Focus Area
In recent times, economical and geopolitical problems have been arising and affecting the way of life significantly all over the world. In 2015 Europe suddenly found herself in the spotlight of the news and in the middle of a problem, namely a migration crisis, which needed solutions immediately. In general migration happens naturally at all times, Northern countries have been receiving larger number of immigrants since the mid-80’s, however with hundreds of thousands of people migrating and seeking asylum all over Europe, this was something new. As many were determined to settle in Northern Europe, the Arctic region had to face newfound problems and challenges along the side of the already existing ones of Arctic migration. Cultural differences, acceptance of foreign citizens within local communities, integration into local communities and labour market are some of the issues, which need cooperation in order to contribute to innovative solutions. Our network wants to address these issues and carry out pioneering work in the field of Arctic migration.
Overall Goal
Migration and population changes have always affected the quality and ways of life, therefore it is exceptionally important to recognise and address issues caused by it. The overall objective of the UArctic Thematic Network on Arctic Migration is to establish and build an international network of scholars, experts, influencers and policy makers to carry out pioneering work, joint research and enhance the advantages of cross-border cooperation.
Planned Activities
A series of workshops, seminars and conferences will be organized and held in order to support the network, as well as common publication to disseminate the issues and potential solutions of Arctic migration.
Quality control
All the members of Arctic Migration Thematic Network are internationally recognised. Each of the member institutions has already a high level quality control, therefore guaranteeing a great base to ensure excellent quality control within the Thematic Network. Knowledge and practices of each member institute’s quality control will be shared in order to realise best practise of quality control for the network. Cooperation among the member institutes and organisations of the UArctic will benefit all. The close collaboration will enable members to get contemporary information and increase knowledge on issues in each region included in the network. Publicity of the work and activities of the thematic network will be enhanced not only by the current topics, but also by the international and cross-border collaboration.
Awarded Funding for the Thematic Network
In April, 2016 the first ever workshop on Arctic Migration was organized by the Arctic Centre of the University of Lapland, in Rovaniemi, Finland. The workshop was followed by a second meeting in September, 2016. The workshop was held by Nordregio, in Stockholm, Sweden. The aim of these workshops was to establish a new research group for the Arctic Centre, as well as to enhance cross-border cooperation by creating a UArctic Thematic Network of Arctic Migration. Both events have been founded in order to support the establishment of the new Thematic Network.