Search

Begin New Search Topic Integration Publication Year within 10 Years

71. Venezuelan Migration, Crime, and Misperceptions: A Review of Data from Colombia, Peru, and Chile

Author:
Dany Bahar, Brian Dooley, and Andrew Selee
Publication Date:
09-2020
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Migration Policy Institute (MPI)
Abstract:
More than 5 million Venezuelans have left their country, and the majority—more than 4 million—have moved elsewhere in Latin America and the Caribbean. While some politicians and pundits have claimed the new arrivals are leading to an uptick in crime, few studies conducted in the region have examined whether and what type of relationship exists between immigration and crime. This issue brief explores these questions by looking at migration and crime data from the three countries with the largest number of Venezuelan migrants: Colombia, Peru, and Chile. To do so, it draws on a mix of national and subnational datasets, some publicly available and others obtained by the authors through requests to government agencies. Analysis of data from 2019 suggests that, for the most part, Venezuelan migrants commit substantially fewer crimes—and certainly fewer violent crimes—than the native born, relative to their share in the overall population. This signals that public perceptions that immigration is driving up crime rates are misplaced. In discussing the policy implications of this analysis, the authors point to areas for further research and policy discussion, including the need to pay special attention to border regions, in which migration and crime dynamics often differ from those elsewhere in the country, and the value of actively addressing newcomers’ legal status and labor market integration.
Topic:
Crime, Migration, Border Control, Employment, Trafficking, Immigrants, and Integration
Political Geography:
Colombia, South America, Venezuela, Chile, and Peru

72. Supporting Immigrant and Refugee Families through Home Visiting: Innovative State and Local Approaches

Author:
Caitlin Katsiaficas
Publication Date:
10-2020
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Migration Policy Institute (MPI)
Abstract:
Home visiting programs are increasingly popular in communities across the United States. A two-generation model for health and social service provision, home visiting is designed to support both young children and their caretakers to promote their health, well-being, and long-term outcomes. For immigrant and refugee families, home visiting can also offer integration-related supports, such as by helping parents navigate unfamiliar early childhood, health, and social service systems. But even though they make up an important segment of the at-risk populations these programs aim to serve, immigrant and refugee families are less frequently enrolled in home visiting programs than families in which the parents are U.S. born. This brief highlights strategies adopted by some states and counties to address this gap. To do so, it looks at four case studies: King County, Washington; San Diego County, California; Illinois; and Massachusetts. Working with different populations and in varied funding environments, these state and local efforts illustrate key steps policymakers and program administrators can take to boost the equity and quality of home visiting services for immigrant families, such as by: explicitly including at-risk immigrant families in program needs assessments and prioritizing them for services alongside other at-risk families; incorporating community input into program design; adjusting procurement processes to level the playing field for community-based organizations that seek to offer home visiting services and are well positioned to connect with families of different linguistic and cultural backgrounds; and supporting research on what program models work well for immigrant and refugee families.
Topic:
Education, Refugees, Immigrants, and Integration
Political Geography:
North America and United States of America

