Shrinking areas in Europe are marked by a decline in population as many, especially young people, move out. This also results in less availability of social services and socioeconomic stagnation. Which new opportunities can shrinking areas offer for migrants and who could bring new chances to shrinking areas? How can shrinking regions and migrants become connected in mutually enriching ways? To celebrate the first anniversary of the Horizon 2020 project Welcoming Spaces in Europe we would like to invite you to discuss successful bottom up-strategies to match international migrants and shrinking areas.

Initiatives, social organisations, businesses, policy makers and researchers from all over Europe are invited to present and discuss various successful approaches they take to facilitate first steps towards long-lasting settlement of newcomers in shrinking areas. Approaches to bring people and places together range from NGO’s supporting migrant families to move from the city to a suitable rural community, screening and matching of refugees and labor market regions through asylum authorities, businesses that attract skilled migrants through online networks, and initiatives to train and facilitate employment for refugees in specific sectors with labor shortage in shrinking areas, for example the care sector and ICT.

We cordially invite all to exchange good practices and first research results across Europe. To register for this event, please use think link: https://www.formdesk.com/universiteitutrecht-geo/welcomingspacesint

For questions and more information please contact Rianne Hadders, r.hadders@uu.nl

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