Alexander Betts on The Wealth of Refugees: How Displaced People Can Build Economies

Leonard Lopate at Large on WBAI Radio in New York

(6/21/21) We live in an age of displacement. Refugee numbers are increasing and climate change and COVID-19 are making the situation much worse. Meanwhile, rising populist nationalism around the world has undermined the political willingness of rich countries to accept migrants and asylum seekers. The Wealth of Refugees: How Displaced People Can Build Economies, the new book by professor of forced migration and international affairs at the University of Oxford Alexander Betts, looks at how accepting refugees benefits the receiving societies. Beyond the obvious moral imperative for more privileged nations to help people around the world in crisis, join us for a look at how the skills, talents and aspirational drive of refugee populations improve the country they emigrate to in this installment of Leonard Lopate at Large on WBAI.