Amar Hussein, an NDSU architecture student, was selected as one of some 50 refugees across the United States to share his story at the first-ever Refugee Congress in Washington, D.C., Aug. 3-4.

The goal of the congress, organized by the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, is to find out how resettling refugees could be easier, especially for individuals fleeing violence and injustice. A second goal is to sponsor the United States as a leader in refugee resettlement.

In 2005, Hussein worked for an American company in Iraq that was bombed. He suffered serious injuries and was hospitalized for more than a year. He later resettled in the United States with help from Lutheran Social Services. Hussein now works for Lutheran Social Services to help others adapt to life in America.

Other individuals who took part in the congress included a Holocaust survivor, a Rwandan genocide survivor and a former Burmese soldier who was imprisoned for 15 years for advocating democratic change.