73. The Future of the Automotive Industry: Dangerous Challenges or New Life for a Saturated Market?

Author:
Annamaria Simonazzi, Jorge Carreto Sanginés, and Margherita Russo
Publication Date:
11-2020
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Institute for New Economic Thinking (INET)
Abstract:
The automotive industry is undergoing a radical transformation. New social, technological, environmental and geopolitical challenges are redefining the characteristics of a saturated market, opening new scenarios while offering opportunities for the entry of new players. These challenges are bound to trigger reorganization of the global value chain between old and new suppliers and car makers and their suppliers, affecting the distribution of employment, the regionalization of production and the dynamic evolution of the comparative advantage of nations. In this paper we address the issue of the reorganization of global value chains in the face of these challenges. The analysis will compare the relative position of core and peripheries in the North-American and European macro-regions, focusing on Mexico, which represents a significant case study for analysis of the impact of the digital transformation on the domestic value chain in an “integrated periphery”, and of trade agreements on the location policies of big multinationals. The dependency of the Mexican automotive industry on the strategic decisions of global players is considered a factor of great vulnerability, especially in a context of rapid change in the patterns of consumption, technologies and international trade agreements. For Mexico, as for European producers in the integrated and semi-peripheries, the main challenge in the near future will be posed by the radical transformation the industry is going through in electrical and autonomous-driving vehicles, which sees regions and players outside the traditional automotive clusters in the lead. The transformations taking place are bound to change the global structure of automotive production. The rise of new competitors from the emerging economies and would-be entrants from other sectors, competing in mastering the new digital and software technologies, threatens the established structure of the industry. The pandemic has led to a spectacular acceleration in the process of change, while heightening uncertainty about future developments. This is why the governments of leading countries are joining in the race, wielding carrots and sticks in support of their industries and in the endeavor to encourage risk-taking and investment in research and innovation, step up e-vehicle production while providing for the necessary infrastructures, and guarantee their companies a place in the new industry.
Topic:
Markets, Networks, Integration, Decarbonization, Digitalization, Production, and Automotive Industry
Political Geography:
Europe, North America, and Mexico

74. Migrant and Refugee Participation: Approaches to Rethinking Integration Policies

Author:
Sophie Bilong
Publication Date:
05-2020
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Institut français des relations internationales (IFRI)
Abstract:
In France, people participating in policies and programs that affect them is not a new concept. It has been widely studied in the field of social work and the fight against poverty, and is at the heart of many experiments. How can this concept of participation, as is outlined for people experiencing poverty, be applied to refugees and migrants? Does the participation of refugees and migrants present specific characteristics? The aim of this study is to take stock of the issue of refugee and migrant participation, which is often discussed, but has not been systematically studied in France. Employees, professionals, volunteers, activists, beneficiaries of programs who are also involved in running them, organization leaders, representatives of local authorities and institutions, and founders of non-profit organizations with experience of migration were interviewed. They described the experiences of refugee and migrant participation at work within their organizations, the motivation of the people who implemented them and the difficulties encountered. While many organizations (nonprofit organizations, groups of volunteers, local authorities) are convinced that refugee and migrant participation is key to the success of reception and integration programs and public policies, so far, few initiatives have been developed with them based on their expertise. Programs offered to new arrivals in France are often developed in advance by people who have no experience of migration without involving migrants and refugees. The participation of migrants and refugees indeed faces many obstacles and limits. This study also proposes to identify methodological elements in the form of advice for those working on the field. These will help identify ways of overcoming the difficulties encountered in the implementation of participation mechanisms, or, perhaps, provide useful ideas for initiating action-taking capacity development processes for individuals in need of support. Finally, this study identifies measures that aim to support and consolidate initiatives promoting migrant and refugee participation, that encourage new structures to experiment with them, and that enable public authorities to become more involved in the issue and eventually enshrine the necessity and relevance of participation in the law making process.
Topic:
Migration, Refugees, and Integration
Political Geography:
Europe

