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The First 1000 Days (the period from conception to a child's second birthday) is an important developmental period. However, little is known about experiences of parents with refugee and migrant backgrounds during this period. A systematic review was conducted according to PRISMA guidelines. Publications were identified through searches of the Embase, PsycINFO, PubMed, and Scopus databases, critically appraised, and synthesised using thematic analysis. A total of 35 papers met inclusion criteria. Depressive symptomatology was consistently higher than global averages, however maternal depression conceptualisations differed across studies. Several papers reported changes in relationship dynamics as a result of having a baby post-migration. Consistent relationships were found between social and health support and wellbeing. Conceptualisations of wellbeing may differ among migrant families. Limited understanding of health services and relationships with health providers may impede help-seeking. Several research gaps were identified, particularly in relation to the wellbeing of fathers, and of parents of children over 12 months old. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explored the role of municipal collaboration in addressing migration-related challenges within the diverse contexts of the UK and South Africa, aiming to promote DEI in the process of nation-building. Through a secondary data research method and comparative evaluation of policies, initiatives and procedures in both countries, the paper examined how municipal collaboration strategies contribute to fostering unity amidst dynamic migration patterns. The findings highlighted the essential role of collaboration in harnessing collective expertise and resources to tackle migration challenges, enhance social cohesion, and advance the DEI principles. The key components of the paper include an examination of unique migration challenges, an analysis of initiatives, policies, and procedures in both countries, and an emphasis on the importance of collaboration in shaping inclusive societies. Overall, this paper advocates the significance of municipal collaboration as a cornerstone of nation-building, facilitating the creation of cohesive and harmonious communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Despite the decrease in the number of foreign visitors and residents in Japan due to the coronavirus disease 2019, a resurgence is remarkable from 2022. However, Japan's medical support system for foreign patients, especially residents, is inadequate, with language barriers potentially causing health disparities. Comprehensive interpretation and translation services are challenging, but "plain Japanese" may be a viable alternative for foreign patients with basic Japanese language skills. This study explores the application and obstacles of plain Japanese in the medical sector. Methods: A literature review was performed across these databases: Web of Science, PubMed, Google Scholar, Scopus, CINAHL Plus, Springer Link and Ichushi-Web (Japanese medical literature). The search covered themes related to healthcare, care for foreign patients, and scholarly articles, and was conducted in July 2023. Results: The study incorporated five papers. Each paper emphasized the language barriers foreign residents in Japan face when accessing healthcare, highlighting the critical role and necessity of plain Japanese in medical environments. Most of the reports focused on the challenges of delivering medical care to foreign patients and the training of healthcare professionals in using plain Japanese for communication. Conclusion: The knowledge and application of plain Japanese among healthcare professionals are inadequate, and literature also remains scarce. With the increasing number of foreign residents in Japan, the establishment of a healthcare system that effectively uses plain Japanese is essential. However, plain Japanese may not be the optimal linguistic assistance in certain situations, thus it is imperative to encourage more research and reports on healthcare services using plain Japanese. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper offers an epilogue to a special edition of articles employing a temporal lens to examine the politics of European asylum and reception systems. From camps to courts to casework, the papers explore a range of temporal matters arising in relation to attempts to manage human mobility. In this epilogue, I identify three temporal themes that arise across the different papers and that are dominant in contemporary Euro-American migration governance. These are: 1) the tempos (the strategic, often contradictory, employment of fast and slow speeds); 2) synchronicity (the multiplicity of times in European migration systems, and the alienation caused by disharmony); and 3) the tenses (from thwarted and inaccessible individual futures, to political representations of the past and future, and the enduring reverberations of past events). The prologue goes on to argue the importance of avoiding allochronism and identifies ways the authors avoid temporally 'othering' people, including by recognising people's autonomy in acts of timing and in reclaiming and recalibrating their own timelines and rhythms. The paper ends with a call for the migration sector to 'widen our gaze' and to draw out the underlying colonial and capitalist temporalities so as to situate migration governance in broader temporal bordering and dispossession. After all, themes of limbo, impermanence, insecurity, temporal poverty, negated futures, temporal dissonance, and other temporal governance mechanisms that hierarchise, marginalise and discipline us, are increasingly evident across the globe, whether or not we cross a border. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Building on aspirations and capabilities models in migration studies, this paper explores the utility of this approach for elucidating long-term integration processes. Aspirations as individual constructions of what one's life should look like in the future are a concept used by scholars to study migrants' motives to migrate. However, neither are aspirations an often applied analytical category, nor a sufficiently examined theoretical subject in the area of long-term migration. This paper addresses this gap and applies the category of aspirations and capabilities to the study of long-term adaptation processes of Polish emigrants of the 1980s in three European countries: Austria, Italy and Sweden. The case study illustrates the aspirations/capabilities model's usability for studying integration processes and proves that aspirations and capabilities should be a subject of inquiry throughout migrants' lives. As a contribution to the debate, an analytical framework along with a schema depicting live long migration processes is proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the impact of long-term emigration on the development of human capital. Design/methodology/approach: The study used a quantitative approach, where the method for obtaining data was a survey. A quantitative study conducted on a sample of 160 Polish men and women. Findings: A study showed a significant impact of emigration on the enrichment of the emigrants' human capital, which is expressed by an increase in the level of hard and soft competences, as well as an increase in the level of formal education. Almost all the respondents showed an increase in the level of competences (by 20% on average), with the greatest improvement in knowledge and skills in the area of foreign language skills (increase by 38%), knowledge