Transnational

Communities - not your grandfather’s diaspora -

Digaai Meeting

Alvaro Lima, June 2009

AGENDA:

I. Globalization – A Different Perspective

II. Immigration Studies – A Brief Background

III. What is “Immigrant Transnationalism” Anyway?

IV.Traditional versus Transnational Lenses

V. Measuring Transnationalism

VI.Some Implications of Transnationalism

VII.Project Portfolio

Globalisation as Annihilation of Space/ Shrinking of the World

“compression of our spatial and temporal worlds” (D. Harvey)

“constraints of Geography recede” (M. Waters)

Nation States

Feudal Empires

Tribes

Globalisation

Dialectics of globalisation and localisation - glocalisation, global cities - “space ... not only homogenised (and global), but always fragmented as well. ... has not simply shrunk, but ... been transformed” (S. Kirsch)

Globalization – A Different Perspective

”Globalization [...] as the intensification of world-wide social relations which link distant localities in such a way that local happenings are shaped by events occurring many miles away and vice versa.” (Giddens 1990, p. 64)

Traditionally migration studies have been concerned with understanding the

origins and the impact of cross-borer flows;

These flows have been understood mostly as a one way movement from sending

countries to receiving countries;

Immigration policies have been almost entirely focused on procedures and

prohibitions governing admissions (who? how many? and what kind of

immigrants should be admitted?).

Immigration Studies – A Brief Background

There is a widespread belief that migration is caused by poverty, economic

stagnation, and overpopulation in the countries of origin unrelated to receiving

countries’ foreign policies, economic needs and broader international economic

conditions;

While overpopulation, poverty, and economic stagnation all create pressures for

migration, there are systematic, structural relations between receiving countries’

policies and migration flows with worldwide evidence of a considerable patterning

in the geography of migrations.

poverty

stagnation

overpopulation

etc…

Country

Total

Population

(millions)

Population

from

Developing

Countries

(millions)

Percent of

Total

Population

Top Five

Source

Countries

(percent of

total)

Top Five Source

Countries

United States

Spain

France

UK

Netherlands

Portugal

Japan

281.4

40.8

58.5

58.8

16.0

10.4

127

28.4

1.5

3.7

3.0

1.2

0.5

1.2

10.1

3.7

6.4

5.1

7.6

4.5

1.0

45.2

44.2

20.4

30.1

48.6

62.8

69.6

Mexico, Philippines, Puerto

Rico, India, China

Morocco, Ecuador,

Colombia, Argentina,

Venezuela

Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia,

Turkey, Vietnam

India, Pakistan,

Bangladesh, Jamaica,

South Africa

Suriname, Turkey,

Indonesia, Morocco,

Netherlands Antilles

Angola, Mozambique,

Brazil, Cape Verde,

Venezuela

North Korea, South Korea,

China, Brazil, Philippines

Foreign-Born Population of Rich OECD Countries from Developing Countries

Source: Let Their People Come, Lant Pritchett, 2006

Immigrant integration policies (education, training, placement,

ESOL, health care, entrepreneurship, citizenship, etc..) are

skeletal, ad hoc, under-funded and dominated by the ideology of

assimilation – the great melting pot of nations;

labor market

language acquisition

housing education

etc…

As Nathan Glazer puts it, “the settlement, adaptation, and

progress, or lack of it, of immigrants is largely, in the U.S.

context, up to them.”

Re-integration policies for those returning are generally inexistent

making the re-settlement process prone to failure feeding back

emigration:

labor market

housing

education

etc…

Transnationalism is “the process by which immigrants forge and sustain

multi-stranded social relations that link together their societies of origin

and settlement… (they) take actions, make decisions, and develop

subjectivities and identities embedded in networks of relationships that

connect them simultaneously to two or more nation states” (Mandaville

2001:45)

What is “Immigrant Transnationalism” Anyway?

Drivers of Transnationalism

Developments in the means of transportation and

communications have changed the relations between people

and places (costs);

International migrations have become crucial to the

demographic future of many developed countries;

Global political transformations and new international legal

regimes weakened the state as the only legitimate source of

rights;

Fostered by global consumption, global production, and

immigration, cultural hybridization are substituting folkloric

romanticism and political nationalism enshrined as essences

of national cultures;

Contexts of exit and modes of incorporation facilitate or impede, foster

or discourage, demand or preclude some or all cross-border activities:

Contexts of Exit and Incorporation

Context of Incorporation:

Inclusion & Exclusion

Structures

Alien versus Citizenship

Rights

Government & Other

Support Systems

Race and Ethnicity

Structures

etc.

