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Piguet, Etienne
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Piguet, Etienne
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- PublicationAccès libreHabitability for a connected, unequal and changing world(2025)
; ; ; - PublicationAccès libreStructured timeline mapping as a data collection methodology: a new perspective for research on environmental adaptation(2024)
; - PublicationAccès libreThe Asylum Migration Crisis in The Balkans and the Road to Europe : Unfolding the Drivers Complex(2024)The year 2015 saw a significant increase in the number of refugees and migrants arriving in Europe, mainly from the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia. It was so-called “European refugee (or migration) crisis”. Many of these migrants travelled via the Balkan route: After reaching Greece, they crossed the Western Balkans to reach the northern EU countries. Others took the Eastern Mediterranean route, crossing the Aegean Sea, or the Central Mediterranean route from North Africa to Italy. The geopolitical causes of this migration have been extensively analysed, with the Syrian conflict playing a central role as a push factor. The consequences and political context of the crisis—from Chancellor Merkel’s “Wir schaffen das” (“We can do it”) to its role in the UK’s Brexit from the EU—have also attracted much attention. The present paper takes a different stance, looking at the deeper structural and geographical transformations that explain why such an influx of people into Europe was possible in 2015, whereas it had never happened before in similar contexts of violence in the regions of origin. I draw on recent theoretical advances in migration theories that bridge the gap between forced and voluntary migration (push-pull-plus models, aspirations and (cap)abilities theories, etc.). I propose three long-term factors that have facilitated access to European borders but led to urgent and often dangerous migratory situations for asylum seekers: the “shortening” of distances (Europe is easier to reach), the crisis of containment policies (local help for people on the move is difficult to find), and the geographical asymmetry of rights (migrants enjoy substantial protection once in Europe, but not on route and near their country of origin). I believe that these factors played a central role in 2015 and still explain the current situation of migration to Europe and the new increase in migration observed in 2023. In this context, I interpret the current EU policy of closing borders as an attempt to (re)create a geographical buffer separating refugees from their destinations in the context of the globalisation of asylum issues.
- PublicationAccès libreLa féminisation de la migration : étude de cas des Nicaraguayennes en Suisse(2023-09)
- PublicationAccès libreMigrants pursuing the entrepreneurial "dream" in Switzerland: cross-border trajectories and unequal opportunities(2023-02-22)
; Dans le discours public, l'entrepreneuriat est souvent célébré comme une opportunité pour les migrant.e.s de mobiliser des ressources de leur pays d'origine et d'atteindre l'indépendance professionnelle et la réussite. Pourtant, ce discours risque de réduire les entrepreneur.euse.s migrant.e.s à leur origine nationale, à leur potentiel économique et à leurs efforts individuels. Elle tend ainsi à invisibiliser la multi-localité des biographies mobiles et l'inégalité des chances auxquelles sont confrontés les différents groupes de migrant.e.s dans la poursuite du « rêve » entrepreneurial. Les débats scientifiques actuels reflètent ce discours. Cette thèse cherche à offrir une vision plus nuancée en examinant les trajectoires transfrontalières complexes des entrepreneur.euse.s migrant.e.s et les conditions dans lesquelles ils et elles peuvent utiliser les ressources qui en découlent. Elle contribue au domaine de l'entrepreneuriat migrant transnational en fournissant de nouvelles pistes pour comprendre les spatialités dynamiques et inégales du phénomène. Elle remet ainsi en question les discours individualistes et néolibéraux sur l'entrepreneuriat, et plus généralement sur « l'intégration » des migrant.e.s. Sur le plan théorique et conceptuel, cette thèse s'inspire de différentes perspectives, telles que le paradigme des mobilités, les approches intersectionnelles et spatio-temporelles des inégalités dans les domaines transnationaux, les études féministes et les débats théoriques sur la structure et l'agentivité. Sur le plan méthodologique, elle s'appuie sur une étude de cas qualitative réalisée à Zurich entre 2018 et 2020. Elle consiste en 34 entretiens biographiques, réalisés à l'aide de cartes géographiques, avec différents individus qui ont une expérience de la migration et mènent des activités entrepreneuriales au-delà des frontières nationales. L'objectif n'était pas la représentation statistique, mais de contraster une variété de situations. Étant donné que la plupart des personnes participants à la recherche ont des expériences de migration multiples, qu'elles en sont aux premiers stades de l'entrepreneuriat et qu'elles sont des femmes, cette étude donne un aperçu de groupes peu étudiés. Ces entretiens sont complétés par des observations ethnographiques au sein d'une organisation gérée par des migrant.e.s qui promeut l'entrepreneuriat. Suivant des approches participatives, la recherche a été menée avec plutôt que sur l'organisation afin de créer un espace d'apprentissage mutuel. Les résultats présentés dans cette thèse nuancent et remettent en question les