The MiReKoc-BROAD-ER Wednesday Seminar Series, organized as part of the Bridging the Migration and Urban Studies Nexus (BROAD-ER) Project (https://broad-er.eu/), warmly welcomes Elif Topal Demiroğlu and her presentation titled “Migrants in a small city of Turkey: On the edge of coexistence”, which took place on January 10th, 2024.
The MiReKoc-BROAD-ER Wednesday Seminar Series, organized as part of the Bridging the Migration and Urban Studies Nexus (BROAD-ER) Project (https://broad-er.eu/), warmly welcomes Elif Topal Demiroğlu and her presentation titled “Migrants in a small city of Turkey: On the edge of coexistence”, which took place on January 10th, 2024
Title: Migrants in a small city of Turkey: On the edge of coexistence
Presenter: Assist. Prof. Elif Topal Demiroğlu
Abstract: The research questions how migrants are welcomed and accepted in the city examines the relationship between poverty and migration, and how the experience of coexistence has been shaped after the earthquake. The study examines the coexistence experiences of migrants and locals in relatively small cities. Focusing on the Sanayi Neighbourhood of Elazığ, the study is based on semi-structured, in-depth interviews conducted between July and August 2021. It reveals that while settlement choice and social relations play a significant role in facilitating the post-migration process, neighborhoods play a limited role in strengthening ties between locals and migrants, and in some areas, there is almost no contact between the two communities. The findings point to a cycle of social exclusion involving locals and migrants and suggest that the state is not sufficiently focused on integration issues. Due to these shortcomings, some of the tasks that the state should perform are taken over by civil society organizations or migrant communities. It is also emphasized that actors operating at the local level, such as local institutions, mukhtars, municipalities, and non-governmental organizations providing humanitarian services, play a decisive role in interacting with migrants.
Short-bio: Elif Topal Demiroğlu is currently working as an Assist. Prof. Dr. at Marmara University, Department of Political Science and Public Administration. After graduating from Department of Political Science and Public Administration in METU, she completed her master’s in local governments at Marmara University. She received her PhD from the same university with her thesis titled “The Role of Local Governments in Urban Diversity Governance.” Working on the relationship of international migration with cities and local governments, the researcher teaches undergraduate courses on international migration, social movements, and social structure and has publications on local migration governance, local democracy, social movements, and local politics.
About BROAD-ER: BROAD-ER is an EU-funded Twinning Project. BROAD-ER aims to build a Research Excellence Network that fosters interdisciplinary research and training at the nexus of migration and urban studies. BROAD-ER is a collaboration between Pompeu Fabra University in Spain, the University of Amsterdam in the Netherlands, and Koç University in Turkey. Its main goal is to close the research gap within the European Research Area (ERA) by establishing innovative and interdisciplinary approaches, while also increasing research and innovation capacities in Turkey in emergent fields of migration and urban studies.
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation under agreement No. 101079254. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.