For Long-Term Refugees, Sustainable Livelihoods Represent more than Survival

When today’s international system for dealing with refugees was set up in the aftermath of World War II, it was assumed that refugee status was temporary: since the guns had fallen silent, displaced people would either be able to return to their homes or, for the minority unable or unwilling to do so, would find new homes in other countries. Problem solved! Today, solutions for refugees are elusive. Conflicts drag on for years or decades. Many conflicts that finally end leave behind destroyed communities and irrevocably fractured polities.