75. How the French Understand Immigrant Integration and Citizenship

Author:
Christophe Bertossi
Publication Date:
12-2020
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Institut français des relations internationales (IFRI)
Abstract:
On December 9, 2020 will be celebrated the 115th anniversary of the 1905 law on French secularism (laïcité). On the very same day, a new law project will be presented by the French government, with the objective of further strengthening the “republican values” in order to fight against so-called “Islamist separatism” within French society. This dramatic emphasis on France’s political tradition of universalism and secularism is difficult to understand outside France. Such misunderstanding created a situation unseen before whereby a sitting French president replied to an online column published in the Financial Times (which was eventually withdrawn from the FT website), and phoned Ben Smith, a NYTimes journalist, and complained about the US media coverage of the 2020 terrorist attacks in France. It seems that the French model of immigrant integration and citizenship is difficult to understand outside France, even more so at a time when France is once again the target of jihadist terrorism and responds to this challenge with a dramatic emphasis on its national political tradition of universalism and secularism – what the French refer to in terms of laïcité. In order to address this misunderstanding, this research proposes to analyze 10 terms that have been central to French debates on immigration and citizenship, namely: integration, communalism (communautarisme), secularism (laïcité), discrimination, Islam, citizenship, migrant, migration crisis, the nation-state, and Europe. The lexicographic application Ngram Viewer is used for each of these terms in order to show evolutions over time. These evolutions are part of what needs to be understood. Behind these evolutions, the analysis emphasizes ambiguities and a plurality of meanings surrounding the vocabulary of the French political tradition, and the subsequent misunderstandings these ambiguities and multiple meanings generate not only between French and international observers but also within French society. A related claim is that evolutions that can be identified in French political and public debates about immigrant integration are not specific to France but are part of a broader transformation that concerns all Western countries in their relation to immigration, ethnicity and Islam.
Topic:
Islam, Immigration, Secularism, and Integration
Political Geography:
Europe and France

76. Ukraine’s European Integration: The Russian Factor

Author:
Hanna Pashkova and Halyna Balanovych
Publication Date:
06-2020
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
National Security and Defence
Institution:
Razumkov Centre
Abstract:
The pace and effectiveness of Kyiv’s European integration course depends on many internal and external factors. The key ones being the political will of Ukrainian government, ability to implement and dedication to real pro-European changes in the country that would be tangible for Ukrainian citizens. This is the internal factor that is the main issue on the path to integration into the European community. That being said, European integration is a two-way street. The quality and level of Kyiv-Brussels relations to a great extent depend on the position and engagement of the European side, including EU’s internal processes and trends, which are rather complex, controversial and sometimes centrifugal in their nature at the moment. We are talking about an increased sentiment of restoring partnerships with Russia in the “business as usual” format inside the EU’s business and political circles. Russian hybrid aggression is a dangerous factor. For the Russian leadership that views post-Soviet countries as its zone of “privileged” interest, an independent Ukraine headed towards Europe and NATO is both a challenge and a threat. Firstly, Kyiv’s successful European integration is an incentive for other post-Soviet countries to step up, which means a failure for Russia’s plans of “forced” reintegration of Eurasian countries. Secondly, Kyiv achieving success in its European project is a model for Russian citizens and a convincing evidence of the inability of Russia’s authoritarian regime to offer an attractive democratic model of social development. This is why the Russian regime is using all of its available “hybrid warfare” to prevent Ukraine from integrating into Europe – from political and diplomatic pressure, economic blockade, information warfare to military intervention – occupation of Crimea and Donbas. Currently, Ukraine is a training ground and a testing area for Russia’s massive purposeful expansion into the EU territory. In particular, this includes discrediting the unifying European values and institutions, disorienting public opinion, interfering with elections, formation of pro-Russian lobby within the European establishment, support of radical movements, etc. The goal of this influence is to disintegrate the EU, reform Europe’s political system in line with the Russian scenario. An important factor is the EU member states’, institutions’ and other countries’ assistance and solidarity with Ukraine, as well as sanctions introduced by the West. Regrettably, over the period of almost six years, the sanctions have failed to stop Russia’s war against Ukraine, failed to change the nature of Kremlin’s aggressive foreign policy. Yet it is certainly crucial that the EU and other countries uphold a common course of conduct in regard to Russia, maintain and strengthen the “sanctions frontline”. At the same time, assessing the current confrontation in the notional Ukraine-EU-Russia “triangle”, it is worth noting that these problems have been temporarily overshadowed by the global COVID-19 pandemic. On the one hand, the pandemic has affected internal and external priorities of different countries, has shaken the global economy. On the other – it has “hit the pause button” for Ukraine’s European integration, made adjustments to EU-Ukraine Association Agreement implementation plans. Obviously, the problems that have been temporarily postponed will later resurface again – this time in the new circumstances and in the new form.
Topic:
International Relations, European Union, Conflict, Regional Integration, and Integration
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, and Ukraine