of specialised computer programmes (increase by 36%) and increase in competences related to effective communication (increase by 22%). Furthermore, 41% of the respondents upgraded their education during their long-term stay abroad through formal education. Research limitations/implications: The main research limitation relates to the size of the obtained sample and the fact that the sample is not representative, therefore the conclusions cannot be generalised to the entire population of Polish emigrants. Practical implications: Working abroad in an international environment significantly contributes to the rapid and substantial development of both specialized and social competencies. This underscores the validity of not only hiring expatriates but also investing in development programs associated with temporary stays abroad. Social implications: Emigration contributes to the development of social competences related to, among others: effective communication and building relationships, which is beneficial from the perspective of interpersonal relationships, not only professional ones. Originality/value: The paper presents the increase in competences that occurred due long-term emigration and the groups of competences that improve to the greatest and least extent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Compliance with the latest patterns in online consumption of fresh agricultural products should prioritize the shifts in consumer behavior. This study aimed to clarify the influencing factors of consumers' channel migration behavior of fresh agricultural products. While the migration of consumers' consumption of fresh agricultural products to online channels is an undeniable fact, and this trend continues, literature on this topic remains limited. Methods: Based on SOR theory, and from the dual perspectives of information transmission and information reception, this study exploratively introduced the network affinity of consumers, and constructed the concept model of the influencing factors of consumers' channel migration behavior of fresh agricultural products including information acquisition and risk perception. 416 valid questionnaires were used to conduct structural equation model analysis. Results: The results confirm that product information and platform information significantly affect consumers' channel migration behavior of fresh agricultural products. Product information including feature information and price information has a positive influence on consumers' channel migration behavior of fresh agricultural products. The same is true for such behavior and the platform information including service information and logistics information. Risk perception plays a partial mediating role in the influence of product information variables and platform information variables on consumers' online purchasing and migration behavior of fresh agricultural products. Network affinity negatively moderates the causal relationship between product information and risk perception as well as that between platform information and risk perception. The effect is more pronounced for consumers with high network affinity than those with low network affinity. Discussion: The study presented in this paper offers a replicable theoretical framework for future discussions on consumer channel migration behavior, and enriches the literature on consumer online consumption behavior. It is highly meaningful for further improving the online consumption stickiness, tapping the potential of online consumption and improving the circulation efficiency of fresh agricultural products in the post-pandemic era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Executive Summary: This paper examines the staffing needs of the US Department of Justice's Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), as it seeks to eliminate an immigration court backlog, which approached 2.5 million pending cases at the end of fiscal year (FY) 2023. A previous study by the Center for Migration Studies of New York (CMS) attributed the backlog to systemic, long-neglected problems in the broader US immigration system. This paper provides updated estimates of the number of immigration judges (IJs) and "judge teams" (IJ teams) needed to eliminate the backlog over ten and five years based on different case receipt and completion scenarios. It also introduces a data tool that will permit policymakers, administrators and researchers to make their own estimates of IJ team hiring needs based on changing case receipt and completion data. Finally, the paper outlines the pressing need for reform of the US immigration system, including a well-resourced, robust, and independent court system, particularly in light of record "encounters" of migrants at US borders in FY 2022 and 2023. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Human & Society / İnsannsan ve Toplum is the property of Scientific Studies Association and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Analysis of migration flows is crucial for understanding and forecasting social and economic trends. This paper presents an algorithm for obtaining migration estimates with minimal time delay (nowcasting) using Google Trends Index (GTI) search queries. The predictive power of the models is assessed across different periods, including one marked by the restrictions imposed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which significantly impacted migration opportunities. The paper evaluates models for estimating migration from six different countries to Germany. The key findings are as follows: first, in periods free from external shocks, using a single search query such as «work in Germany» in the official language of the migration origin country, along with its 12-month lags in SARIMAX or distributed lag models, yields higher accuracy in migration estimates compared to SARIMA models. Second, during periods with external shocks, a multi-query distributed lag model, which incorporates additional search queries related to migration intentions, demonstrates superior predictive quality. Finally, the paper proposes an enhanced method for migration forecasting based on GTI data. It highlights the importance of using a distributed lag model, which includes multiple GTI time lags, rather than models with individual GTI lags. Models employing GTI with lags consistently show better predictive power than SARIMA models across all countries and time periods considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recent release of Justice John Paul Stevens's papers for the Supreme Court's 1995 term reveals the existence of a previously unknown proposed concurring opinion in the seminal 1996 case Romer v. Evans. That proposed concurrence, co-authored by Justices O'Connor and Breyer, would have emphasized the failure of the challenged law, Colorado's Amendment 2, to satisfy traditional rational basis equal protection review, rather than the law's grounding in anti-LGB animus. Had the concurrence been published, it might have blunted the renewal of animus doctrine, with fascinating implications for subsequent constitutional doctrine involving issues as disparate as LGBT rights, immigration, and religious freedom. This Article is the first work of scholarship to identify this opinion and examine its implications. Of course, that concurrence was never published. Nevertheless, the Justices' negotiations over how much of that concurrence's content should be incorporated into Justice Kennedy's majority opinion, as recounted in correspondence in Justice Stevens's papers, teaches important lessons about the evolution of constitutional doctrine. In particular, the process by which Romer took its final form reminds us that the creation of judicial doctrine is rife with contingencies that belie any view of such creation as a straight-line process free of extraneous and distracting elements. Those lessons are important for us today, despite the fact that the proposed concurrence this Article reveals was never published. