Transnational Family Making: Children, Young People and Migration
European University Institute, Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies, Florence, Italy
Whilst children and young people are often at the core of the migration flows toward EU countries (‘on the move', ‘left behind' or as main ‘rationale' for migration), they do not always receive the proper academic interest. This workshop aims to explore the migratory experiences of families (including children and young people) and to examine how policy-makers and service-providers assist children and families in this process. The workshop aims to bridge the gap between otherwise separated scholarships on immigration and emigration, by exploring the understanding of migration from home and host societies.
What are the main patterns of migration and how do they influence children and young people? To what extent is migration changing the new transnational family dynamics? How are children and young people embracing the new roles and what are the social expectations exerted upon them (be it in home or host countries)? How the different patterns of parenthood from a distance impact on children lives and on their migratory trajectories? How the needs of transnational families impact and transform the offer of social and educational services in the origin and arrival country? To what extent are children's specific needs, addressed by (trans)national social and migratory policies?
The workshop welcomes research exploring children, young people and parents' own experiences of migration, but also papers that critically examine the policy provisions and social interventions aimed at children and young people as well as to their parents in the origin and arrival countries.