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41 Refuge 1 (2025-2026)

handle is hein.journals/rfgcjr41 and id is 1 raw text is: Refuge: Canada's Journal on Refugees / Refuge : revue canadienne sur les rdfugids 2025,Vol. 41, No. 1, 1-19 https://doi.org/10.25071/1920-7336.41793 Supporting Refugees in Rural Canada: Exploring the Strengths and Weaknesses of Settlement Service Models in Smaller Communities Stacey Haugena , Rachel McNallyb and Lars Hallstromc HISTORY Received 2025-07-10; Published 2026-04-02 ABSTRACT This article demonstrates how refugee integration is supported in rural and small communities across Canada. We conducted virtual focus groups and interviews with 40 participants across the country who support refugees through settlement organizations, sponsorship groups, and other networks. The article outlines six participant-identified models of settlement services and explores the benefits, challenges, and limitations of, and potential improvements for, each model. These models highlight the mix of formal and informal supports existing in rural places and the urban focus of Canada's settlement system. Recommendations include adequate funding of settlement services in smaller communities and engaging with rural service providers. KEYWORDS refugees; resettlement; Canada; settlement services; integration; rural RESUME Cet article illustre la maniere dont l'integration des r~fugie.e.s est soutenue dans des communautis rurales et les petites collectivites partout au Canada. Nous avons mene des groupes de discussion et des entretiens virtuels avec 40 participant.e.s a travers le pays qui soutiennent les refugies par le biais d'organisations d'aide a I'etablissement, de groupes de parrainage et d'autres reseaux. L'article presente six modeles de services d'etablissement identifies par les participants et examine les avantages, les defis, les limites et les amiliorations possibles de chaque modele. Ces modeles mettent en evidence la combinaison desoutiensformels et informels qui existent dans les zones rurales et l'orientation urbaine du systeme d'etablissement du Canada. Les recom- mandations comprennent le financement adequat des services d'etablissement dans les petites collectivitis et la collaboration avec les fournisseurs de services ruraux. INTRODUCTION p. 6). At the end of 2024, over 123 million people were forcibly displaced worldwide, Ongoing and prolonged conflicts across the including 43 million refugees (pp. 2, 7). While globe have resulted in an increase in the accepting refugees is one waythat countries number of people fleeing their homes and such as Canada can share the responsibility seeking refuge across state borders. Overthe of displacement, resettlement remains an last decade, the number of people forcibly option for only a select few. In 2024, just displaced has almost doubled (UNHCR, 2025, 8% (or 188,800 individuals) of the 2.4 mil- CONTACT a (Corresponding author) 0 stacey.haugen@uleth.ca, Prentice Institute for Global Population and Economy, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, Canada; Department of Political Science, University of Alberta, Canada b 0 rachelmcnally@cmail.carleton.ca, Department of Political Science, Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada c 0 lars.hallstrom@uleth.ca, Prentice Institute for Global Population and Economy, Department of Political Science, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, Canada 9 Haugen, S. et al. 2026