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Immigration became an especially thorny and publicly discussed issue with the so-called Refugee Crisis beginning in 2015. The stance of the Czech and Polish governments was dominated by strong anti-Muslim and anti-immigration rhetoric. Still, both countries have witnessed a steady increase in mainly short-term immigration from various Asian countries such as Bangladesh or Pakistan ever since. This paper analyses Czech and Polish migration policies against the backdrop of a historically constructed notion of anti-illegal immigration policy, and category of temporary migration, coupled with the problematic nature of debt-financed migration in Asia. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork in Czechia and Poland (2018-2021), in-depth and semi-structured interviews with migration experts, academic and grey literature, official documents, and the method of Accidental ethnography, this paper argues that silencing of actual labor immigration in political communication while employing anti-migration rhetoric represents a discursive gap typical for liberal democracies. It further concludes that rendering migrant labor as a temporary commodity and turning a blind eye on recruitment of international migrants represents a continuity practice of migrant labor subordination within the nation-state, originating during colonialism and the advent of capitalism in the nineteenth century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The prevalence of Congolese refugee women seeking asylum in the USA has recently garnered substantial attention. Many women have fled the Democratic Republic of Congo due to trauma and loss. Likewise, the resettlement process, particularly acculturative stress, may exacerbate mental health issues such as depression and anxiety. By recognizing the centrality of family within Congolese culture, this study aims to investigate cultural beliefs about family among Congolese refugee women in the USA, using acculturative theory as an interpretative lens. Design/methodology/approach: The authors' study centered on understanding the resettlement experiences of 20 Congolese refugee women living within an urban area of Midwest America after their arrival in America since 2011. Through using convenient sampling methods, the authors chose these particular activists as they could provide insight into their stories concerning their journey from Congo to settling down as refugees within Northeast America. During interviews, semi-structured questioning was used to gather responses from participants which were later analyzed through implementing a thematic interpretation process. Findings: Three themes emerged encapsulating cultural beliefs about family: supporting one another; the importance of togetherness; and disciplining our children. These findings provide culturally tailored resources to support Congolese refugee women and their families upon resettlement optimally. Research limitations/implications: The authors' work provides health equity researchers with an opportunity to better understand cultural beliefs among Congolese refugee women. Findings from this study provide an increased understanding of how to provide culturally specific tools to better aid Congolese refugee women and their families upon arrival. Practical implications: The authors' research offers insights for health equity researchers seeking to understand the cultural beliefs of Congolese refugee women. The findings contribute to an enhanced understanding of how to provide culturally specific resources better to support Congolese refugee women and their families upon arrival. Originality/value: The authors verify that, to the best of the authors' knowledge, the paper was written completely independently, and neither the entire work nor any of its parts have been previously published. The authors confirm that the paper has not been submitted to peer review, nor is in the process of peer reviewing, nor has been accepted for publishing in another journal. The authors confirm that the research in their work is original. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many scholars in the field of migration and xenophobia have consistently examined various levels and expressions of xenophobic behavior within the South African context. They have contributed significantly to conceptualizing migration as inherently conflict-prone, often citing incidents categorized as xenophobia, Afrophobia, and color-blind xenophobia in both scholarly and public discussions. While ample scholarly evidence exists regarding factors that promote social cohesion between South Africans and African immigrants, as well as their implications for African continental integration, there is a notable dearth of scholarly attention on how Philoxenia, the concept of extending friendship or hospitality to strangers, can contribute to the project of African continental integration. Utilizing qualitative research methods and document analysis as a data collection technique, this paper reveals those certain aspects of the South African migration legislative framework exhibit Philoxenic characteristics. Moreover, the paper provides evidence of multiple economic sectors and communities in the country that demonstrate Philoxenia. The paper concludes that Philoxenia can serve as a catalyst towards achieving a united state of Africa, while "xenophobia", "Afrophobia", "Threats" to social cohesion", "colour-blind xenophobia" and "sibling fights or sibling bullying" are impediments to this long-term objective of the African Union. The paper recommends that, South Africa as one of Africa's dominant African immigrants' host state must come up with legislation that criminalizes the latter actions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Surveys in Europe show that immigration is more of a challenge than an opportunity for a significant number of people. However, little attention is given to attitudes toward immigration in the Middle East. This paper examines the effects of personal values and religiosity on the anti-immigration attitudes of citizens in the Middle East and North African countries. Design/methodology/approach: Utilizing data from the World Values Survey, we analyze how personal values and religiosity affect anti-immigration attitudes in nine Middle Eastern countries. The data covers individual-level data of 9 MENA countries from the WVS Round 7 (2017–2022). Factor analysis is applied as a data reduction method. Afterward, an OLS regression analysis is conducted on the pooled data. Findings: Anti-immigration attitudes increase with age, education, and religiosity. Personal values such as national pride, support for nationals, and belongingness to one's country significantly affect anti-immigration attitudes. Furthermore, the importance of religion as a measure of religiosity was found to be positively associated with anti-immigration attitudes. Originality/value: This paper contributes to underexplored literature by investigating how individual-level determinants, such as demographic indicators, personal values, and religious factors, shape anti-immigration attitudes in the MENA context, distinct from European dynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper analyses various symbols used in the select novels of Mitali Perkins. The primary texts examined for the study include You Bring the Distant Near and The Not-So-Star-Spangled Life of Sunita Sen. The paper also attempts to prove that the writing itself is a symbolic action using the concept put forward by Kenneth Burke. