Since 2015, the French asylum and immigration landscapes have been through major changes subsequent to the global mixed migration flows, European immigration and asylum policies, and increased citizen mobilization in the aftermath of the so-called "refugee crisis". In order to analyze theses changes, Ifri created the Observatory on Immigration and Asylum in 2018.
The Observatory on Immigration and Asylum is a forum of dialogue and cooperation between state and non state actors in the fields of reception and integration of migrants and refugees. The Observatory offers a place for exchange, expertise, a laboratory for innovation and building new solutions to address the needs of migrants and refugees. The Observatory’s objective is to initiate synergies of skills and resources notwithstanding each actor policy position and scope of action.
The Observatory brings together migrants, refugees, advocacy NGOs, not for profit service providers, groups of volunteers and not for profit “start-ups”. The Observatory supports the promotion and development of initiatives to achieve greater efficiency and sustainability. Relevant ministries, local authorities, corporate and philanthropic foundations are also involved in the Observatory’s activities.
This place of dialogue and expertise offers:
Moreover, the Observatory organises working meetings on specific topics, such as the private sponsorship of refugees. It coordinates a network of corporate foundations that come together to support innovation in the fields of reception and integration. The Observatory’s team members can also make contributions for NGOs and higher education institutions. The Observatory on immigration and asylum also works in partnership with Guiti News, an online media offering an Franco-Refugee perspective on immigration and asylum issues.
Senior research fellow, Director of Ifri's Center for Migration and Citizenship
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Research Fellow, Center for Migration and Citizenship
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More than 70 million people were forcibly displaced at the end of 2018. In that context, more safe and legal pathways to countries of asylum is a crucial challenge for the international protection regime. A toolkit is available to States and UNHCR, more particularly refugee resettlement.
Donald Trump’s election to the White House appeared to be the beginning of a profound change in the United States’ immigration policy. He reneged on bipartisan consensus that recognized the “positive contribution” of immigration to the country. This resulted in an increase in policies that...
Since 2015, refugee resettlement programmes have grown significantly in Europe becoming a key component of European asylum strategy. In 2017, Emmanuel Macron committed to resettle in France 10,000 refugees until the end of 2019. Refugees from Syria and Africa are increasingly welcome in small...
The “Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration” was adopted in Marrakesh on 10 and 11 December 2018, after 18 months of consultation and negotiation. It is presented as the first United Nations’ agreement on a comprehensive approach to international migration in all its aspects....
Contrary to other immigration societies such as the United States, Canada or Australia, migrations is not a core element of European narratives on shared identity. Each country maintains a very particular understanding of his migratory past and on the extent to which it should become part of...
The articles collected in this special issue set out to assess critically both aspects (making and representing the world) of national models from a comparative perspective, bringing together analysis of immigration countries in Europe (in the Netherlands, France and Britain) and settler...
More often than not, the notion of a national model of immigrant integration is held to be self-evident in the comparative scholarship. This type of reasoning, however, does not go without serious costs for the social sciences. Among these costs are the danger of reifying the categories used...
This book questions the reality of a crisis of immigrant integration and citizenship in Europe, a crisis that has gained a huge attention in the public and political debates since the 2000s. More often than not,...
The EU anti-discrimination agenda, as set out by the Amsterdam Treaty of 1997, has become a major issue for understanding the future of citizenship in Europe. This timely collection, which features internationally renowned contributors, including Andrew Geddes, Etienne Balibar, Stephen Castles...
The online registrations for this conference are now closed but you can still register by mail to Matthieu Tardis tardis@ifri.org
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New waves of populism and identity politics have shaken Europe, in both the West and the East. They have made immigration, Islam and Muslims a source of tension and anxiety. These new discourses have not left the pact of citizenship unscathed. How could inclusive societies be established while...
While France appears willing to take a strong leadership on European affairs, what influence would this new French leadership have on the EU’s immigration, asylum and integration policies?
Local democracy is at the forefront of the challenges facing the EU today. In a context of growing socio-economic difficulties and attacks against the values of citizenship, what can local representatives do in order to support the participation and inclusion of all the citizens? ...
The arrival of one million refugees in Europe between 2015 and 2016 has been perceived as the proof of the drastic acceleration of international migration. What is the reality of the situation? How has this “refugee crisis” affected the European Union and its institutions? Where are we now,...
How the memories of migrants and refugees could be made a central dimension of the public perceptions about migration and asylum in Europe today?
The striking rise in the arrivals of refugees and migrants in 2015 shed light on many shortcomings in offering a shared vision of the right of asylum in Europe. If Europe has a longstanding and rich history of migration that has contributed to shape the continent, the memory of this history is...
Grexit, Brexit, refugee crisis, breaches of fundamental rights and rise of populism: the European Union is facing many challenges linked to an increasing Euro-scepticism feeling among Europeans.
Europe has a longstanding history of migration that has contributed to shape the continent. However, memory of this history is hardly referred to in the debates concerning asylum and migration issues today.Europe has a longstanding history of migration that has contributed to shape the...
Both in the US and in Europe, border control has become one central component of immigration and asylum policies with seemingly the same objective: preventing irregular entries of migrants and refugees. This trend has accelerated in recent years, with ever stricter border controls, more...
Smaller municipalities and rural areas can be places where refugees are welcomed and where they can integrate more easily. People living in rural areas are very proud of their towns and often make an effort to mobilize and include newcomers in their communities.
Matthieu Tardis, Research Fellow at the Centre for Migration and Citizenship at the French Institute for International Relations (Ifri), describes how small towns and rural areas are welcoming refugees and enabling them to settle.
