Following reports from various agencies that a rising number of Iraqi refugees are unhappy with their lives in resettlement countries, ICMC-UNHCR Resettlement Deployee, Frauke Riller, shares her first-hand observations and sets forth recommendations that may assist resettlement countries and UNHCR identify suitable tools for preparing individuals and families for the challenges that they may face within an unfamiliar culture and environment.

Born in Scotland in 1960, Frauke Riller received her education at the University of Konstanz and the Munich School of Journalism in Munich, Germany. She studied at Rutgers University, New Jersey, USA and gained experience as an intern with the United Nations Association of the USA (UNA-USA). She served as Programme Officer for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) from 1991 – 1998, working in Africa, the Russian Federation and at Headquarters in Geneva. Short missions with UNHCR to Serbia and Chad as well as voluntary refugee related activities were undertaken in recent years. As an outreach consultant she contributed to ‘Torn from Home – My Life as a Refugee’, a travelling exhibit on refugee children which was launched in summer 2008 in the USA. She regularly gives awareness-raising presentations on refugee children in elementary schools in New Jersey, USA.

Frauke is a national of Germany. She lives in New Jersey, USA, with husband Mark and their two children Sean and Skye.

Observations and recommendations on the resettlement expectations of Iraqi refugees in Lebanon, Jordan and Syria (1.03 MB)