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Daily Border Returns System is a web-based system designed to automate the current manual documentation of border daily returns. The system facilitates efficient data management for day-to-day border activities, such as compiling daily travelers' reports, monthly reports, and situation reports. It utilizes a centralized database to store and manage relevant information about travelers, their immigration status, and any specific conditions or restrictions associated with their cases. The system enables immigration officers to easily access, update, and send information to headquarters, and it can print daily and monthly returns, aiding in decision-making and ensuring accurate and up-todate records. The system will be developed using Python, which is suitable due to its excellent support for working with data and generating reports. JavaScript will be used for web development, as it integrates well with HTML and CSS and has a vast ecosystem of libraries and frameworks, making it a good choice for the web-based interface of the Immigration Daily Border Returns System. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On the 24 of February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine, impacting millions of people's lives. In addition, the millions of displaced refugees have sparked a major international relations conflict. As a result, most refugees have traveled to their neighboring country, Poland. This research paper, based on a set of survey responses and interviews, outlines key policy recommendations that the Polish government should apply to best adjust to the rapid influx in population. The policies are family, religion, and language-oriented and focus on lengthening the stay of Ukrainian refugees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of Ictimaiyat is the property of Ictimaiyat and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to discuss the issues in studying hard-to-reach or dispersed populations, with particular focus on methodologies used to collect data and to investigate dispersed migrant entrepreneurs, illustrating shortcomings, pitfalls and potentials of accessing and disseminating research to hard-to-reach populations of migrant entrepreneurs. Design/methodology/approach: A mixed methodology is proposed to access hard-to-reach or dispersed populations, and this paper explores these using a sample of Brazilian migrants settled in different countries of the world. Findings: This paper explores empirical challenges, illustrating shortcomings, pitfalls and potentials of accessing and disseminating research to hard-to-reach populations of migrant entrepreneurs. It provides insights by reporting research experiences developed over time by this group of researchers, reflecting a "mixing" of methods for accessing respondents, contrasting to a more rigid, a-priori, mixed methods approach. Originality/value: The main contribution of this paper is to showcase experiences from, and suitability of, remote data collection, especially for projects that cannot accommodate the physical participation of researchers, either because of time or cost constraints. It reports on researching migrant entrepreneurship overseas. Remote digital tools and online data collection are highly relevant due to time- and cost-efficiency, but also represent solutions for researching dispersed populations. These approaches presented allow for overcoming several barriers to data collection and present instrumental characteristics for migrant research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Stanovništvo is the property of Demographic Research Center of Institute of Social Sciences and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper examines the role of religion in supporting health and the significance this has on emotional wellbeing in time of crisis for individuals of Greek Australian background. Melbourne, Australia, has a large Greek community whose oldest members were born in Greece and emigrated to Australia 50-60 years ago. The children and grandchildren of these immigrants were born in Australia but often see themselves as members of a cultural community distinct from the English-speaking mainstream. In addition to language, one of the most significant cultural factors handed down by the immigrant generation is a belief in the importance of religion and religious rituals in maintaining health. These rituals and beliefs are also a powerful tool for coping in times of crisis, illness and other challenges. Its findings are based on several qualitative studies undertaken in Melbourne between 2011-2016. The individuals that participated in these studies relied on religious faith and traditional practices to support them in times of crisis. Their specific beliefs reflect orthodox theology but also folk practices specific to this community and can be applied to wellbeing and resilience shown by this population in times of crisis. They have a strong belief in destiny and generally accept that God provides the means for addressing negative conditions. This paper describes the nature of their beliefs and outlines the ways in which religion serves as the basis for their resilience and ability to cope with adversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With a focus on refugees' written personal narratives on refugee NGO websites, this paper examines ongoing transculturalism in Britain and its interplay with globalization and current international migration. Conceiving such personal narratives as cultural texts pertaining to refugee narratives as a broad genre that encompasses different storytelling modalities, those personal stories on refugee NGO websites are explored from a cultural studies perspective. CDA is employed as a methodology for this cultural studies-oriented piece. A qualitatively oriented case study is accordingly presented based on the detailed examination of an example of such written narratives on the website of one such refugee NGO in the UK so as to instantiate and contribute to disentangling the articulation of this characteristic form of ongoing transculturalism. Special emphasis is laid on the discursive construction of refugees' transcultural identities in such narratives through their participation in those global border-crossing processes characteristic of the contemporary landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Migration to South Africa is motivated by the pursuit of employment, safety, and improved living conditions. However, immigrants encounter significant challenges, such as restricted access to essential services, which were exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper investigates the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Malawian immigrants in South Africa, addressing the lack of attention given to this immigrant population by highlighting their vulnerabilities. Using a qualitative exploratory and descriptive approach, in-depth interviews were conducted with 24 Malawi immigrants who were over 18 years old and had established residency in South Africa before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Five key stakeholders were also interviewed for additional perspectives and to ensure triangulation and improve data reliability. