United States Refugee Advisory Board (USRAB) seeking applications for Cohort 3 advisors
The United States Refugee Advisory Board (USRAB) is currently accepting applications for its second cohort of Advisors. Those selected as Advisors serve a single three-year term. Individuals with direct lived experience of forced displacement are encouraged to apply for consideration to become part of USRAB.
What is USRAB?
The United States Refugee Advisory Board was established by Refugee Congress (RC), Refugee Council USA (RCUSA), and the Institute for the Study of International Migration at Georgetown University (ISIM) as a self-governing initiative to ensure that forcibly displaced people have a meaningful and equitable role in influencing policy-making processes across the global policymaking fora. This includes engagement with relevant bodies of the United States Government, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), civil society groups, and refugee-led organizations. USRAB provides a transparent and accountable mechanism for meaningful participation in multilateral settings, and ensures that the interests, perspectives, knowledge, and experiences of forcibly-displaced people are consistently given an influential voice on issues regarding themselves and other forcibly displaced populations.
What are the roles and responsibilities of an USRAB Advisor?
USRAB Advisors serve for a single three-year term, which starts on September 1, 2023 and ends August 31, 2026. The estimated time commitment for serving as an Advisor is 5 to 15 hours per month, not including the mandatory USRAB Training Program described below.
Advisors are expected to attend and participate meaningfully in required meetings – which can occur during and/or outside regular business hours.
Advisors must be available to attend the five-day USRAB Training Program (UTP), which takes place in-person in Washington, DC, October 2-6, 2023.
Advisors are expected to provide input into the goals, priorities, and functioning of USRAB, and are expected to meaningfully contribute to project-based work that advances the mission of USRAB and participate in task-specific sub-committees.
To help inform USRAB priorities, Advisors are expected to participate in community consultations and engagements with members of forcibly displaced communities across the United States. Advisors must have the ability to travel within the US and internationally for additional meetings, convenings, and training.
While being a USRAB Advisor is a volunteer position, USRAB-related travel costs and expenses will be covered by USRAB with prior approval.