Context of Exit:

Education Level

Race & Ethnicity

Family Wealth

Urban versus Rural

Origin

Government & Other

Support Systems

etc.

12

Traditional Lenses:

immigration conceptualized as a bipolar relation

between sending and receiving countries

(moving from there to here)

emigration is the result of individual search for

economic opportunity, political freedom, etc.

migrants are assumed to be the poorest of the

poor

immigrants occupy low-skilled jobs in

agriculture, construction, and manufacturing

Immigrants steadily shift their contextual focus,

economic and social activities to receiving

country

immigration should not bring about significant

change in the receiving society

Transnational Lenses:

immigration conceptualized as flows of cross-

border economic, political and social-cultural

activities (being here and there)

emigration is the result of geopolitical interests,

global linkages, and economic globalization

migrants are not the poorest of the poor nor do

they come from the poorest nations

growth in the service and technology-based

jobs create opportunities for low as well as high

skilled migrants

After the initial movement, migrants continue to

maintain ties with their country of origin

immigration creates hybrid societies with a

richer cultural milieu

Traditional versus Transnational Lenses

$875

$398

$331

$218

$-

$100

$200

$300

$400

$500

$600

$700

$800

$900

Monthly Remittance by Nationality

$278 $274

$192 $188 $185 $177

$113

ABOVE AVERAGE

BELOW AVERAGE

AVERAGE = $294

45.4%

20.5% 17.8%

5.1% 4.9% 3.7% 1.6% 0.8% 0.2%

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

30.0%

35.0%

40.0%

45.0%

50.0%

Purchasing of Nostalgic Products Among Brazilians

37.6%

28.9%

26.0%

5.5%

1.6% 0.3%

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

30.0%

35.0%

40.0%

Does not have / NR

Checking account

Savings account

Credit card Investment account

Foreign currency savings

Financial Accounts in Country of Origin - Brazil

MEASURING

TRANSNATIONALISM

46.6%

36.80%

27.0%

22.7%

20.0%

15.3% 14.0%

10.3% 9.1%

5.7% 3.7%

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

30.0%

35.0%

40.0%

45.0%

50.0%

Help Beyond Remittances

AVERAGE = 19.2%

ABOVE AVERAGE

BELOW AVERAGE

14

26.3%

12.4%

10.0%

6.7%

5.0% 4.0% 3.5% 3.3% 2.8% 2.4%

0.0%

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

30.0%

Support of Hometown Associations

AVERAGE = 6.7%

ABOVE AVERAGE

BELOW AVERAGE

MEASURING

TRANSNATIONALISM

MEASURING

TRANSNATIONALISM

Some Implications of Transnationalism

Portability becomes crucial for transnational

migrants – education and certification processes;

investment and retirement schemes, health

insurance, etc.;

The concept of “community,” “society,” as well

as “the local,” must be redefined as space of flows

(relationships), pluri-local and nation-state-boarder

spanning, instead of bounded geographic places –

geographic and social container spaces;

Transnational immigrant entrepreneurs’ contributions to the economy have

to be recognized as such and not as just “ethnic;”

Nation-state ideals of identity in both sending and receiving countries are

challenged by transnational practices – double citizenship, XXXX;

States must re-conceive immigration and adapt their policies and

practices to accommodate transnational realities;

First Generation Innovation Portfolio

Digaai.com

Transnational Index

Diaspora Capital Services

English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL)

Transnational Fellows

Research Projects & Publications

18

4 million Brazilians using digaai.com worldwide to:

communicate home and with each other - social networking;

register their every day experiences;

build unique video, photos, audio and text archives;

search newspapers,

magazines, websites;

contribute to Brazilian

diaspora history - wiki;

store personal information

using private web space;

transact on line.

19

Transnational Index

What:

Data and survey-based ranking of communities by their degree of

transnationalism published annually in partnership with national

media

identify social and

commercial innovation

opportunities for

transnational immigrant

communities

build consciousness

among transnational

immigrants of unique

potential

Why:

create awareness among policy makers of transnational phenomena