Idaho Conference on Refugees - Creating Connection
- WHEN: Wednesday, February 22 & Thursday, February 23, 2023
- WHERE: Boise State University Student Union Building
- FEATURES: More than two dozen workshops, panels, presentations, cultural performances, and meals
REGISTRATION: $150. Open through midnight Feb. 7. Scholarships are available and registration fees are waived for community members from refugee backgrounds.
The Idaho Office for Refugees is pleased to host the 15th Annual Idaho Conference on Refugees: Creating Connection, bringing together resettlement workers, educators, health and business professionals, and community members for two days of learning and connection. We're excited to have more than 500 attendees joining us this year!
Registration includes built-in networking opportunities and a full breakfast and lunch for both days with many vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options.
Registration includes built-in networking opportunities and a full breakfast and lunch for both days with many vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options.
- Registration: $150. Open through midnight Feb. 7
- Free to registrants from refugee backgrounds whose admission is not covered by a sponsoring organization. For scholarship inquiries, please contact Elizabeth Norton: enorton@idahorefugees.org.
WORKSHOPS
Workshops are curated to present avenues of advocacy, increase community capacity, expand cultural awareness, and provide continuing education credits for eligible professions.
NATIONAL & LOCAL PANEL
We will be joined by partners from the national Office of Refugee Resettlement and the U.S. State Department's Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration to discuss local and national trends, changes and highlights.
PRESENTATIONS & KEYNOTE

Keynote, local artist performances and plenary sessions will be inspirational and visionary.
We are thrilled to welcome New York-based artist and illustrator Jane Chu as our keynote speaker. Jane has traveled the country to share the stories of refugees and immigrants, including Idaho's own Palina Louangketh, who will join Jane on stage for a Q&A. Jane is inspired by the journey her own mother took at a young age, leaving behind all she knew to find a life of safety and opportunity.
We are thrilled to welcome New York-based artist and illustrator Jane Chu as our keynote speaker. Jane has traveled the country to share the stories of refugees and immigrants, including Idaho's own Palina Louangketh, who will join Jane on stage for a Q&A. Jane is inspired by the journey her own mother took at a young age, leaving behind all she knew to find a life of safety and opportunity.
The Lao Folkloric Performers will perform a series of dances reflective of Lao culture and heritage, wearing the traditional Lao costumes - "sinh" dresses - and dancing to traditional folkloric music. The dancers are from the Idaho Lao community in the Treasure Valley. The Idaho Lao community was established in the mid-1970s during the Vietnam War era, when Idaho resettled refugee families from across Southeast Asia. Today, the Idaho Lao community is made up of approximately 400-450 people.
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Interactive Bosnian Dance: Maya Duratovic has been working with Mladi Behar - The Bosnian and Herzegovinian Cultural Center of Idaho for 23 years. Her family moved to Boise in 1997 when she was 11 years old. In the early 2000s they started a dance group to share their culture with their new growing community. The group has done performances all over Boise, from on the ice at a Steelheads game to the Boise Airport and raised enough funds to take a group of dancers to Bosnia to perform! When she is not organizing music festivals, cooking classes and dancing, Maya is the School Manager at Boise State's School of Materials Science and Engineering.
EVENING RECEPTION

A special Neighbors United Evening Reception follows the first day of the conference on Wednesday, Feb. 22nd, from 4:30-6:30 p.m. at Boise State's Center for the Visual Arts. All registrants are welcome. Recent theater graduate Nya Nyapamba (pictured) will perform a one-person play she wrote. Appetizers catered by The Goodness Land.
DEBRIEF WITH SWITCHBOARD
This final plenary of the conference offers an opportunity for reflection and the incorporation of information and inspiration into actionable steps. What did you learn and how will you take it with you into your work and life? A large group debrief with breakouts, plus a Q&A for workshop presenters and fellow participants, aka your colleagues! Connect the dots. This session will be facilitated by Switchboard, a one-stop resource hub for refugee service providers in the United States
EMCEES
SPONSORS
This conference is made possible through our sponsors! We invite your organization to come alongside us with a silver, gold or platinum sponsorship to help cover event expenses and to cover scholarships for attendees facing financial barriers. In the process, your organization will be introduced to hundreds of community members and leaders.
People have long been coming to Idaho to seek refuge and freedom, as well as build better lives. Our entire country is stronger when everyone feels safe and connected enough to fully participate in community life. We have the opportunity to work together to build welcoming communities where all people are valued, and where everyone can thrive.
All of this starts by creating connection.
All of this starts by creating connection.