Is Migration Good, Bad, or Normal?

    Logo GSBTB

    Is Migration Good, Bad, or Normal?

    This is episode ten of our course Migration 101. In this course, we’ve teamed up with Hein de Haas, one of the field’s leading scholars, to tackle some of the most commonly asked questions related to migration. After watching his videos, you’ll have a fundamental understanding of the realities surrounding today’s debate on migrants and the refugee crisis. We recommend Migration 101 as a primer for other Migration Matters courses.

    To receive the full series right to your inbox, sign up for this course on our website.


    PART 10/10 OF MIGRATION 101

    In this final episode of Migration 101, Hein inspires us to move away from the polarised conversation around migration and to acknowledge that migration is a fundamental feature of human development.

    Recommended Reading

    Hein has collated much of the material covered in this course in this blog post, titled Human Migration: Myths, Hysteria and Facts. If you prefer video, watch his inaugural lecture at Maastricht University.

    With the increasing generation of wealth (in the form of economic growth), continued urbanisation is inevitable, this paper argues. There is, however, a lack of evidence to suggest that urbanisation per se leads to economic growth.

    Are you teaching a unit related to migration, or do you think you’re up for exploring more? This is a list of documentaries, youtube videos, online projects, and resources compiled by Hein and his network of migration researchers.

    This resource bank, compiled by the UK’s Migration Museum project, is excellent and searchable by age and topic.

    Visit the International Migration Institute’s paper series for 132 free downloads of state-of-the-art migration research.

    Hein de Haas

    Hein is Professor of Sociology at the University of Amsterdam. He was a founding member and director of the International Migration Institute at the University of Oxford. He is a co-author of The Age of Migration, a leading textbook in the field of migration. You can find more information and free downloads of his publications on his website. He also maintains a blog – we recommend this entry titled “Human migration: myths, hysteria and facts“.

    Sign up now for our newest course, A Migrant’s View, here. It’s a bit different than our other courses, focussing on both research about so-called “origin countries” (where migrants and refugees come from) and stories of arrival, waiting, and return. And don’t miss our next course on integration and diversity in Europe! Sign up here to receive the full series once it’s finished.