Minding the Gaps - An inquiry of humanitarian innovations within the Netherlands

Within the realm of refugee studies, it is observed that there is a thriving body of research. Understandably so, the focus of these studies has always been on refugees themselves. There have been a multitude of studies that showcase how integration is of dire importance and that, it is crucial for refugees to successfully integrate within the context of a host society. Yet, a sizable barrier to integration is the discrimination that refugees, are observed to be, subjected to, especially so in the job market. Further, as the world becomes increasingly reliant on digital technologies, there is an overall sharp increment in the number of studies related to the use of Internet applications by asylum seekers, refugees and newcomers. This has been especially observed in the studies that have been conducted post-2015 refugee crisis. Capitalizing on these distortions that plague the current system, there has since been a proliferation of efforts by non-governmental state actors aimed at bridging the gaps of the distortions. While we know much about the spectrum of issues that plague the current state of the refugee situation, it has been observed that we know little of the other actors in the field who too, are stakeholders in the migration issue. In order to tackle the aforementioned issues, it is crucial to understand the stances of these actors, as well as, the context of the host society. Accordingly, this paper draws upon the results of ten qualitative expert interviews conducted with humanitarian innovation actors and policy advisors in the Netherlands. Considering that the Netherlands deals with refugees and newcomers on a local level, the decision was made to set the groundwork of this research in the Randstad area of the Netherlands. Reporting on the perspectives of these stakeholders, this research attempts to illustrate how such humanitarian innovation initiatives contribute to refugees’ access to education and employment. It also studies how digital media is used in this process of fostering integration. In this way, it seeks to provide new angles to for the conceptualizing of refugee economies within the Netherlands. Further, it takes on the lens of a multi-actor perspective in the discussion of technology and refugees. 3 The findings show that humanitarian innovation initiatives contribute to refugees’ access to employment and education in five overarching ways. These have been identified and labeled as: Conceptualizing and perceiving distortions, capitalizing on distortions, collaborating, customizing programs, as well as, changing the narrative. With the exception of two initiatives that engaged with the use of digital technologies quite heavily, it was observed that, majority of the initiatives combined physical efforts with the use of online activities, to foster the integration of refugees. Still, it was observed that there is an undeniable presence of digital technologies in that the various initiatives presence. Digital media is thus observed as a means to engage participants – newcomers and businesses alike – to partake in their programs offered. It was also seen in the way that initiatives collaborated digitally with each other for their initiatives to thrive and to further proliferate.