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using thematic analysis strategies and coding with Nvivo12 software. The study highlighted the exacerbated struggles of Malawian immigrants in South Africa amid the COVID-19 pandemic, uncovering systemic discrimination in healthcare, marked by longer wait times and reluctance from health workers to treat undocumented immigrants. The study also revealed a dire security situation, with immigrants living in high-crime areas and feeling particularly targeted due to their foreign status, a situation worsened by the pandemic's economic effects. Additionally, the economic downturn induced by COVID-19 significantly impacted employment opportunities, with many immigrants facing prolonged unemployment and job losses, especially in sectors where they traditionally found work. The detailed accounts of participants highlight not only the multifaceted challenges imposed by the pandemic but also the critical need for inclusive policies and support systems that ensure healthcare access, safety, and economic resilience for immigrants, particularly during global health emergencies. Future research should focus on effective interventions for socioeconomic integration and well-being, particularly for immigrants from other African countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development recognizes the crucial role of the regional dimension for economic, social, and environmental development. Sustainable development may be linked to migration management to strategically disperse international migrants to regions in need of ameliorating rural challenges. This paper explores the features affecting international migrants' intentions to move to rural areas, such as Alentejo, Portugal, based on a set of micro-, mezzo-, and macro-sociological migration theories to support policymakers. This paper addresses the following research question: what motivates immigrants' decisions to move to rural regions, such as Alentejo, Portugal? Practitioners (n = 8) and migrants (n = 15) were interviewed, and then a thematic analysis supported by MaxQDA 2022 was conducted. The results suggest that there is a set of motives for international migrants to move to rural areas and smaller cities based on multilevel factors, both economic and non-economic, such as the following: employment availability and promises of work; lower living costs compared to bigger cities; quality of life; local services support; and echoes of the country of origin. Migrants' networks and seeking greater opportunities were consistent motives. The pull to rural areas, however, is a side effect of the attraction of Portugal and Europe as destinations. The conclusions highlight implications for policy and practice on migration and local development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Urban Studies (Sage Publications, Ltd.) is the property of Sage Publications, Ltd. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper analyses the main trends of population change across the territory of Lithuania and the impact of immigration on the development of peripheral rural areas in the early 21st century. Qualitative methods were employed to reveal the attitudes of residents of peripheral areas towards arriving new residents and their potential contribution to local development. Special attention is paid on the attitudes of local community leaders and new settlers towards immigrants, including war refugees from Ukraine, illegal immigrants from distant countries, returnees, and residents arriving from other regions of Lithuania. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Kwartalnik Historii Nauki i Techniki is the property of Polska Akademia Nauk, Instytut Historii Nauki and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Immigration has long been a controversial social issue on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. The prevailing narrative is generally negative and is mainly promoted by domestically focused, conservative political parties. The key points argued by such anti-immigrant groups are that incoming migrants 1) take jobs from existing residents, 2) burden society due to higher social spending, and 3) worsen crime rates and potentially lead to terrorism. Germany ranks second (after the USA) in terms of immigration. It has a long history of accepting refugees fleeing political instability or simply seeking a better economic opportunity. In this paper, I research the robust migration waves into Germany after the recent wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, and Ukraine and the concurrent performance of the domestic economy. My findings have revealed that contrary to the adverse mainstream views, high immigration did not coincide with weaker employment or economy. In fact, historical data indicates a more robust domestic economy and employment after the heightened immigration. Multiple factors impact the economy; hence a direct causation effect cannot be asserted. I highlight why such a favorable outcome occurred and what lessons could be drawn for other countries with high immigration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Paperwork has always been a central part of bureaucratic work. Over the last few years, bureaucratic procedures have become increasingly standardised and digitalised. Based on interviews and ethnographic fieldwork within welfare offices in Switzerland and Belgium, we reflect on the way evidence is constructed within social policy and cases built for or against noncitizen welfare recipients in order to show how paper truths are established and challenged. The focus on digital practices within public policy implementation highlights how it contributes to enhanced control mechanisms on the implementation level and how migration law continues to guide welfare governance for noncitizens. This allows targeting of the most marginalised groups, whose rights to access state support are institutionally impeded. Through database information flows, official forms, paper reports and face-to-face meetings, we further show how a hybrid form of bureaucratic work emerges, where direct contact with the client is still key, yet highly influenced by standardisation processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Migration has occurred for as long as mankind has been on earth and has been triggered by environmental factors for just as long. However, as the threat of climate change increases, more and more people are migrating from their homes due to these environmental disasters. With this new influx of border-crossings, governments and policymakers must grapple with what to do. As it stands, the rights of asylum seekers expressed in international treaties focus on migrants fleeing conflict and violence. This has left a gaping hole for environmental migrants who are left without international protection. Despite the lack of protections under international law, there is still hope through the use of domestic constitutional law. By comparing the constitutions of France, Italy, Ecuador, and Mexico, this paper seeks to offer a simple equation to provide protection for environmental migrants: the constitutional right to asylum + the right to life + the right to a healthy environment = a roadmap to extending constitutional asylum rights to environmental migrants. The goal is that, with this equation, the rights of environmental migrants can become more universally recognized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With rapid urbanization and migration to cities, particularly in developing nations, the focus and emphasis on city governance, politics, institutional capacity, and sustainability issues have become paramount in critical analyses and policy discussions. This paper examines the functional complexities of two large Municipalities in two port cities located in South Africa and India, specifically eThekwini (the city of Durban in the province of KwaZulu-Natal) and Cochin (in the state of Kerala). Following a brief overview of the characteristics of the two Municipalities, the paper delves into the system of governance, level of autonomy, participatory structures in place, the extent to which they can respond to the service delivery demands of the public in an inclusive manner, and approaches to addressing climate change concerns. The paper is contextualised with reference to the theoretical concept of the Right to the City. