Résultat de la recherche
Globalizations from below : understanding the spatialities, mobilities and resources of transnational migrant entrepreneurs across the globe
Transnational corporations have been long recognized as the building blocks of global system theory and their impact is widely acknowledged and studied. By comparison, we have insufficient understanding of transnational practices ‘from below’. We argue that focusing on transnational migrant entrepreneurship is a novel opportunity to gain insights into the social and economic processes of ‘globalization from below’. Such processes refer to the dynamics and practices initiated by actors outside the hegemonic socioeconomic spheres who, using various resources, move people, goods and ideas across national borders to create small-scale enterprises thus connecting distant places and people around the world. This special issue brings together a transdisciplinary group of researchers who examine the spatialities, mobilities and resources of transnational migrant entrepreneurs in Asia, Europe, North Africa, South America and the USA. The rich empirical base, coupled with diverse research methods, provides new insights into the phenomenon to scholars, policymakers and practitioners.
Spatial Mobility Capital: A Valuable Resource for the Social Mobility of Border-Crossing Migrant Entrepreneurs?
Spatial mobility is considered a valuable resource for social mobility. Yet, we still have an insufficient understanding of the extent to which and under what conditions geographical movement across national borders represents an asset for social advancement. Addressing this research gap, we offer a theoretical contribution to the fields of transnationalism, migration/mobility, and social geography. We focus on 86 cross-border migrant entrepreneurs who live in Barcelona (Spain), Cúcuta (Colombia), and Zurich (Switzerland), and combine geographical and mental maps, biographical interviews, ethnographic observations, and participatory Minga workshops. Our results show significant inequality in opportunity among the studied entrepreneurs and reveal different geographies of risk and uncertainty for their cross-border mobilities. We theoretically propose that the ability to use spatial mobility as a resource for social mobility depends largely on three intersecting factors: the entrepreneur’s social position, his or her location in geographical space, and his or her strategies. Moreover, we have formulated the concept of spatial mobility capital to define the necessary conditions for spatial mobility to become a valuable resource for social advancement: individuals must be in control of their spatial mobilities, such mobilities need to match their socio-economic needs and personal aspirations, and they must be able to move safely.
Bienvenue à Heimatland! Saurez-vous trouver votre place?
Pour la sixième édition du Théâtre de la Connaissance, organisée à l'Université de Neuchâtel du 17 au 19 septembre 2021, « Bienvenue à Heimatland ! » s'est inspiré des recherches réalisées dans le cadre du Pôle national de recherche sur la migration et la mobilité (nccr – on the move) et de la Maison d’analyse des processus sociaux (MAPS) sur le thème de la gestion migratoire. Au cœur de l'événement, un jeu de rôle théâtral participatif proposait une expérience immersive durant laquelle le public incarnait le rôle de migrant.e.s de différents statuts arrivant dans un pays inconnu. L’expérience invitait les participant.e.s à vivre pour un temps une réa-lité différente de la leur et à s’interroger sur les réactions et émotions que cette réalité produit. Dans un deuxième temps, un débriefing en petits groupes, suivi d’une discussion critique avec des chercheuses et chercheurs spécialistes du thème était proposée. L’événement, dans son ensemble, proposait une invitation à réfléchir ensemble sur un thème complexe au travers d’un format inédit. Cette brochure prolonge l’expérience en explicitant certains des élé-ments qui ont inspiré la conception de l’événement et en proposant des ressources pour poursuivre la réflexion.
Understanding access to the labour market through migration channels
The mobility of the ‘highly skilled’ has become widely researched but only a few researchers have approached this category of migrants from a critical perspective. This article argues that understanding how ‘highly skilled migrants’ are constructed necessitates considering the conditions in which migration takes place as well as the perceptions and practices associated with these conditions. It uses the concept of ‘migration channels’ to investigate the enabling and disabling factors associated with different migration situations. The analysis draws on biographic interviews with highly educated migrants in Switzerland, and supplements these with expert interviews and ethnographic observations of people working in institutions that support, guide, or control migrants’ access to the labour market. The article shows that categories of migrants are artificial and often do not coincide with lived realities. Migrants actively develop strategies to achieve their personal aspirations, but they also depend on the opportunities available in their environment. The concept of ‘migration channels’ enables us to capture this interplay between structures and agency by showing how different actors shape the opportunities and constraints faced by different groups of migrants, and how migrants actively deal with them. This concept thus fosters a critical yet empathic understanding of migration experiences.
