EUMIGRE · New European Mobilities at times of Crisis: Emigration Aspirations and Practices of Young Greek Adults
Horizon 2020 — Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
- Duration
- 2015-07-01 → 2017-06-30
- EU contribution
- €164,653
- Participants
- 1
- Scheme
- MSCA-IF-EF-ST
Lines connect the coordinator with its partners.
Results in brief
New European Mobilities at times of Crisis: Emigration Aspirations and Practices of Young Greek Adults
In the context of the debt crisis, recession, austerity and their socio-political consequences, Greece is experiencing a new major wave of out-migration. Emigration has become a survival strategy for many people who are finding it hard to make ends meet, while, at the same time, it has also emerged as an increasingly appealing option for others in less pressing need, who see their career chances severely reduced. There is extended media coverage of this new emigration, which is presented as a one-way option for certain population segments, notably the young and the highly skilled. Despite this media attention, however, little is actually known about the characteristics of the emigration flow, as well as the experiences of the country’s new ‘crisis migrants’. Aiming to fill this knowledge gap and to contribute to migration theory, EUMIGRE systematically assessed the magnitude and dynamics of the new crisis driven emigration and explored the motivations and aspirations of the key actors, the emigrants themselves. How are different mobility options considered and pursued in times of crisis? What are the experiences of those who emigrate and how do they assess their decision in retrospect? What is the impact of their migration on the Greek economy and society and on the hosting countries, and what lessons can be drawn about intra-EU mobility and migration more broadly from their experiences and viewpoints?
Data: CORDIS, © European Union
Project objective
With Southern Europe suffering deeply from the financial crisis, a renewed public discussion on emigration from this region has emerged. The European South, which had only recently become a destination for immigration, seems to be experiencing a new major emigration wave. This is especially true for Greece, the country which has been hit hardest by the economic crisis and concomitant austerity measures. Despite public attention on the matter, however, little is known about who is emigrating, what alternative mobility strategies are considered and pursued, or the reasons underling migration decisions. EUMIGRE will provide an answer to these questions by introducing an innovative mixed methods approach. This approach allows identifying and studying a sizeable and diverse group of young adults whose spatial and social trajectories are retrospectively traced to explore the influence of the current crisis on their strategies. In so doing, it will also contribute to migration theory at a period when space-time flexibilizations, processes of neoliberalization, and the economic crisis are changing established modalities of and motivations for migration in ways that render the emigration–immigration country distinction obsolete.
Original text from CORDIS.
Participants
- UNIVERSITY OF MACEDONIA · ThessalonikiCoordinatorGreece
Links
Data: CORDIS, © European Union