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Twelve qualitative case studies in German and Canadian hospitals and IT companies were used in this mixed-methods study analysing the labour market outcomes of immigrants. The reported case studies investigate the immigrants' recognition, integration process and the usability of foreign qualifications, skills and work experiences in the labour market. Furthermore, the strategies and rationales of employers and employees within the recruiting process are analysed. Here, the focus lies on the transferability and obstacles of cultural and social capital across country borders as well as the relevant framework conditions. This paper refers to Bourdieu's approach towards different types of capital as well as the rational choice theory. The results demonstrate that immigrants in both countries face more obstacles accessing the labour market within the health sector than within the IT sector. The context of the recruiting situation strongly affects the strategies and behaviour of the employers or the recruiters. Within these sector- and country-specific confines, individual factors determine the immigrants' labour market success. Furthermore, the sector and the country affect the relevance of each individual factor in the recruiting process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Under the influence of international trade, labor flow not only exists in the waves of international labor migration but is also embodied in international products and services. This paper focused on members of the China–Africa Cooperation Forum (FOCAC). We computed and analyzed the sectoral embodied labor transfer between China and Africa from 2000 to 2015 based on the Multiregional Input-Output Method. Our results are as follows: (1) Both China and Africa play roles as labor suppliers in the global supply chain. By ameliorating the trade structure, both China and Africa can better utilize their labor surplus. (2) China and Africa share complementarity in sectoral labor allocation. In short, the embodied labor transfer via international trade between China and Africa has, to some extent, relieved the labor shortage on both sides. (3) Africa has transformed into a net exporter of industrial labor since 2011. By analyzing the embodied labor flow from the global perspective, this paper beats a new path in depicting the effect of international trade on labor allocation, enriches the evaluation of embodied labor transfer between China and Africa, and also provides a beneficial supplement to Multiregional Input-Output analysis in the field of factor flows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Associations between structural inequalities and health are well established. However, there is limited work examining this link in relation to mental health, or that centres public perspectives. This study explores people's experience and sense‐making of inequality in their daily lives, with particular consideration of impacts on mental health. Methods: We conducted a peer research study. Participants had to live in one of two London Boroughs and have an interest in inequalities and mental health. Using social media, newsletters, local organisations and our peer researchers' contacts, we recruited 30 participants who took photos representing their experience of inequality and discussed them during semi‐structured interviews. Data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Results: Three themes were identified in this study: (1) inequalities are unjust, multilayered and intertwined with mental health. Accounts demonstrated a deep understanding of inequalities and their link to mental health outcomes, describing inequalities as 'suffering' and 'not good for anyone'. Financial, housing, immigration and healthcare problems exacerbated poor mental health, with racism, gender‐based violence and job loss also contributing factors for both poor mental health and experiences of inequality; (2) inequalities exclude and have far‐reaching mental health consequences, impacting personal sense of belonging and perceived societal value and (3) moving forwards—addressing long‐standing inequality and poor public mental health necessitated coping and resilience strategies that are often unacknowledged and undervalued by support systems. Conclusion: Lived experience expertise was central in this study, creating an innovative methodological approach. To improve public mental health, we must address the everyday, painful structural inequalities experienced by many as commonplace and unfair. New policies and strategies must be found that involve communities, redistributing resources and power, building on a collective knowledge base, to coproduce actions combatting inequalities and improving population mental health. Patient or Public Contribution: This study was peer‐led, designed and carried out by researchers who had experiences of poor mental health. Six authors of the paper worked as peer researchers on this study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How do considerations related to backlash affect the desirability of pursuing otherwise justified immigration policies? This paper argues that backlash-related considerations bear on immigration policy decisions in ways that are both more powerful and complicated than typically recognized. The standard possibility, the egalitarian backlash argument , endorses immigration restrictions in order to protect support for egalitarian distributive institutions. The paper shows that this account does not, by itself, provide a convincing rationale for restricting immigration because such diminished support is (a) likely outweighed by the benefits of more permissive immigration policies and (b) caused by the objectionable preferences of citizens. However, the paper develops an alternative account of the relevance of backlash-related considerations, the democratic backlash argument , which holds that increased levels of immigration threaten to contribute to undermining democratic institutions. This argument provides a more powerful rationale for restricting immigration, one that can—under identified conditions—justify immigration restrictions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Historically, immigration has been an urban phenomenon in Canada. Over the last two decades, however, more and more immigrants have begun to settle in smaller cities and even in rural areas. Given this shift, there is a need to know more about how federal and provincial settlement and integration policies and programs function beyond the metropolis. This paper takes a place-based qualitative case study approach to shed light on how the settlement and integration sector works in rural Saskatchewan. The research is based on interviews with individuals working within or adjacent to the settlement and integration sector, as well as a focus group carried out with immigrants themselves. The findings of the study reveal that there are many challenges that make it difficult