débats actuels sur l'entrepreneuriat migrant. Tout d'abord, en explorant les trajectoires complexes des personnes participant à la recherche, ce travail révèle que la plupart d'entre elles sont liées à plusieurs pays où elles ont vécu précédemment et/ou en explorent de nouveaux pour leurs projets entrepreneuriaux. Ceci souligne que réduire les entrepreneur.euse.s migrant.e.s à leur origine nationale ne correspond pas aux spatialités dynamiques des processus migratoires et risque donc de reproduire les préjugés et stéréotypes ethniques. Deuxièmement, cette thèse souligne que les ressources transnationales ne conduisent pas automatiquement au succès et que les migrant.e.s ne constituent pas un groupe homogène. En particulier, les participantes à la recherche féminines et non-européennes, qui arrivent par les voies du regroupement familial et de l'asile et rencontrent des obstacles pour entrer directement sur le marché du travail suisse, luttent également pour accéder à des espaces tant proches que distants pour développer leurs activités entrepreneuriales. Leurs difficultés ne sont pas liées à un manque de courage ou de compétences et, de plus, ne découlent pas uniquement de leur expérience de la migration. Elles émergent plutôt de différentes sphères de vie des individus, telles que leur situation familiale et leur statut socio-économique, ainsi que de l'intersection de différentes formes d'exclusions. Enfin, cette recherche met en évidence les stratégies créatives des participant.e.s à la recherche pour surmonter les défis au fil du temps, tant au niveau individuel que collectif. Ce dernier point est illustré par l'organisation étudiée qui remet en question les opinions déficitaires sur la migration et crée un sentiment de communauté pour contrer les expériences de solitude. Cependant, sa promotion de l'entrepreneuriat résonne avec la logique néolibérale qui met l'accent sur la responsabilité de l'individu dans sa réussite professionnelle. La thèse souligne que lorsque les conditions structurelles ne sont pas abordées, il existe un risque que les inégalités et les précarités soient reproduites dans la poursuite du « rêve » entrepreneurial. Les résultats de cette recherche doctorale sont présentés dans quatre articles publiés dans des revues à comité de lecture, ainsi que dans une bande dessinée. L'objectif de cette dernière était de dépasser les formes traditionnelles de communication scientifique, de valoriser les connaissances que différentes personnes ont partagées au cours de cette recherche et de créer de nouveaux espaces de réflexion critique sur l'entrepreneuriat migrant au-delà du milieu universitaire. Abstract In public discourse, entrepreneurship is often celebrated as an opportunity for migrants to mobilise resources from their country of origin and achieve independence and success. Yet, this risks reducing migrant entrepreneurs to their national origin, economic potential, and individual efforts. It thus tends to invisibilise the multi-sitedness of mobile biographies and the unequal opportunities different groups of migrants face in pursuing the entrepreneurial “dream”. Current scientific debates mirror these issues. This thesis seeks to offer a more nuanced view by examining the complex cross-border trajectories of migrant entrepreneurs and the conditions under which they can use resources that result thereof. It contributes to the field of transnational migrant entrepreneurship by providing new avenues to understand the dynamic and unequal spatialities of the phenomenon. It thus challenges individualistic and neoliberal discourses of entrepreneurship, and migrant “integration” more generally. On a theoretical-conceptual level, this dissertation takes inspiration from different perspectives, such as the mobilities paradigm, intersectional and time-geographic approaches towards inequalities in transnational fields, feminist scholarship, and theoretical debates around structure and agency. Methodologically, it builds on a qualitative case study in Zurich between 2018 and 2020. It consists of 34 biographic interviews, using geographical maps, with different individuals who have migration experience and conduct entrepreneurial activities across national borders. The aim was not statistical representation, but to contrast a variety of situations. Because most participants have multiple migration experiences, are in their early stages of entrepreneurship and female, this study provides insights into understudied groups. The interviews are complemented by ethnographic observations within a migrant-run organisation promoting entrepreneurship. Following participatory approaches, research was conducted with rather than on the organisation in order to create a space for mutual learning. The analyses presented in this dissertation nuance and challenge current debates on migrant entrepreneurship. First, by exploring the complex trajectories of research participants, it reveals that most of them are connected to multiple countries where they previously lived and/or explore new ones for their entrepreneurial projects. This underlines that reducing migrant entrepreneurs to their national origin does not correspond to the dynamic spatialities of migration processes and thus risks reproducing ethnic biases and stereotyping. Second, this thesis highlights that transnational resources do not automatically lead to entrepreneurial success and that migrants are not a homogenous group. In particular, female and non-European research participants who arrive through family reunification and asylum channels, and