Geographical Migration Research Articles

The macro-structure of football's global migration system: How linguistic, economic, and geographic boundaries constrain player mobility

Sport sociologists study how macro-level factors structure the global migration flows of athletes in professional football with three perspectives that theorize that some combination of cultural-linguistic similarities, global value-added chains, and geographical proximity structure migration in football. However, most studies use imprecise data and lack a micro-level foundation detailing why the hypothesized macro-structural factors shape the recruitment decisions of clubs and the migration choices of players. This study develops a theoretical framework with refutable hypotheses to analyze why the macro-level factors highlighted in existing theories shape the decisions of clubs and players and tests these hypotheses with data on all inter-country transfers from 2006 to 2022. Results indicate that migration connects all countries in world football, but the largest migration flows occur between countries located in close linguistic, economic, and geographic proximity. These results support theories that emphasize how linguistic and geographic boundaries structure migration, but cast doubt on theories of global value-added chains claiming that migration connects different economic tiers in world football. The labor market in football may be global, but most clubs and players operate in a linguistically, economically, and geographically bounded segment of that global labor market.

Simulation of migration paths using agent-based modeling: The case of Syrian refugees en route to Turkey

The decade-long Syrian civil war has triggered a significant migration wave in the Middle East, with Turkey hosting the largest number of Syrian refugees. Our study introduces an agent-based model (ABM) designed to simulate and predict migration paths in potential future refugee crises. The primary goal is to support aid organizations in planning the delivery of essential aid services during migration movements, offering insights that can be applied to various geographical areas and migration scenarios. While we use the Syrian refugee movement to Turkey as a case study, the model is intended as a flexible tool for analyzing migration patterns in future crises. The proposed ABM considers two characteristics of refugee groups: level of risk sensitivity and level of information. To enhance the model’s functionality, we have extended the A* algorithm with a cost metric to calculate the weighted average of distance and risk to a destination point. Our case study examines the crisis in southern Idlib through six scenarios, offering insights into refugee numbers, migration paths, camp occupancy rates, and heat maps of densely populated regions for each scenario. Validation is performed by comparing model outcomes with situation reports and official statements from the relevant period, demonstrating the proposed ABM’s potential for adaptation to other migration instances and further analysis under different parameters.

Non-native species in marine protected areas: Global distribution patterns

Marine protected areas (MPAs) across various countries have contributed to safeguarding coastal and marine environments. Despite these efforts, marine non-native species (NNS) continue to threaten biodiversity and ecosystems, even within MPAs. Currently, there is a lack of comprehensive studies on the inventories, distribution patterns, and effect factors of NNS within MPAs. Here we show a database containing over 15,000 occurrence records of 2714 marine NNS across 16,401 national or regional MPAs worldwide. To identify the primary mechanisms driving the occurrence of NNS, we utilize model selection with proxies representing colonization pressure, environmental variables, and MPA characteristics. Among the environmental predictors analyzed, sea surface temperature emerged as the sole factor strongly associated with NNS richness. Higher sea surface temperatures are linked to increased NNS richness, aligning with global marine biodiversity trends. Furthermore, human activities help species overcome geographical barriers and migration constraints. Consequently, this influences the distribution patterns of marine introduced species and associated environmental factors. As global climate change continues to alter sea temperatures, it is crucial to protect marine regions that are increasingly vulnerable to intense human activities and biological invasions.

