Transnational Communities
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Transcript of Transnational Communities
Transnational Communities - not your grandfather’s diaspora -
Harvard University Alvaro Lima, April 2008
AGENDA:
I. Immigration Studies and Transnationalism (Brief Background)
II. What is “Immigrant Transnationalism”?
III. Traditional versus Transnational Lenses
IV. Measuring Transnationalism
V. Some Implications of Transnationalism
VI. Project Portfolio
Traditionally migration studies have been concerned with understanding the origins and the impact of cross-borer flows;
These flows have been understood mostly as a one way movement from sending countries to receiving countries;
Immigration policies have been almost entirely focused on procedures and prohibitions governing admissions (who? how many? and what kind of immigrants should be admitted?).
There is a widespread belief that migration is caused by poverty, economic stagnation, and overpopulation in the countries of origin unrelated to receiving countries’ foreign policies, economic needs and broader international economic conditions;
While overpopulation, poverty, and economic stagnation all create pressures for migration, there are systematic, structural relations between globalization and migration flows with worldwide evidence of a considerable patterning in the geography of migrations.
poverty
stagnation
overpopulation
etc…
Country Total
Population (millions)
Population from
Developing Countries (millions)
Percent of Total
Population
Top Five Source
Countries (percent of
total)
Top Five Source Countries
United States
Spain
France
UK
Netherlands
Portugal
Japan
281.4
40.8
58.5
58.8
16.0
10.4
127
28.4
1.5
3.7
3.0
1.2
0.5
1.2
10.1
3.7
6.4
5.1
7.6
4.5
1.0
45.2
44.2
20.4
30.1
48.6
62.8
69.6
Mexico, Philippines, Puerto Rico, India, China
Morocco, Ecuador, Colombia, Argentina, Venezuela
Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Turkey, Vietnam
India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Jamaica, South Africa
Suriname, Turkey, Indonesia, Morocco, Netherlands Antilles
Angola, Mozambique, Brazil, Cape Verde, Venezuela
North Korea, South Korea, China, Brazil, Philippines
Foreign-Born Population of Rich OECD Countries from Developing Countries
Source: Let Their People Come, Lant Pritchett, 2006
Immigrant integration policies (education, training, placement, ESOL, health care, entrepreneurship, citizenship, etc..) are skeletal, ad hoc, under-funded and dominated by the ideology of assimilation;
As Nathan Glazer puts it, “the settlement, adaptation, and progress, or lack of it, of immigrants is largely, in the U.S. context, up to them.”
labor market language acquisition
housing education
etc…
Re-integration policies for those returning are generally inexistent making the re-settlement process prone to failure feeding back emigration:
labor market
housing education
etc…
What is “Immigrant Transnationalism”? Regular, frequent engagement in economic, political and socio-cultural activities in both countries:
Drivers of Transnationalism
Developments in the means of transportation and communications have changed the relations between people and places (costs);
International migrations have become crucial to the demographic future of many developed countries;
Global political transformations and new international legal regimes weakened the state as the only legitimate source of rights;
Fostered by global consumption, global production, and immigration, cultural hybridization are substituting folkloric romanticism and political nationalism enshrined as essences of national cultures;
Contexts of exit and modes of incorporation facilitate or impede, foster or discourage, demand or preclude some or all of the cross-border activities:
Country of Settlement
Country of Origin
Transnational migrants Non-migrants
embedded in transnational social fields
Transnational Social Field
Transnational activities
Context of Exit: Education Level Race and Ethnicity Family Wealth Urban versus Rural Origin Government Support Structures Etc.
Context of Incorporation: Inclusion & Exclusion Structures Alien versus Citizenship Rights Government and Other Support Systems Race and Ethnicity Structures Etc.
