Migrant integration governance in CEE cities post 2015

Project Information

MigIntegrEast

Grant agreement ID: 896115

DOI

10.3030/896115

Project closed

EC signature date 10 April 2020

Start date 1 August 2021

End date 31 July 2023

Funded under

• EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions

Total cost

€ 149 625,60

EU contribution

€ 149 625,60

Coordinated by

UNIWERSYTET WARSZAWSKI
Poland

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - MigIntegrEast (Migrant integration governance in CEE cities post 2015)

Reporting period: 2021-08-01 to 2023-07-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

The MigIntegrEast project aims to access a novel form of migration governance that emerged in Central and Eastern European (CEE) cities in the post-2015 context. The governance of immigrant integration (managing immigrant integration by state and non-state actors) in cities occupies a vital role in the public discourse, in EU, national, and local politics, and in academic debates. It mobilizes a wide range of sometimes adversative responses from state and non-state actors at supranational, national, and local levels. In light of the 2015 crisis of humanitarian protection of refugees in Europe, it is critical to understand what drives these different responses. By focusing specifically on cities in CEE, the research goal of MigIntegrEast is to identify the role of macro-, meso-, and micro-level factors and processes in the governance of integration of immigrants in the post-2015 context. MigIntegrEast asks: what are the roles of (1) supranational and state-level factors, (2) local level factors and (3) individual-level characteristics in immigrant integration governance by state- (local administration) and non-state actors (e.g. NGOs, grassroots groups, migrant groups) in CEE cities? Integration governance is analyzed in four Polish and two Hungarian cities selected based on the criterion of congruence and incongruence with the national-level policies and policy responses post-2015 crisis. The methodology builds on a comparative case study design and uses qualitative data collection methods and computer-assisted thematic analysis. Approaching the well-established field of local immigrant integration policies from a perspective of under-researched CEE cities, the project makes advancements in immigrant integration governance outside the Western European and North American contexts.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

During the MigIntegrEast project the following research and dissemination activities were carried out and results achived:

Research activities:
Archival and online research of national and city-level legislation related to immigrant integration governance and existing research on attitudes toward immigrants;
Data collection and thematic analysis of principal texts produced by non-state actors involved in integration governance (websites, press releases, media statements). The data collection resulted in producing and publishing a Zenodo dataset (Publication date: May 11, 2023; DOI:10.5281/zenodo.7924702);
Preparation of interview scripts with state & non-state actors;
The recruitment of study participants;
‘Shadowing’ observation of two participants representing non-state actors in activities related to integration management and MLG;
In-depth interviews with a total of 68 participants, including state and non-state actors involved in immigrant integration governance;
Computer-assisted data analysis of IDI, using an inductive approach for thematic analysis. The thematic analysis allowed pre-existing themes, such as stages of a policy-making cycle, but also delivered themes grounded in the data. All interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. The transcripts were uploaded into Dedoose for data management and coding.

Dissemination activities:
One article was prepared and submitted academic journal
One edited volume book proposal was submitted and accepted for publication in the IMISCOE Springer book series

Three research reports were published including MigIntegrEast research results:

Carta, Silvia, Helena Hahn, Tobias Heidland, Pawel Kaczmarczyk, Matthias Lücke, Karolina Łukasiewicz, Mehari Taddele Maru, Marta Pachocka, and Martin Ruhs. 2022 MEDAM assessment report on asylum and migration policies in Europe: refugee protection in the EU: building resilience to geopolitical conflict. Kiel Institute for the World Economy, 2022., Available at: https://cadmus.eui.eu/handle/1814/75230

Klaus, Witold, Sarian Jarosz (eds.) 2022. Report: The Polish School of Assistance, Migration Consortium, Available at: https://konsorcjum.org.pl/en/report-the-polish-school-of-assistance/

Model lokalnej polityki włączania migrantów i migrantek w życie miast, 2023, Kseniya Homel, Aneta Krzyworzeka-Jelinowska, Karolina Łukasiewicz, Michał Nowosielski, Marta Pachocka, Karolina Podgórska, Joanna Zuzanna Popławska, Dominik Wach, Aleksandra WiniarskaNomada, Available at: https://nomada.info.pl/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Model_polityki_wlaczania_migrantow_i_migrantek_FIN.pdf?fbclid=IwAR0Z8hNfOzKYOAJR4XsZSsFoFviZbimTqU45R0uGx5Lb1mkvVeYRpQXKrow

Three policy briefs were prepared and published in the Spotlights series, two in CMR Spotlight, and one in ZOiS Spotlight:
Humanitarian crisis at the Polish-Belarusian frontier. Old and new diagnoses from external EU borders https://www.migracje.uw.edu.pl/publikacje/cmr-spotlight-december-2021/
Migracje i miasta w czasie kryzysu humanitarnego: https://www.migracje.uw.edu.pl/publikacje/cmr-spotlight-wydanie-specjalne-2022-2/
Flexible Solidarity: Polish and Hungarian Responses to Forced Migration, Authors: Karolina Łukasiewicz, Kamil Matuszczyk: https://www.zois-berlin.de/en/publications/zois-spotlight/flexible-solidarity-polish-and-hungarian-responses-to-forced-migration

One toolkit for local stakeholders was published in the CMR series: CMR Spotlight: Przewodnik tworzenia polityk włączających osoby z doświadczeniem migracji w życie miast, https://www.migracje.uw.edu.pl/publikacje/przewodnik-tworzenia-polityk-wlaczajacych-osoby-z-doswiadczeniem-migracji-w-zycie-miast/

Three podcasts with Berlin's ZOiS and CMR Migostacja were recorded and published:

The Situation at the Belarus-EU Border: https://www.zois-berlin.de/en/podcast-roundtable-osteuropa/2021/the-situation-at-the-belarus-eu-border-part-1?tx_form_formframework%5Baction%5D=perform&tx_form_formframework%5Bcontroller%5D=FormFrontend&cHash=4500fb7f6b052b054f562fef61b988aa ,

Fleeing Russia’s War: Ukrainian Refugees in Europe:
https://www.zois-berlin.de/en/podcast-roundtable-osteuropa/fleeing-russias-war-ukrainian-refugees-in-europe

“Ukraińcy w polskich miastach - odpowiedź miast na potrzeby migrantów”:
https://open.spotify.com/episode/1r149nWX7uekuAkab0WZd1

Seven conference papers were prepared and presented.

Nine public lectures were held.

Among others, the five press releases and articles to a broader public were created.

As a part of MigIntegrEast project, a new series of webinars at CMR, called Migration and cities was initiated. So far, a total of nine Webinars were out in place, in each of them participated an average of 100 people.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

Given the political situation, including the escalation of the crisis at the Polish-Belarusian border in 2021 and mass forced migration from Ukraine to Europe in 2022, MigIntegrEast project gained significant societal and political impact. The data that I collected grasped the two crises and was utilised to impact policy making at a local level in Poland.

Model of Migration Governance in CEE Post 2022