Cross Migration

Migration is at the heart of a broader transformation that European societies are currently experiencing. Conflict, instability and economic conditions in the wider neighbourhood of Europe are only some factors driving new migration into Europe. This is triggering deep contestation within Europe, at the EU level as well as within European states, on how to manage and possibly influence migration, and how to cope with the implications of migration. In order to respond to the challenges and opportunities of migration, a better understanding is required of what drives migration towards Europe, what trajectories and infrastructures facilitate migration, and what the key characteristics of different migrant flows are, in order to inform and improve policymaking. However, data and knowledge on migration is not scarce in Europe. There are many databases such as the Eurostat and OECD databases, and there have been many research projects funded at the European level as well as the national level (see Fassman a.o. 2009, OECD 2016). However, the accessibility, integration, accumulation and communication of knowledge and data is limited (see also Willekens a.o. 2016). Also, there are contradictions, gaps and overlaps in existing knowledge and data pools, such as gaps in our understanding of the role that specific migration infrastructures play in current migration to Europe. As a consequence, the opportunities to apply these to research and management of current and future migration flows have been underexploited.