to meet the needs of immigrants in rural Saskatchewan by way of formalized supports. Nevertheless, those working in the sector have drawn on local strengths and resources to devise innovative solutions to meet the needs of the growing immigrant population. The paper concludes by arguing that local communities should be given more flexibility and a bigger role to play in the development of settlement and integration policies and programs. Settlement and integration works differently across geographical space, and a ‘one-size fits all’ approach to service provision is not enough to meet the current needs of all communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In contrast to the other papers in this special issue, this paper reflects a specific case of co-agency between states and individual migrants, particularly students and alumni networks. Based on a qualitative case study with 29 Georgian students and 14 institutions and organizations, this paper explores the impact of Georgian alumni on polity building in Georgia. Here we can observe two phases: Firstly, the states of Georgia and of Germany act as co-agents by facilitating migration to young Georgian students by financing their studies in Germany (student scholarships) with the objective that the students return and transfer their knowledge to the country of origin. Subsequently, the Georgian alumni who studied law in Germany act as co-agents between different institutions in both countries. In doing so, they transform state institutions by themselves and contribute to the development of the legal and political system in Georgia. They do that particularly in such important legal fields like constitutional law, civic law, and criminal law, but also in the creation of parliamentarism based on a bicameral system or the promotion of separation of church and state in Georgia. That takes place after return migration as well as from Germany through transnational networks and mobility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. People living with HIV continue to face laws, policies, and practices that impact their potential for travel and migration. These laws include: mandatory HIV testing and involuntary disclosure of HIV; lack of access to affordable HIV-related health care, treatment and counselling during the migration process; deportation of foreign nationals living with HIV; and restrictions on the length of stays. Methods. HIV migration laws were the topic of a half-day community forum held as part of the 12th International AIDS Society Conference on HIV Science held in Brisbane, Australia, in July 2023. Over 150 delegates attended and, after a series of presentations, delegates were invited to participate in structured, facilitated conversations about issues related to policy, health and law concerning migration of people living with HIV. In this paper, we report on key themes from those discussions and identify areas for ongoing investigation. Results. Advocates recommended the removal of unfair and unjust migration laws and policies that contribute to HIV stigma and discrimination; updated migration policies that reflect the current context and cost of biomedical approaches to HIV management and prevention; expanded and equitable access to HIV-related care regardless of migration or residency status; and the development of advocacy networks to promote changes to migration policies. Conclusions. Laws limiting the migration of people living with HIV actively discourage individuals from seeking HIV testing, treatment and care. Ultimately, restrictive migration laws and policies undermine global efforts to end AIDS as a public health concern and to virtually eliminate HIV transmission by 2030. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper revisits conventional wisdom on US degree premiums for immigrant workers and shows that, despite the benefits of a US degree, migration policies and substandard labor conditions contribute to international student motivations to return home. Using two original datasets, I find that about a third of Indian-born US graduates leave the US, seeking employment opportunities abroad and a respite from US work visa restrictions. I draw on 105 in-depth interviews and 7,177 employment histories constructed from LinkedIn, and the analysis demonstrates the use of digital data to shed new light on under-studied patterns of return migration in institutional perspective. I find that US work visas are related to the underemployment of immigrant workers, and gaps in visa availability are associated with US labor market departure for Indian international students. At the same time, foreign employers reward skills and credentials developed in the US, and the results suggest that US degrees carry a higher premium in foreign labor markets. The paper emphasizes the role of institutions in the skilled migration system and identifies disjunctures in US migration policy. I identify opportunities for policy reform to improve immigrant labor conditions and increase the retention of US-educated migrants in the US labor market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractNew global multi-directional migration flows are decentering extant analyses of White expatriate migration. As migration becomes more diversified, new lines of intellectual inquiry are surfacing about the experiences of middle-class non-white expatriates. This paper uses the case study of China, which with the rise in immigration, has an increasingly diverse ‘expatriate’ population. While the visibility of White expatriates in non-white-majority host countries may compel them to adopt lifestyles segregated from the local population, expatriates of Chinese heritage in China have the (dis)advantage of blending in with the local population. This paper examines the experiences of Singaporean-Chinese migrants in China where their ethnic proximity to the Chinese can be both a boon and a bane. We present our findings in three sections addressing: first, how ethnic proximity can enable mobilities including motility and a mobile sense of belonging; second, how mobilities can condition ethnic proximity as experiences of privilege but also reminders of non-belonging; and third, how participants’ change in life phases i.e. temporalities shift meanings of proximity, mobility and mobile belonging. Through highlighting the multidimensional nature of mobilities – proximity, motility, temporalities – this paper contributes to studies of middling migration, (ethnic) proximity and mobilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Among the 100 million refugees and displaced persons in 2022, the category of "climate refugees" has become more salient, yet countries still do not know how to handle it. Two aspects of climate refugees also remain understudied; how climate refugees are perceived, since they are viewed through the dual lenses of climate risks and migratory flows and how these perceptions impact policies. Climate refugees are thus doubly impacted by the spill-over effect of securitization processes in the fields of climate change and immigration. This paper analyzes how climate- and migration-security legislation in a resource-constrained nation conceptualizes climate refugees, and how their diverse conceptual categories spill over into policymaking and create a mutually beneficial and humanitarian approach for host and migrant populations. This paper uses India as a case study based on its historical practice of refugee protection despite significant resource constraints, high risk of inbound climate refugees, participation in key global agreements, and domestic discourse over climate and immigration securitization. Using policy analysis and expert interviews, this study demonstrates that India successfully exemplifies a broadly humanitarian climate mobility regime in the South Asian region through relocations, Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief operations, and ad hoc legal protection. Despite crucial structural limitations, India illustrates a democratic global south template implicitly recognizing migrants' vulnerability to climate change and attempts to minimize risk, with potential for replication in other developing and developed nations. This normative policy framework, notwithstanding its limitations, presents an alternative to the threat-centric and unsustainable securitization of climate migration practiced in the Global North. