
tensions that this shift might entail. Individual experiences and stories that connect recent
initiatives with the experiences of inclusion/exclusion of newcomers form a good foundation
for understanding how this shift might be working. In this meeting we will present and share
stories that enable this reflection.
These efforts to change existing routines and work for early inclusion have been initiated by
local governments, various institutions/NGOs, and spurred by community initiatives. The
underlying idea is that active citizenship can shape the community and deepen the way
democracy works. Such initiatives can be promising, not only for future integration and
participation of newcomers, but also for building active citizenship and democracy. However,
many people in the field sense that the enormous energy expressed since the start of the
‘refugee crisis’ in 2015 might be difficult to preserve in the future. Moreover, different
expectations and misunderstandings within such initiatives can have a detrimental effect on the
aim to develop inclusive spaces for newcomers.
We will reflect on a number of dilemmas and questions connected with welcoming refugees
and building durable spaces for inclusion. This will be expressed via the stories and experiences
of people, with or without refugee backgrounds, who have been involved in the issue of
inclusion of newcomers over the past decades. We will reflect on a variety of questions,
including: How can we progress from an initial phase of ‘warm welcoming’ to a focus on
building common ground for co-citizenship? What are the challenges and blind spots which are
essential to consider in order to connect approaches to inclusive reception to the reality of the
lives of refugees?
Our aim in this meeting is to enable reflection from different positions. We will discuss present
challenges on the basis of individual experiences and take time to harvest the outcomes of our
reflection. In the coming months, the Refugee Academy will give shape to learning pathways
that combine research and practice to support the development of inclusive spaces within
community initiatives. The outcomes we aim for are not abstract recommendations or
disembodied opinions, but ideas on what we, from our different positions in the field, need to
learn for the future. We would be delighted to have you at the event!
Please subscribe before the 3rd
of October.

2. 10th
of October 2017, 3 -5 PM – Agora 1, VU Amsterdam
Logistic information
The meeting will take place on the 10th
of October, from 3 to 5 pm in Agora 1 at VU Amsterdam.
After the meeting there will be time for informal exchange with drinks and snacks.
For public transport directions to VU Amsterdam, please consult 9292.nl
To get to Agora 1 of VU Amsterdam, enter the main building (Hoofdgebouw) at the main
entrance. Turn left to wing A and take the stairs between the book shop and the yellow
elevators to the 3rd
floor (the elevators do not stop on the 3rd
floor).