Global migration and mobility

Description: The focus of academic research on migration has traditionally been on migrants—people who have moved to another country. However, the vast majority of the world's population are not migrants; they continue to live in the country where they were born. This study examines a specific group within that non-migrant population: involuntary non-migrants. Some countries have historically prohibited certain groups of people from leaving, meaning that some individuals would have preferred to migrate but were unable to do so. I study the consequences of these policies on those individuals and on the country as a whole. Additionally, I aim to provide an overview of restrictive emigration policies in various countries in recent history.
Website research project: https://research.ugent.be/web/person/flor-vandevelde-0/en
Promoter(s): Ilse Ruyssen
Researcher(s): Flor Vandevelde
Faculty / Faculties: Faculty of Economics and Business Administration
Period of time: 2024 - 2028

Description: This research focuses on how the fragmented nature of the European Hong Kong diaspora shapes its political mobilisation. The study will explore how the diaspora navigates ideological and strategic divisions while striving to maintain collective action. It will examine how these divisions affect their capacity for transnational solidarity and how varying political ideologies and personal histories influence their activism. Additionally, the research will investigate how transnational repression impacts the diaspora’s efforts to influence European policy and draw attention to Hong Kong’s ongoing repression. Central to this research is the extraterritorial reach of Hong Kong’s National Security Law (NSL), which has heightened the risks activists face, compelling many to self-censor or adopt low-profile advocacy strategies. These dynamics complicate efforts to build cohesive movements across Europe and highlight the tension between unity and individuality in political exile.
Promoter(s): Christopher Parker
Researcher(s): Wai Chu Starry Chung
Faculty / Faculties: Faculty of Political and Social Sciences
Period of time: 2024 - 2028

Description: The overarching goal of this research project is to improve our understanding of the climate change, migration and health(care) nexus, the theme of the CliMigHealth ITN coordinated by Ghent University. Climate change forms an important driver of migration. It also adversely affects health and puts pressure on health care systems in the South. Migration may in turn have implications on health and access to health services of migrants, as well as of their home communities and of those where they migrate to. The nexus is complex, and interactions, effects and feedback loops between the different driving forces and actors are not always well understood. This project aims to contribute to adequate and sustainable responses or solutions to the adverse human health effects of climate change and migration by fostering our understanding of how climate change impacts human health and health care and how both interact with migration.
Promoter(s): Ilse Ruyssen , Charlotte Scheerens , Ine Lietaert , Ilse Derluyn , Glenn Rayp , Sorana Toma
Researcher(s): Ilse Ruyssen , Charlotte Scheerens , Els Bekaert , Alix Debray , Ine Lietaert
Faculty / Faculties: Faculty of Economics and Business Administration , Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences , Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences
Period of time: 2020 - 2025