Abstract
In this chapter, we examine Australia’s urban transitions through the lens of humanitarian migrants. Australia has a long and often fraught history of receiving and settling refugees and asylum seekers. Up until the past decade or so, humanitarian migrants have been settled primarily in capital cities, with a more recent shift in government policy to place new arrivals in regional urban centres. Humanitarian migrants have had a significant role in shaping the social, cultural and economic life of Australian urbanism. We describe the influences that these migrants have had on urban life and how cities have responded to the specific humanitarian needs of this population. We conclude by considering future urban transitions in Australia in relation to global movements of people, and how cities are responding as sites of welcome, sanctuary and solidarity in the protection and promotion of the human rights of refugees and asylum seekers.
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Robinson, K., Gifford, S.M. (2022). Cities of Welcome? Urban Transitions Through the Lens of Humanitarian Migrants. In: Levin, I., Nygaard, C.A., Newton, P.W., Gifford, S.M. (eds) Migration and Urban Transitions in Australia. Global Diversities. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-91331-1_13
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