Geographies of Asylum in Europe and the Role of European Localities

This open access book describes how the numerous arrivals of asylum seekers since 2015 shaped reception and integration processes in Europe. It addresses the structuration of asylum and reception systems, and spaces and places of reception on European, national, regional and local level. It also analyses perceptions and discourses on asylum and refugees, their evolvement and the consequences for policy development. Furthermore, it examines practices and policy developments in the field of refugee reception and integration. The volume shows and explains a variety of refugee reception and integration strategies and practices as specific outcome of multilevel governance processes in Europe. By addressing and contextualizing those multiple experiences of asylum seeker reception, the book is a valuable contribution to the literature on migration and integration, societal development and political culture in Europe.

Jun.Prof. Dr. Birgit Glorius works as associate professor for Human Geography of East Central Europe at Chemnitz University of Technology. She was trained in Geography, Geology and Political Sciences at the universities of Erlangen-Nürnberg, Würzburg and the University of Texas at Austin. She earned a diploma in Human Geography from the University of Würzburg and a doctoral degree from the University of Halle-Wittenberg. Her research interests and majority of publications are in the fields of international migration, demographic change and geographies of education; most of her research is carried out in Eastern Germany, Poland, Bulgaria and the Western Balkans. Recent research projects include refugee reception in Europe, concentrating on questions of local governance and local reception cultures; effects of the European financial and economic crisis on migratory processes from southern European countries; and return migration of international students from studies abroad and mechanisms of knowledge transfer. Birgit is frequently asked to give expertise to federal and non-governmental institutions and receives invitations for academic keynotes on issues related to migration, integration and social cohesion in Europe.

Migration and its consequences has always been at the centre of Jeroen Doomernik’s research interests; when he studied cultural anthropology (MA in 1986), did a PhD in human geography (1986-1991), was a post-doc at the Free University in Berlin (1992-1995), worked as senior policy maker at the Dutch Ministry of the Interior (2000), was a fellow at the Transatlantic Academy in Washington D.C. (2008/2009), and presently as researcher with the Institute for Migration and Ethnic Studies (IMES) (1995 - present) and lecturer (2000 - present) at the Department of Political Science.