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A number of studies acknowledge the role of a liminal legal status as well as geopolitical factors in constituting a demand for an alternative citizenship. Less is known about the effects of war or political turmoil in countries of nationality for populations who live outside those countries in places with little or no permanent settlement paths. This paper takes the case of Syrian nationals born and raised in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to explore the impact of war in Syria on their considerations about, and for some, experiences of, migration, including through asylum-seeking in Europe. It argues that this migration is less about relocation to the "West" and more about a solution to restrictions tied to their liminality in the UAE, as well as their citizenship by birth. By pursuing "stronger" passports from elsewhere, they seek an ability to choose where they live — including the option to stay "home" in the UAE or maintain links there. This paper introduces the notion of circumstantial citizenship to better understand how, when, and for whom citizenship matters in restrictive migration contexts. By engaging with key debates in migration studies, such as volition, alternatives, and options, circumstantial citizenship conceptualizes people's complex journeys as they navigate liminality, changing conditions, international borders, and limited resources to access the long-term security of a better passport. Findings provide significant insights into the role of restrictive migration policies in shaping the value and meaning of citizenship and driving onward migration in complex ways today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Nepal has a long history of labour migration over the years. Migrants can experience a range of problems in their destination countries, and women are more at risk than men. This paper is the first to explore the problems faced by Nepalese women migrants while working abroad. Methods: This study was conducted among 1,889 women who were registered as migrant returnees at an organisation called Pourakhi Nepal. The study extracted and analysed data from a non-governmental organisation that supports returning female migrant workers in Nepal. Results: Around half (43.1%) of the women were 35 or older, 30.9% were illiterate, and 63.6% were in their first overseas job. More than one-third (38.5%) had self-reported workplace harassment. Physical violence was the most prevalent (68%), followed by verbal abuse (37.5%), mental stress (29.7%), and sexual abuse (14.1%). Women who were illiterate (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]1.25, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.01 to 1.55), unmarried (AOR 1.27, 95% CI: 1.05 to 1.56), worked abroad twice or more (AOR 1.35, 95% CI: 1.10 to 1.66), changed their place of work (AOR 2.38, 95% CI: 1.42 to 4.01), lived without documents (AOR 1.24, 95% CI: 1.03 to 1.50), worked as domestics (AOR 3.56, 95% CI: 2.03 to 6.23), worked in other than Gulf Cooperation Council countries (AOR 1.45, 95% CI: 1.06 to 1.99), women who did not have a fixed salary (AOR 1.64, 95% CI: 1.28 to 2.10) and did not receive salary (AOR 3.71, 95% CI: 2.88 to 4.77) were more likely to be harassed at work. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that the host governments should introduce and enforce policies protecting women in the workplace. Migrant women should be provided with better information about health risks and hazards as well as how to improve preventive measures in destination countries to reduce workplace harassment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While German migration policies aim to provide temporary protection and integrate Ukrainian refugees into German society as early as possible, the procedures and ideas of integration might be perceived differently by the beneficiaries. The feeling of "permanent temporariness" has been persistent among Ukrainians since March 2022. In this situation, some of the refugees renounce their agency and put responsibility on decision-making onto the state, while others oppose the idea of "being integrated" since they see their time in Germany as temporary, and their future in Ukraine as soon as the security situation allows them to return. Drawing on the experiences of single Ukrainian women who received protection in Germany, the paper presents an anthropological perspective on person–state interactions in the context of refugees' future-planning. How do German policies for supporting Ukrainian refugees impact their "stay or return" decision-making? Do the policies address their needs now and allow them to make investments for the future, or, on the contrary, contribute to their decision to return to Ukraine, which appears to be "simpler" and "more predictable"? How does the experience of going through bureaucratic procedures contribute to the sense of having agency and being capable of shaping their today and tomorrow? To answer these questions, I am going to present the reasonings and emotions concerning bureaucratic procedures that are closely intertwined with the planning of their future by Ukrainian refugees in Germany. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The last decade has witnessed an increasing proliferation of measures and strategies included in Italian and EU legislation to speed up the procedure for recognizing international protection, implicitly emptying it of its protective capacity. The contribution, part of ethnographic research that started in 2012 and is still in progress, intends to analyze how the use of time as a tool to govern contemporary migration flows acts differentially in terms of time spent, the time allowed, and time available, considering the different actors involved in determining its rhythm (Jacobsen and Karlsen, 2021; Della Puppa and Sanò in Studi Emigrazione, 220, 2020, in Journal of Modern Italian Studies, 26(5), 503–527, 2021; Rozakou, 2021). The paper will be composed of two parts: in the first one, through the presentation of a life story, the impact on migrants' experiences and emotional reactions to this unilateral determination of time dictated by policies and regulations will be problematized. The second part aims to examine the rationality of these procedures and assess their impact on the provisions in the broader legal framework. It seems interesting to investigate how control over time and through time (Tazzioli in Political Geography, 64, 13–22, 2018) is configured as a "specific modality of relations between parts of the world" (Fabian, 2021: 75), particularly how the "temporal architectures" (Sharma, 2014) enacted by Italy and the European Union have been codified in the law and governance policies of the current migration flow, and how migrants experience and endure these policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]