Miles, Meters, and Markers on the Refugee Highways and Corridors: A New Look at the Forcibly (and Voluntarily) Displaced Through the Lenses of Cities and Big Data

The global refugee crisis has ignited not only public debates surrounding who should be allowed to enter but also compassion, concern, and care from the Christian church in nearly every country and city that has seen an influx of refugees and asylum seekers. Yet, the focus has often been on what happens to the migrants at the country and city of destination and not enough on the countries and cities of origin and transit. This paper therefore seeks, through a personal story, to address these complex issues first, by providing a framework for seeing and understanding the forced (and voluntary) migration from an ecological perspective. Second, it tells the story of Christian migrants seeking missionally the peace of cities where God had sent them, making disciples, and planting church not only among their people group but also all other ethnic groups in the city and beyond. Finally, it introduces methods and processes that tap into big data to identify migration highways and urban nodes in the global cities network.