Social Cohesion in Displacement Contexts, 2023-2026 (Co-PI)

In an increasingly globalized world, displacement, migration, and (im)mobility are a socio-political phenomenon that countries must respond and adapt to. Displacement, both cross-border and internal, due to conflict, climate and environmental change, as well as economic shocks are part of global human mobility, presenting unique challenges to social cohesion in communities hosting displaced people, particularly given how fraught the politics of displacement can be. Social cohesion is increasingly recognized as an important condition for the stability of societies and the wellbeing of its members. This project aims to answer the question: How is social cohesion affected in different contexts of displacement where there is wide demographic, cultural, religious, and political diversity? Grounded in an understanding of history and national context, the project examines the contemporary mechanisms that influence social cohesion in communities hosting displaced people.

Equal Partnerships for Urban Migration Governance, German Institute of Development and Sustainability and University of Nuremburg, 2021-2023 (Co-PI)

African intermediary cities are becoming central nodes of mixed migration movements. Due to their proximity to local communities, local authorities have particular potential to develop inclusive approaches for migrants, refugees and the local population. However, there often remain knowledge and cooperation gaps between local, national and international actors addressing urban migration and displacement on the ground and in policy dialogues. To address this gap, the project brings together urban migration actors from different contexts and levels of governance. It aims at inspiring practical ideas and developing policy recommendations for equal partnerships of urban migration governance in intermediary cities in North, West and East Africa through participatory knowledge creation, outcome-oriented dialogues and networking among potential cooperation partners.

Contested mobility: Migration policy in countries of the global South, between local needs, national interests and global agendas. Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik. 2020-2023 (Co-PI)

The Influence of Information Communication Technology (ICTs) and Digital Social Networks on Economic Integration among migrants in Bogota. Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik. 2017-2019 (Co-PI)

Colombia has a long history of displacement and internal migration, both from rural to rural areas and rural to urban. Our core question is: Is there evidence among migrants in Bogota that increased use of, and access to, digital technologies such as mobile phones and social media supports higher levels of socio-economic integration into receiving urban areas? This is an important and still under explored topic. Evidence from developed countries indicates that digital technologies offer avenues to support the integration of migrants and refugees into receiving communities. The technologies themselves offer channels for migrants to engage with administrative services, and allow for developing the kinds of social networks that support socio-economic integration into a new community.

The project will involve a cross-sectional survey in Bogota, capturing data on technology use and development outcomes among migrants and Bogota natives. We aim to maintain this sample in order to do panel surveys over time, and also be able to compare the results with similar surveys that will be done in Nairobi and Kuala Lumpur. The team on this project includes Dr. Constantin Ruhe, Dr. Alberto Posso, Dr. Sonia Camacho, and Dr. Rodrigo Taborda Rios.

Digitalization in Migration and Refugee Processes: Assessing the role of technology in mixed migration in Kenya. Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik. 2018-2019 (PI)

This project will focus on the lives of migrants and refugees in Kenya, looking specifically at how digital technology and information affect mobility decisions. This topic speaks directly to both work packages in the “Reducing root causes of forced displacement and managing migration project.” It will address the root causes of displacement component by exploring the ways that digital tools influence migrants’ and refugees’ perceptions of risk, economic opportunity, and access to social networks. In terms of the regional migration policy side, this research will shed light on how governance organizations are using digital technologies to support migration policies, for example through digital registration of refugees or e-visas for migrants. Taken together the project will provide an individual-to-policy-level picture of how digital tools fit into mobility decisions and policy responses.

The project will look at this from two perspectives:

1. How do individual migrants and refugees use technology and information to make mobility decisions?
2. How do institutions such as the Kenyan government, IGAD and UNHCR integrate digital tools into their migration and refugee policies?

The project draws on the research approach from Alexander Betts, Louise Bloom, Josiah Kaplan, and Naohiko Omata’s book Refugee Economies. Betts et al’s research strategy used case studies of urban, rural and camp refugee communities to understand household-level economic behaviour of refugees in Uganda. Our main three focus areas will be:

• How do differences in urban, rural and camp environments influence refugees’ and migrants’ use of digital tools? In a highly administered setting like a camp digital information may be used for registration, whereas in an urban setting migrants may use digital tools to find social networks or make migration decisions.
• How do institutional actors in the migration and refugee spaces use digital tools in their administrative processes and service provision? UNHCR has ongoing processes for integrating digital tools into their work; the team will gather comparative information about how, or if, the Kenyan Government, IGAD and local NGO actors are also using digital tools to support refugee and displaced populations.
• Development of a framework for refugee and migration digitalization, both as a theoretical and policy guidance tool. The analysis will focus on how refugees and migrants can use digital tools to make safe, regular migration decisions, and inform donors’ digital strategies in migrant and refugee support programs.

The progress of our team can be followed on our Twitter feed: https://twitter.com/DIE_Kenyateam

Reducing Root Causes of Forced Displacement and Managing Migration
Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik. 2017-2020

This project is hosted is funded by the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), and focuses on understanding the drivers of forced displacement and migration. The project is being led by Dr. Jörn Grävingholt. There are two work streams; the first is managed by Dr. Eva Dick and Dr. Benjamin Schraven and focuses on regional migration governance in the ECOWAS and IGAD regions. The second focuses on understanding the drivers of forced displacement, and is managed by Dr. Charles Martin-Shields and Dr. Constantin Ruhe. The project has thus far lead to publications by Drs. Schraven and Dick on regional migration policy efforts in the IGAD region, as well as shorter opinion pieces on economic development and migration. Further empirical research, particularly surveys, are planned for the 2018 project period.

The Relationship Between Food Security and Violence Conflict
International Security and Development Center. 2016-2017

Funded by the Food and Agriculture Organization, and led by Prof. Dr. Tilman Brück, this project looked at cross national and subnational empirical evidence around the impact of food security on conflict. The final report will be published by ISDC in September 2017, and the contents of the report are under review as a special issue in the journal World Development. The project team included Negar Habibi, Dr. Charles Martin-Shields, Astrid Sneyers, Dr. Wolfgang Stojetz, and Dr. Stijn van Weezel.

When Information Becomes Action: How information communication technologies affect collective action during crises.
George Mason University, Dissertation Project. 2011-2016

This dissertation contributes deeper theorization of the role of ICTs in crisis response, drawing on the political science and sociology literature on collective action and violence prevention. This social-theoretical grounding is important because while technologists and engineers have pushed for innovative use of ICTs in crisis response and international development more widely, there remains limited understanding of how these technologies, and the information shared across them, are used by communities to support socio-political processes, including violence prevention and disaster response. The research was funded by a Fulbright Fellowship. The findings from this dissertation project have been published in International Studies Perspectives, Business Peace and Sustainable Development, and are forthcoming in Disasters Journal.