who encounter barriers to directly entering the Swiss labour market, also struggle to access local and distant spaces for their entrepreneurial activities. Their difficulties do not indicate a lack of courage or competences and, moreover, not only stem from their migration experiences, but rather emerge from different spheres of individuals’ livelihoods, such as family situation and socio-economic position, as well the intersection of different forms of exclusions. Finally, this research points towards the creative strategies of research participants to overcome challenges over time, both at the individual and collective level. The latter is illustrated through the migrant-run organisation under study, which challenges deficit-oriented views on migration and creates a sense of community to counter experiences of loneliness. However, its promotion of entrepreneurship resonates with the neoliberal logic of focusing on the individual’s responsibility for professional success. The thesis underlines that when structural conditions remain unaddressed, there is a risk that inequalities and precarities are replicated within the pursuit of the entrepreneurial “dream”. The results of this doctoral research are presented in four articles published in peer-reviewed journals, as well as a comic booklet. The aim of the latter was to move beyond traditional forms of scientific communication, to value the knowledge different people shared during this research, and to create new spaces for critical thinking on migrant entrepreneurship beyond academia. - PublicationAccès libreImpacts of rainfall shocks on out-migration are moderated more by per capita income than by agricultural output in Türkiye(2023)
; ; ; Rural populations are particularly exposed to increasing weather variability, notably through agriculture. In this paper, we exploit longitudinal data for Turkish provinces from 2008 to 2018 together with precipitation records over more than 30 years to quantify how variability in a standardized precipitation index (SPI) affects out-migration as an adaptation mechanism. Doing so, we document the role of three potential causal channels: per capita income, agricultural output, and local conflicts. Our results show that negative SPI shocks (droughts) are associated with higher out-migration in rural provinces. A mediated-moderator approach further suggests that changes in per capita income account for more than one quarter of the direct effect of droughts on out-migration, whereas agricultural output is only relevant for provinces in the upper quartile of crop production. Finally, we find evidence that local conflict fatalities increase with drought and trigger out-migration, although this channel is distinct from the direct effect of SPI shocks on out-migration. - PublicationAccès libre
- PublicationAccès libreProductivity gains from migration: Evidence from inventors(2023)
; Gaétan de Rassenfosse - PublicationAccès libreA Review of Transnational Migrant Entrepreneurship: Perspectives on Unequal Spatialities(2022)
; ; ; The spatialities of migrant entrepreneurship have changed dynamically in recent decades. Movements and exchanges transcend national borders more than ever, and transnational migrant entrepreneurship has become a burgeoning field of research. Yet, knowledge is dispersed across disciplines, and an understanding of contemporary spatialities is limited. We review 155 articles published in English, French, German, and Spanish since 2009, thereby providing an overview of existing knowledge on transnational migrant entrepreneurship and suggesting avenues for future research. We identify five current topical areas of research: (1) the business advantages of transnational migrant entrepreneurship, (2) the determinants of becoming a transnational migrant entrepreneur, (3) the transnational networks of migrants, (4) the economic impacts of transnational migrant entrepreneurship on home and host countries, and (5) whether local environments enable or deter entrepreneurial success. Building on our synthesis of the most recent literature, we propose three crucial dimensions which have been under-researched in past and current work, and which address the diversity of geographical locations, spatial connections, and spatial mobilities involved in transnational migrant entrepreneurship. Moreover, we put forward a set of questions for future research which will advance a comprehension of unequal opportunities among transnational migrant entrepreneurs. - PublicationAccès libreLinking climate change, environmental degradation, and migration: An update after 10 years(2021-11-1)In WIREs Climate Change, Issue 1(4), 2010, I suggested a typology of the data and methods used to assess links between climate change, environmental degradation and migration (Piguet, 2010). My review of the literature included publications up to 2009. Since then, the number of empirically based scientific publications on this topic has risen substantially to average 40 articles per year and the scope of methods, stock of results and diversity of questions has widened. Based on the CLIMIG database—a systematic and analytic collection of scientific references published on migration and the environment—this new synthesis provides a methodological typology of an exceptionally large number of published case studies. This will complement existing reviews and meta-studies and allow a global overview of the state of research by identifying consensus and disagreements, revisiting methodological challenges and mapping current and future research questions.