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Although one-third of U.S. young children have a parent who speaks a language other than English, early childhood educators often lack the tools to effectively monitor the development of those not in monolingual, English-speaking households. This issue brief examines why many preschool classroom assessments are a poor fit for Dual Language Learners, and ways to make them more effective for diverse populations.
The U.S. immigration court system faces an unprecedented crisis, with nearly 3.8 million pending cases as of mid-2025. This years-long backlog has undermined both timely immigration enforcement and grants of asylum to those in need of protection. This policy brief offers concrete actions that could make proceedings more efficient and more fair.
Many migrant-origin countries are developing policies and institutional structures to support their returning nationals, driven by safety concerns, emergencies, and in some cases pressure from destination countries. This policy brief examines these developments and identifies opportunities to better align local services, national policies, and donor support to strengthen international cooperation on migrant returns and reintegration.
Crossings of Channel waters in small, often unseaworthy vessels have become a top concern in France and the United Kingdom. As UK policymakers and their European counterparts consider striking a readmissions deal to more collaboratively manage these small boat crossings, this policy brief explores what is at stake, options for future cooperation, and what it will take for a deal to work in practice.
No country has been more critical to U.S. border enforcement than Mexico, with Mexican policies central to reductions in irregular border arrivals witnessed since the start of 2024. As the United States and Mexico navigate the next chapter in their long-standing engagement on migration issues, this policy brief provides an account of how migration patterns and policy responses changed in recent years and the challenges ahead.
Even as advanced economies with aging populations are increasingly reliant on immigrant workers, concerns have grown about how immigration could affect the cost of living and public infrastructure, causing support for even lawful immigration to wane. This issue brief explores why long-term planning is so challenging—yet essential—in the migration policy sphere, and identifies ways to create room for this strategic thinking.
As the scale and costs of climate change and environmental disasters grow, so do their impacts on migration and displacement. Tackling climate mobility will thus require well-designed investments. This issue brief examines the landscape of bilateral government funders and multilateral funds working to address this challenge, how funding is being used, and opportunities to grow the resources available for climate mobility solutions.
Young people’s transition to adulthood has important implications for their long-term career prospects and for the U.S. economy. This policy brief examines how workforce development programs, and particularly the WIOA Youth program, support immigrant youth alongside their U.S.-born peers, noting promising practices as well as persistent challenges in an era when immigrant-origin individuals are driving labor force growth.
With heightened pressure to tackle irregular migration, many European governments are exploring the potential of outreach and counselling for irregular migrants. Various initiatives have sought to connect with this hard-to-reach population to inform migrants about programs including return assistance or regularization. This MPI Europe issue brief explores the diversity of actors and approaches in the field.
Numbers play a major role in European debates and policymaking related to irregular migration. Yet, reliable data and estimates of irregular migrant populations, border crossings, and other relevant topics are often patchy. This policy brief explores factors that contribute to this uneven data landscape, how this affects policymaking, and potential strategies for strengthening the evidence base.
Early childhood education and care (ECEC) systems across the United States are grappling with worker recruitment and retention challenges. At the same time, immigrants with relevant education and work experience obtained abroad often find it difficult to gain recognition for those qualifications. This policy brief highlights strategies for improving hiring and licensing processes in the ECEC field.
Climate change can affect human mobility in many different ways. Designing policies and programs that reflect local conditions and affected communities’ priorities and needs is key to effectively addressing this diversity. This issue brief examines what localized solutions look like in the climate mobility space, why they matter, and how to overcome common obstacles that can keep local actors from playing a bigger role in their development.
When drought, floods, and other climate impacts force people to move internationally, do they qualify for refugee status or other form of protection? This issue brief explores the lack of consensus around what status and rights climate-displaced people should have and suggests options for diversifying the policy toolkit beyond the international protection system.
The time-critical work of cutting global emissions depends on countries’ ability to cultivate a workforce with the skills needed in sectors such as clean energy. Immigrants are already playing a role in this green transition. But a more proactive strategy is needed to balance smart admissions policies with investments in (re)training and leveraging the skills of local workers, as well as international cooperation to build the global talent pool.
Climate change is increasingly affecting how, when, and where people move. Whether climate migrants’ arrival triggers anxiety or support can vary considerably, and for a wide range of reasons. This issue brief looks at what factors affect public opinion of climate migrants, common narratives about environmentally induced migration, and how those narratives shape the space available for smart policymaking.
Gig work is on a meteoric rise, including on-demand driving, delivery, and home services, but also web-based translation, legal, and other services. In many countries, immigrants play a prominent role in the gig economy. Yet many governments have overlooked important questions at the intersection of labor, immigration, and immigrant integration policy, as this policy brief discusses.
Ensuring that individuals with limited English proficiency have access to information and services in federally funded programs has long been a requirement. But providing effective language access, such as through translation and interpreting, remains an unmet goal and demands new strategies. This policy brief offers some next-generation solutions to achieve a mandate that is more than a half century old.
In the global race for talent, governments in Europe and beyond are exploring ways to attract workers with needed skills. At the same time, some lower- and middle-income countries are seeking to expand their nationals’ access to economic opportunities abroad. This policy brief examines employment- and skills-based mobility projects that seek to facilitate the movement of workers with in-demand skills, including their unique value-add and common challenges.
As more countries launch refugee sponsorship and complementary pathways programs, planning for and supporting refugees’ transition out of these programs is essential. While often receiving less attention than other elements of program design, a clear transition plan can promote refugees’ self-sufficiency, social cohesion, and overall program sustainability. This MPI Europe issue brief explores common transition challenges as well as promising practices.
Infant and early childhood mental health (IECMH) services can offer vital support for young children’s healthy development. Yet, young children in immigrant and refugee families often do not benefit, due in part to lower levels of health-care coverage and limited cultural responsiveness in the field. This issue brief explores the benefits and barriers to supporting these children via IECMH services, and some ways to close key gaps.