House

This report summarises some of the papers presented at the international conference ‘House: refuge, loss and belonging’ convened by the Research Group on Forced Migration at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in September 2004.Most forced migration researchers encounter refugees and IDPs who express their experience of acute loss. By exploring forced migration through the issue of house, the conference highlighted the fact that loss can be conceptualised in several ways. Loss of house for forced migrants represents not only actual material loss but also loss of status and standing and economic deprivation. Furthermore, loss of house is deeply connected with issues of home and identity, human security and protection. The conference explored these different aspects of housing for forced migrants through case studies from Palestine, the Caucasus, Indonesia, India, Eritrea, Rwanda and the Balkans.