LIVING THE DREAM? Ou l'odyssée d'une migrante entrepreneuse
Le rêve entrepreneurial, c’est pour qui ? Faut-il être une entrepreneuse innovatrice et à succès pour être accueillie en Suisse ? Luisa, créatrice de mode colombienne installée à Zurich, se pose des questions. Au fil de ses expériences et rencontres, elle prend conscience des obstacles qui jalonnent le parcours entrepreneurial et nuance les récits simplistes de réussite. La bande-dessinée est issue d’un projet de recherche réalisé à l’Université de Neuchâtel.
A Review of Transnational Migrant Entrepreneurship: Perspectives on Unequal Spatialities
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.
Entrepreneurs de la migration: Des stratégies pour contourner les obstacles bureaucratiques
Bien que la sélection des étrangers par l’appareil administratif des États joue un rôle crucial pour la structuration des phénomènes migratoires actuels, il existe à ce jour peu d’études qui analysent empiriquement la manière dont de telles procédures fonctionnent et sont vécues lorsqu’elles s’appliquent à des catégories d’étrangers perçus comme « désirables ». La présente recherche tente de répondre à ce manque en proposant une étude de cas ethnographique qui met en lumière l’expérience et l’agentivité des différents acteurs impliqués dans la procédure de sélection des ressortissants non-européens hautement qualifiés cherchant à venir travailler en Suisse. L’analyse montre que l’accès à la mobilité repose sur un ensemble d’interactions complexes qui impliquent non seulement les candidats à l’immigration et les employés d’État, mais également des réseaux d’institutions non-étatiques pour lesquels la mobilité de travailleurs qualifiés représente une source de profit. Ces acteurs facilitent l’accès aux permis de séjour et de travail pour les étrangers dont ils espèrent tirer une plus-value économique. Cependant, ils peuvent également les contraindre à des situations de dépendances et d’immobilité dans la mesure où des systèmes d’admission restrictifs, en Suisse et ailleurs, rendent les étrangers concernés tributaires de leur soutien administratif.
Corps et espaces en temps de crises: Perspectives féministes
Nous traversons une période de crise à bien des égards. De la crise épidémique à la crise climatique en passant par la crise de la violence faite aux femmes et des inégalités sociales. Avec ce numéro spécial, nous souhaitons interroger la manière dont une perspective féministe centrée sur les corps – comment ils sont perçus, traités, contrôlés, mais aussi comment ils agissent, ressentent et se défendent – nous permet de mieux comprendre la société contemporaine en ces temps troublés, de faire face à de multiples défis et d’envisager des futurs possibles. Les contributions invitent à réfléchir aux moyens d’adopter une géographie plus sensible et incarnée, tant dans la recherche que dans l’enseignement, mettant en discussion expériences quotidiennes et luttes politiques.
Transnational migrant entrepreneurs: understanding their dependencies, fragilities, and alternatives
Recent research highlights that the activities of migrant entrepreneurs increasingly extend beyond national borders, thus making them relevant actors of globalization. Nevertheless, the socio-spatial conditions that frame their cross-border activities are still poorly understood. The aim of this article is twofold: first, we apply the lens of ‘globalization from below’ to study small-scale transnational migrant entrepreneurs (TMEs), thereby providing new insights into less visible globalization processes; second, we show that TMEs are not simply free economic agents but depend on connections in local and transnational spaces. Inspired by the literature on dependencies and feminist approaches, we develop a typology to address the following research question: Under which conditions is relying on others beneficial for transnational migrant entrepreneurship, and under which conditions does it lead to precariousness? Building on 86 semi-structured interviews in Colombia, Spain, and Switzerland, we uncover the diverse nature ofdependencies and reveal the unequal opportunities TMEs face.
Localising Informal Practices in Transnational Entrepreneurship
In recent academic literature, transnational migrant entrepreneurs tend to be represented as active agents capable of mobilising resources situated in different countries to develop new businesses. Mobility, however, is an unequally distributed resource, and restrictive migration regimes limit the possibilities of individuals to become entrepreneurs. This article focuses on the role of informal practices in the business strategies of migrants who develop their activities across national borders. Based on ethnographic research in Barcelona, Spain, it argues that, in a context of unequal access to formal resources, resorting to informality is crucial for many entrepreneurs as it enables them to expand their options for social mobility and achieve personal goals that would otherwise remain unreachable. At the same time, the article proposes a critical perspective on the notions of informality and entrepreneurship. It highlights that these concepts rely on context-dependent norms set by certain social groups and challenged by others, which influence who can become an entrepreneur in specific environments. While certain categories of migrants are favourably positioned with regard to these norms, others are hindered by them and therefore are forced to engage in alternative entrepreneurial activities. How this is achieved and the costs involved depend on the entrepreneur’s capacity to mobilise economic, cultural, social, and moral resources as well as on the perception of their practices as more or less legitimate or socially acceptable.