Thematic Webinar #4: Rethinking social integration for resilient societies

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Migration constitutes one of the main challenges of our time and remains a key topic in discussions about resilience through social integration. Since 2015, Greece has been one of the first destinations for a significant influx of migrants. The Greek islands, particularly those in the North Aegean, have borne the brunt of this crisis, receiving vast numbers of refugees arriving by sea under extremely difficult and hazardous conditions. Many families, including children, arrived with no belongings, having been forced to abandon everything. 

This situation demanded the mobilisation of institutions and individuals, as well as the coordination of actions to provide essential support and humanitarian aid. Indeed, social integration has become a critical issue in migration policy. The need to deliver humanitarian aid, registration, and affordable living conditions in such extreme circumstances has posed considerable challenges for stakeholders, local communities, and institutions.

The aim of this webinar is to engage policymakers and key stakeholders in a discussion about the main issues involved in framing and implementing social integration policies. It seeks to share knowledge and experience as part of an interactive and educational process for individuals and institutions. Key questions to be addressed include: What attributes make a locality more resilient in the face of social integration challenges? How can a locality absorb, respond to, and recover from external shocks under such circumstances? What are the essential conditions for fostering the social inclusion of migrants?

This webinar is intended for policymakers, researchers, academics, members of civil society, and individuals concerned with critical social challenges during times of crisis and uncertainty.

Preliminary Agenda:

  • Welcome and introduction -  - Yannis Psycharis, Regional Development Institute, Panteion University, Athens

  • Social integration in Europe: research evidence and lessons learned from practice - Nora Ratzmann, Researcher, German Centre for Integration and Migration Research (DeZIM)

  • Migration and challenging the ability for Social Integration: lessons and experiences from Greece - Lefteris Papagiannakis, Director, The Greek Council for Refugees (GCR)

  • The ACCMR hub: multistakeholder cooperation for the promotion of inclusiveness and diversity in the City of Athens – Dionysia Lambiri, Project Coordinator, Athens Coordination Center for Migrant and Refugee issues – ACCMR, Athens

 

Register here: https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/ad614e8d-a91a-4bf9-8c96-ebaf45249edd@8eaef797-67a0-42ea-8b25-c45c1fb67fcd