77. Brexit and the Differentiated European (Dis)Integration

Author:
Angelica Szucko
Publication Date:
09-2020
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Contexto Internacional
Institution:
Institute of International Relations, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro
Abstract:
On 25 March 2017, the European Union celebrated the 60th anniversary of the Treaties of Rome, which established ‘an ever-closer union’ as a fundamental principle for European region- al integration. Only four days later, the United Kingdom delivered an official letter triggering its withdrawal process from the Community. How could we comprehend Brexit integrative and dis- integrative dynamics to the EU? The UK’s decision to leave the EU alongside recent crises in the Community and the spread of Eurosceptic movements fostered studies about disintegration dynam- ics. This article presents the current debate about differentiated (dis)integration based on up-to-date related literature. Next, it proposes a framework to assess the recent shifts in the UK-EU relationship and its contradictory effects on the EU project. The main argument of the paper is that the UK’s relationship with the European Union moved from an internal differentiated integration to a pro- posal of internal differentiated disintegration and, thereafter, to a process of external differentiated disintegration. Moreover, although Brexit means disintegration by one Member State, its effects on the EU project are mixed, initially promoting an integrative boom among the EU27 members, while at the same time neglecting disintegrating forces that could undermine the traditional European integration model.
Topic:
Regional Cooperation, European Union, Brexit, and Integration
Political Geography:
United Kingdom and Europe

78. Factsheet: Austrian Integration Fund (Österreichische Integrationsfonds, ÖIF)

Author:
Bridge Initiative Team
Publication Date:
11-2020
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Bridge Initiative, Georgetown University
Abstract:
The Austrian Integration Fund (ÖIF) is a fund of the Republic of Austria in charge of integration affairs (social integration of minorities) at both the federal and state levels. In the past few years, the ÖIF has used its platform to promote anti-Muslim views through speakers and reports. The ÖIF supports the anti-Muslim policies of the Austrian People’s Party’s (ÖVP).
Topic:
Islamophobia, Integration, Political Parties, Austrian People's Party (ÖVP), and Austrian Integration Fund (ÖIF)
Political Geography:
Europe and Austria

79. Asylum-seekers’ integration: The time has come

Author:
Haris Malamidis
Publication Date:
12-2019
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP)
Abstract:
Although four years have passed since the 2015 refugee “crisis”, Greece’s reception system is still inadequate in serving the needs of the arriving populations. Since current debates focus on the weaknesses of the reception system, the issue of asylum-seekers and refugees’ integration has been indirectly outweighed. Without underestimating the issue of reception, this policy brief argues that the current political, social and environmental developments highlight the need to move towards decentralized and locally-oriented integration policies. After discussing the past context and the current developments of migration in Greece, we highlight the political, utilitarian and moral reasons that render integration policies both necessary and beneficiary for the domestic and migrant populations. Finally, we conclude with some recommendations regarding the way forward.
Topic:
Migration, European Union, Refugees, Asylum, and Integration
Political Geography:
Europe and Greece

80. The Informative Component of the Macedonian Public Administration as an Immanent Part of the Euro-Integrative Process

Author:
Mladen Karadjoski, Goran Ilik, and Adam Adamczyk
Publication Date:
09-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Liberty and International Affairs
Institution:
Institute for Research and European Studies (IRES)
Abstract:
This article analyzes the informative component of the Macedonian public administration as an imminent part of the accession process towards the European Union. The interaction of the public administration with the citizens, NGO's, media, and other relevant "stakeholders" in the Macedonian society is an additional impetus for the acceleration and improvement of the integrative process. The main research methods which will be used in this paper are a descriptive method, a content analysis method, and a comparative method.
Topic:
Regional Cooperation, European Union, and Integration
Political Geography:
Europe and Macedonia