Bangkok is an exercise in constrasts. Thai people are polite, passive and respectful but on the traffic-clogged roads, they are ruthless and unforgiving, quick with the horn and unafraid to run over a pedestrian who crosses their furious path. It’s a bustling city with skyscrapers, a modern train and subway system where almost every spot deposits a crush of people into giant gleaming shopping malls several stories high. The malls are spotless and with air conditioning cooli...

They stopped traffic, more than 200 people carrying banners that said “End detention now” and chanting “Free the refugees.”

But despite their efforts, one still got that sense that no one was listening. Or at least those in power.

The Refugee Action Coalition’s rally in downtown Sydney on Sunday was by all accounts a success. Vocal volunteers canvassed people on the street to sign a petition against offshore processing, the government’s latest strategy as part...

Dandenong is a living portrait of the vibrancy refugees can bring to an area.

About 20 years ago the land-locked city located 36 kilometres southeast of Melbourne, was tired and dilapidated. Storefronts were vacant and it was difficult to rent or sell a home.

But a wave of refugees have settled in Dandenong in the last decade, making it the most culturally diverse area in Victoria and Melbourne’s only recognized Afghan precinct.  

When I spent the afternoon in Dandenon...