‘We want to be there for everyone’: imagined spaces of encounter and the politics of place in a super-diverse neighbourhood

In the context of increasingly diverse urban populations in European cities, neighbourhood organizations are often seen as offering spaces of encounter that can foster a sense of belonging. As a result, they have formed an important element in urban policies on community identity and social cohesion. Yet everyday encounters in such micro-publics may not necessarily be experienced as positive, and these spaces themselves might become sites of contestation and exclusion. Through an ethnographic study in a super-diverse neighbourhood in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, this paper investigates how residents’ sense of belonging to the neighbourhood is informed by competing claims on a neighbourhood centre. Although envisioned as a collective space, contestations between different groups of residents over the centre as a functional and meaningful place illustrate how governing institutions shape informal politics of place through their own vision for the neighbourhood and their selective support of some initiatives over others.     

Uncontrolled urban housing in interwar Greece: the rise of the city in urban and national politics

The case of urban housing in interwar Greece was unique. After the end of the war in Asia Minor in 1922 almost 1.3 million Greek Orthodox refugees transferred from Turkey to Greece in the first obligatory exchange of populations in world history. Until that time accommodation and property were the privilege of the rich and there was no consideration for public housing as welfare to cater for the needs of low-income people. This paper explores how the impact of uncontrolled housing in the urban centres of interwar Greece led to the emergence of the town in urban and national politics. It will investigate how the uncontrolled housing defined different spatial configurations and reflected various forms of power relations. It will examine how the need for housing of the masses of refugees led to the collapse of the limited infrastructure and had a catalytic effect on town planning. It will also analyse how urban issues were raised on the political agenda and the way that cities produced electoral behaviours that changed the political map of the country.     

Autochthony and activism among contemporary Irish Nationalists in Northern Ireland1, or: if ‘civic’ nationalists are ‘ethno’‐cultural revivalists,what remains of the civic/ethnic divide?

ABSTRACT. This article argues for dissolving the civic–ethnic dichotomy into several analytical dimensions and suggests ‘autochthony’ and ‘activism’ as two such alternatives. It does so by first presenting a case study of Irish language revivalism and identity discourses in the North of Ireland, in which locals turn out to be both ‘civic’ nationalists and ‘ethno’‐cultural revivalists. The article then advocates treating these aspects as belonging to two distinct dimensions: the first is concerned with the causal logic underlying the reproduction of nationhood in terms of autochthony, while the second specifies different forms of activism aimed at (re)constituting the nation. Finally, reinterpreting the empirical case in terms of these two dimensions, it is shown that the type of activism is dependent on the specificities of ‘threats’ to the nation rather than on the underlying type of autochthony, which further substantiates the necessity to disambiguate the civic–ethnic distinction.     

THE ROLE OF FAMILY SUPPORT AND OTHER FACTORS IN RETURNING HOME

The present study focuses on the effect of social and other support from the family in the place of origin of migrants and how it impacts upon migrants’ propensity to return. The study uses longitudinal data from a project in Northeastern Thailand called the Nang Rong Project. The analysis shows that monetary support from the family left behind has a significant effect on migrants’ propensity to return home. Household strategies of migration have played an important role in explaining migration in the Nang Rong setting. At the individual and household level, education, occupation and household size were strongly associated with migrants’ propensity to return to their original village. Among the social support variables, duration of migration has significant effects on migrants’ likelihood of returning home. Three variables—marital status, wealth index and whether the person came with an immediate family member—were found to have weak associations with the dependent variable. A major finding from this study was that migrants who have higher education are more likely to stay at the destination.     

Highly qualified rural youth: why do young graduates return to their home region?

This paper addresses the motivations underlying migration decision-making in the case of young university graduates returning to their rural home region in Switzerland. Empirical results show the joint role of social ties, living environment, and job opportunities, although the weight given to each of these factors varies between graduates. Some strategies used by the graduates to cope with a limited labour market are furthermore identified. I argue that internal migrations are far from being the sole consequence of labour market conditions and that a greater appreciation of non-economic issues is needed.     

Discrimination Against Floating Migrants in China:Take Rural-to-Urban Migrants in Beijing As An Example

This essay firstly examines the destiny of rural-to-urban migrants in Beijing, the capital of China. Relying on data collected from representative survey, the essay then provides the demographic profil...     

浙江籍海外新移民研究初论

浙江在最近 2 0年出现了空前的移民海外高潮 ,其新移民数量已位居全国各省市前茅 ,其源流、成因、结构等方面表现了独有的特点 ,并对海外华人的分布结构和浙江侨乡的发展产生了重大影响。     

小泉八云异文化理解中的归属意识

小泉八云于1890年赴日,后加入日本国籍。他的作品洋溢着对日本古老文明的赞美、怀念以及对西方文明的辛辣批判。这使得他在当时倡导“和魂洋才”的明治日本中期成了“日本文化发现的恩人”。经历了从英国、法国、美国、再到日本的流离生活,使得他对异文化有着自己独到的理解,本文将从比较文化论角度通过分析小泉八云对日本文化的受容及其文学作品,探究小泉八云对异文化以及自身归属问题的认识。     

冷战后的日本共产党

本文总结了冷战后日本共产党理论路线调整的具体内容,阐释了日本共产党选举业绩的波动状况及原因,并指出日本共产党的政治在21世纪初期政党政治的演变中具有不可或缺的意义。     

全球化中的中华移民与华侨华人研究

论文从移民的背景、动机与动向等方面比较了近代与当代新老中华移民的异同;阐述了全球化背景中的中华移民在加拿大、美国、新西兰、澳洲与新加坡等"移民国家"与东南亚"原住民国家"的不同情况及其对于这些国家的影响和对当地华社的冲击;探讨了新移民研究的现状及其对当代华侨华人研究的启示。