Welcome back! You’re listening to the first episode of the 5th season of IMISCOE’s Migration Podcast. 

If you’re listening for the first time: IMISCOE is the largest European network of scholars in the area of migration and integration, with 69 member institutes and over 1400 scholars from all over the world. And this is the network’s podcast, where we hear migration researchers talk about their latest research and why it matters. 

As in the past seasons, we have an amazing team of interviewers who are migration scholars themselves. And this season, you’ll hear more episodes with them talking to 2 or more researchers who are working on similar themes, together.

The conversation you'll hear is about concepts in migration governance that are often taken for granted – but when you dig a bit deeper, or wider, like the researchers in this episode have done, it’s clear that not everyone has the same idea of what they really mean or their implications in practice. 

You’ll hear Liberty Chee speaking to Eleonora Milazzo, who has been working on what exactly “solidarity” means between European Union Member States when it comes to the asylum system. We may have a sense that so far, it’s been “failing”, but what does solidarity really mean in practice?

Ulrike Bialas also joins the conversation, to talk about her research on how age classification determines the lives of young asylum seekers in Germany. How do they experience this legal focus on age, especially when many do not actually have documents that can prove their dates of birth and may not know them, anyways. 

I also found the practical challenges of conducting their research, that both Elenora and Ulrike talk about, particularly interesting. Just a last note: both of them talk about research to do with migration governance in Europe, and both mention “the Dublin System”. In case you need a refresher: the Dublin System is made up of several procedures that determine responsibility for assessing asylum claims in EU Member States.  

Further readings:
Bialas, Ulrike. 2023. Forever 17: Coming of Age in the German Asylum System. Chicago: University of Chicago Press

Bialas, Ulrike. 2023. "Ambiguous Ages, Ambivalent Youths: How Asylum Seekers in Germany Navigate Age Categorization." Migration Politics 2, no. 1: 003.

Bialas, Ulrike. 2024. "Who is a minor? Age assessments of refugees in Germany and the classificatory multiplicity of the state." Ethnic and Racial Studies: 1-23.

Bialas, Ulrike, Johanna M. Lukate, and Steven Vertovec. 2024. "Contested categories in the context of international migration: introduction to the special issue." Ethnic and Racial Studies: 1-23.

Milazzo, E. (2024). Refugee Protection and Solidarity. The Duties of EU Member States. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2023. https://global.oup.com/academic/product/refugee-protection-and-solidarity-9780192885715?cc=be&lang=en&# 


Also have a look at the Migration Research to Policy Co-Lab https://migrationresearchtopolicy.eu/  





Ep.1(S5):Dublin, solidarity and age. How do these factors matter in the EU asylum system?

The field of migration and mobility studies is vast and has grown exponentially over the past decades. To make sense of the movement of people, this podcast explores migration and mobility research globally. Providing a platform for migration scholars to speak about their projects, ideas and insights, The IMISCOE Migration Podcast aims to publicize what happens inside universities around the world. This is a podcast by the research community for everyone interested in knowing more about academic research on migration. 

Download or subscribe to hear about new books, or listen to one of our episodes in which we speak to scholars about ideas that changed how we think about migration. 

Team for season 5:
Production: 
Kate Dearden 

Team & Programming Coordinators: 
Milena Belloni, Roos Derrix, Mark Marvin Kadigo

Financial Administration & Engagement: 
Asya Pisarevskaya

Interviews: 
Amanda Paz Alencar, Liberty Chee, Silindile Mlilo, Itzel Eguiluz, Samanwita Paul

Ep.1(S5):Dublin, solidarity and age. How do these factors matter in the EU asylum system?

The Migration Podcast