Contexts of Exit and Incorporation
11
Traditional Lenses:
immigration conceptualized as a bipolar relation between sending and receiving countries (moving from there to here)
emigration is the result of individual search for economic opportunity, political freedom, etc.
migrants are assumed to be the poorest of the poor
immigrants occupy low-skilled jobs in agriculture, construction, and manufacturing
Immigrants steadily shift their contextual focus, economic and social activities to receiving country
immigration should not bring about significant change in the receiving society
Transnational Lenses:
immigration conceptualized as flows of cross-border economic, political and social-cultural activities (being here and there)
emigration is the result of geopolitical interests, global linkages, and economic globalization
migrants are not the poorest of the poor nor do they come from the poorest nations
growth in the service and technology-based jobs create opportunities for low as well as high skilled migrants
After the initial movement, migrants continue to maintain ties with their country of origin
immigration creates hybrid societies with a richer cultural milieu
Traditional versus Transnational Lenses
$875
$398
$331
$218
$-
$100
$200
$300
$400
$500
$600
$700
$800
$900
Monthly Remittance by Nationality
$278 $274
$192 $188 $185 $177 $113
ABOVE AVERAGE
BELOW AVERAGE
AVERAGE = $294
45.4%
20.5% 17.8%
5.1% 4.9% 3.7% 1.6% 0.8% 0.2% 0.0% 5.0%
10.0% 15.0% 20.0% 25.0% 30.0% 35.0% 40.0% 45.0% 50.0%
Purchasing of Nostalgic Products Among Brazilians
37.6%
28.9% 26.0%
5.5%
1.6% 0.3%
0.0%
5.0%
10.0%
15.0%
20.0%
25.0%
30.0%
35.0%
40.0%
Does not have / NR
Checking account
Savings account
Credit card Investment account
Foreign currency savings
Financial Accounts in Country of Origin - Brazil
MEASURING TRANSNATIONALISM
46.6%
36.80%
27.0%
22.7% 20.0%
15.3% 14.0%
10.3% 9.1% 5.7%
3.7%
0.0%
5.0%
10.0%
15.0%
20.0%
25.0%
30.0%
35.0%
40.0%
45.0%
50.0%
Help Beyond Remittances
AVERAGE = 19.2%
ABOVE AVERAGE
BELOW AVERAGE
13
26.3%
12.4% 10.0%
6.7% 5.0%
4.0% 3.5% 3.3% 2.8% 2.4% 0.0%
0.0%
5.0%
10.0%
15.0%
20.0%
25.0%
30.0%
Support of Hometown Associations
AVERAGE = 6.7%
ABOVE AVERAGE
BELOW AVERAGE
MEASURING TRANSNATIONALISM
MEASURING TRANSNATIONALISM
Some Implications of Transnationalism
Portability becomes crucial for transnational migrants – education and certification processes; investment and retirement schemes, health insurance, etc.;
Concepts such as “local development,” “local community” and “social capital” must be redefined as space of flows (relationships) instead of just geographic places to accommodate transnational behavior;
Transnational immigrant entrepreneurs’ contribution to the revitalization of inner city neighborhoods across the U.S. is vital and entrepreneurial support systems should adapt to serve them;
Nation-state ideals of identity in both sending and receiving countries are challenged by transnational practices;
States must re-conceive immigration and adapt their policies and practices to accommodate transnational realities;
1st Generation Innovation Portfolio
Digaai.com
Transnational Index
Diaspora Capital Services
English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL)
Transnational Fellows
Research Projects (transnational immigrant organizations)
Publications
17
What if… (scenario 2) Digaai.com
2 million Brazilians around the world: communicate home with each other (social
networking)
register their experience/build unique archives through video, photos, etc.
search newspapers, magazines, websites, etc.
contribute to Brazilian diaspora wiki
store personal information using private web space
18
19
Transnational Index What:
Data and survey-based ranking of communities by their degree of transnationalism
Published annually in partnership with national media
Why: create awareness among policy makers of transnational
phenomena
identify social and commercial innovation opportunities for transnational immigrant communities
build consciousness among transnational immigrants of unique potential
Designing the Index