E.g., 04/16/2024
E.g., 04/16/2024
MPI Europe

MPI Europe

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Reports
January 2024

Confronting Compassion Fatigue: Understanding the Arc of Public Support for Displaced Populations in Turkey, Colombia, and Europe

Young Syrian man and social worker in Turkey
Muse Mohammed/IOM

Large-scale displacement can trigger instability and feelings of threat in refugee host countries. But in certain cases, it can also uncover deep wells of solidarity that create space for generous policy responses. This report explores factors that can foster and erode public support for forced migrants, drawing examples from attitudes towards Syrians in Turkey, Venezuelans in Colombia, and Ukrainians in Europe.

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Commentaries
December 2023

One Phase Closes for the New Pact on Migration and Asylum. Now Another Begins

Image of EU and Member State flags flapping in wind
iStock.com/stormwatch153

The New Pact on Migration and Asylum agreed in December 2023 by EU Member States and the European Parliament after lengthy negotiation will, without a doubt, go down in history as a signal political accomplishment. But will it result in better management of migration and asylum systems in a complex era? The outcome will turn on implementation and communication, this MPI Europe commentary explains.

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Policy Briefs
December 2023

What Role Could Digital Technologies Play in the New EU Pact on Migration and Asylum?

European Union flag composed of binary code
iStock.com/BirgitKorber

With EU migration systems under strain, many observers have high hopes that the New Pact on Migration and Asylum will be able to help Europe address pressing challenges. This policy brief explores how digital technologies could support the implementation of the pact, should it be approved, as well as areas where caution is merited.

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Policy Briefs
October 2023

Why Matching Matters: Improving Outcomes in Refugee Sponsorship and Complementary Pathways

Syrian refugee family in Argentina who were sponsored by a community group
IOM/Muse Mohammed

In community sponsorship and other programs that directly involve communities and individuals in supporting refugees’ arrival and integration, where and with whom refugees are matched matters a great deal. This policy brief explores the ongoing evolution of approaches taken to matching refugees with sponsors or receiving communities, highlighting innovations and opportunities for further improvements.

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Policy Briefs
October 2023

From Safe Homes to Sponsors: Lessons from the Ukraine Hosting Response for Refugee Sponsorship Programs

Ukraine flag hanging from an apartment building in the Netherlands
Gert-Jan van Vliet/iStock.com

As millions of people fled Ukraine and sought safety in countries across Europe after Russia's 2022 invasion, community-led projects emerged to help newcomers find temporary housing in private homes. These hosting initiatives have helped quickly address a pressing housing need, fill gaps in official reception services, and engage communities in welcoming refugees. But they have also posed challenges, as this policy brief discusses.

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Reports
September 2023

Attracting, Retaining, and Diversifying Sponsors for Refugees in Community Sponsorship Programs

Syrian family and an Irish volunteer in a community sponsorship program
© UNHCR/Seamus Farrelly

By involving community members in welcoming refugee newcomers, community sponsorship programs hold the potential to open new protection pathways, better support refugee integration, and strengthen social cohesion. This MPI Europe report explores common challenges to the recruitment and retention of sponsors as well as strategies to address them, with a close look at experiences in Belgium, Germany, and Ireland.

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Recent Activity

Massive Influx of Syrian Kurdish Refugees into Turkey flickr European Commission DG
Multimedia
March 31, 2016
Resettlement Plus: Clearing the Path to Safety and Opportunity for Refugees
Boat SteveEvans Flickr
Commentaries
March 2016
The Paradox of the EU-Turkey Refugee Deal
By  Elizabeth Collett
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Reports
March 2016
No Way Out? Making Additional Migration Channels Work for Refugees
By  Elizabeth Collett, Paul Clewett and Susan Fratzke
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Reports
March 2016
The Canadian Expression of Interest System: A Model to Manage Skilled Migration to the European Union?
By  Maria Vincenza Desiderio and Kate Hooper
A local volunteer in Spain watches the children in a sponsored refugee family as they play.
Multimedia
February 8, 2016
Scaling Up Resettlement: The Role of Private Sponsorship Programmes in Addressing the Refugee Crisis
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Reports
February 2016
Getting the Balance Right: Strengthening Asylum Reception Capacity at National and EU Levels
By  Michael Kegels
Cover Top10 1Crisis
Articles
December 18, 2015
Migration Crisis Tests European Consensus and Governance
By Demetrios G. Papademetriou
Cover Top10 4Smuggling
Articles
December 15, 2015
Big Business of Smuggling Enables Mass Movement of People for Enormous Profits
By Elizabeth Collett

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Recent Activity

Video, Audio, Webinars
March 31, 2016

Resettlement Plus: Clearing the Path to Safety and Opportunity for Refugees

MPI Europe expert analysis and discussion with UNHCR and Italian NGO representatives on what is being done and what can be done to connect Syrians and other refugees with opportunities to settle, work, and live outside the immediate region of the Syrian conflict.

Commentaries
March 2016

The Paradox of the EU-Turkey Refugee Deal

Far from establishing a workable long-term solution to address overwhelming flows of asylum seekers arriving in Greece, the EU-Turkey deal has many observers concerned about the significant legal and logistical hurdles standing in the way of implementation—let alone questions about whether the deal would ultimately work. MPI Europe director Elizabeth Collett explains the practical implications of the deal in this commentary.

Reports
March 2016

No Way Out? Making Additional Migration Channels Work for Refugees

Although in theory refugees are already eligible to move beyond the circumstances of their displacement through a variety of legal channels, in reality pathways are often blocked by practical, technical, and political obstacles. This report explores existing tools and innovative new ideas to open additional opportunities to refugees, whether in first-asylum countries or via migration elsewhere.

Reports
March 2016

The Canadian Expression of Interest System: A Model to Manage Skilled Migration to the European Union?

This report examines Canada's implementation of Express Entry, a system designed to fast-track for legal immigration the skilled immigrants deemed most likely to achieve economic success and positive integration outcomes. With the European Union seeking ways to better attract global talent, the report explores how the expression of interest system could offer mechanisms to improve the management of highly skilled migration.

Audio, Webinars
February 8, 2016

Scaling Up Resettlement: The Role of Private Sponsorship Programmes in Addressing the Refugee Crisis

Analysts discuss how private sponsorship programs for refugees, used by Canada and a handful of other countries, could alleviate some of the pressure from the European refugee crisis by allowing individuals, groups, businesses, and other entities to sponsor individual refugees for resettlement.

Reports
February 2016

Getting the Balance Right: Strengthening Asylum Reception Capacity at National and EU Levels

With arrivals of asylum seekers overwhelming the resources and institutional capacity of some European Union Member States, this report examines the reception capacity challenges faced by national reception systems. Authored by the Operational Director of Belgium's reception agency, the report offers recommendations to improve coordination across Member States in ways that could effectively better utilize existing capacity.

Articles
December 18, 2015

Migration Crisis Tests European Consensus and Governance

Europe's defining challenge in 2015 was the exponential growth in the number of asylum seekers and migrants arriving on its shores. The European Union and its Member States were slow to respond, and reactive when they did. As trust among Member States and between national and EU-level authorities began to erode, the European Union has found its ability to implement a comprehensive response severely handicapped.

Articles
December 15, 2015

Big Business of Smuggling Enables Mass Movement of People for Enormous Profits

Faced with a flexible, diverse, and seemingly ubiquitous smuggling industry, governments have struggled to respond. Smuggling and trafficking networks, while hardly new phenomena, were put under a harsh spotlight in 2015 for their role as intermediaries in shaping the scale and flow of migrants and asylum seekers around the world.

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