Geographical migration and fitness dynamics of Streptococcus pneumoniae

Streptococcus pneumoniae is a leading cause of pneumonia and meningitis worldwide. Many different serotypes co-circulate endemically in any one location1,2. The extent and mechanisms of spread and vaccine-driven changes in fitness and antimicrobial resistance remain largely unquantified. Here using geolocated genome sequences from South Africa (n = 6,910, collected from 2000 to 2014), we developed models to reconstruct spread, pairing detailed human mobility data and genomic data. Separately, we estimated the population-level changes in fitness of strains that are included (vaccine type (VT)) and not included (non-vaccine type (NVT)) in pneumococcal conjugate vaccines, first implemented in South Africa in 2009. Differences in strain fitness between those that are and are not resistant to penicillin were also evaluated. We found that pneumococci only become homogenously mixed across South Africa after 50 years of transmission, with the slow spread driven by the focal nature of human mobility. Furthermore, in the years following vaccine implementation, the relative fitness of NVT compared with VT strains increased (relative risk of 1.68; 95% confidence interval of 1.59–1.77), with an increasing proportion of these NVT strains becoming resistant to penicillin. Our findings point to highly entrenched, slow transmission and indicate that initial vaccine-linked decreases in antimicrobial resistance may be transient.

Integrating host biological and ecological variables to predict probability of haemosporidian infection in raptors

Variations in host traits that influence their exposure and susceptibility may impact probability of vector-transmitted diseases. Therefore, identifying the predictors of infection probability is necessary to understand the risk of disease outbreaks during expanding environmental perturbation. Here, we conducted a large survey based on microscopic examination and molecular analysis of haemosporidian parasite infection in raptors rescued at the Beijing Raptor Rescue Centre. Combining these data with biological and ecological variables of the raptors, we determined predictors that affect the probability of haemosporidian infection using generalized linear mixed models and multimodel inference. Our results showed that infection probability exhibited considerable variation across host species in raptors, and body mass, sex, and evolutionary history played relatively weaker roles in driving infection probability. Instead, activity pattern, age, geographic range size, migration distance, and nest type were important predictors of the probability of haemosporidian infection, and the role of each predictor differed in the three main haemosporidian genera (Plasmodium, Haemoproteus, and Leucocytozoon). This macro-ecological analysis will add to our understanding of host traits that influence the probability of avian haemosporidian infection and will help inform risk of emerging diseases.

Genetic diversity of the common carp black strain population based on mtDNA (D-loop and cytb)

The common strain black carp (Cyprinus carpio var. baisenensis) is a culturally important carp strain that is raised and cultured in Guangxi Province, China. Its color reflects the interactions between the Burau people and their surrounding environment. The population of the common carp black strain was isolated and cultured in a rice-fish integration system. To explore the genetic diversity and protection of germplasm resources, we analyzed mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequences, specifically the displacement loop (D-loop) and cytochrome b (Cytb), using single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP). We compared these sequences with those from four other local common carp populations. The study included a total of 136 adult common carps from five strain populations: the common black carp strain (HJ = 31), Jian (F = 30), Heilongjiang (H = 10), Songpu (S = 31), and Saijiang (SJ = 34). The results of the Cytb and D-loop analyses showed that the Heilongjiang carp (H) and Saijiang (SJ) populations had the highest levels of haplotype diversity (0.867 ± 0.034785) and nucleotide diversity (π = 0.0063 ± 0.000137 and 0.0093 ± 0.000411), respectively. On the other hand, the Common carp black strain population (HJ) exhibited the lowest haplotype diversity in both Cytb and D-loop, with haplotype 2 being the most commonly observed among the populations. Private haplotypes dominated the five common carp populations, which were significantly different at P<0.001. Furthermore, analyzing the coefficient of genetic differentiation (Fst), the highest genetic difference was observed between Saijiang (SJ) and Heilongjiang (H) (Fst = 0.963), whereas the lowest was observed between Songpu (S) and the Common carp black strain population (HJ) (Fst = 0.019) for the Cytb gene sequences. For the D-loop, the Common carp black strain population (HJ) and Songpu (S) (Fst = 0.7) had the highest values, and Heilongjiang (H) and Common black carp strain (HJ) had an Fst of 0.125. Additionally, the AMOVA analysis revealed a higher level of variance for the Cytb and D-loop genes, indicating lower genetic diversity within the local carp community. On the other hand, the phylogenetic tree analysis showed that the five carp populations were closely related and formed a distinct cluster. The distinct cluster of populations suggests a common ancestor or recent gene flow, possibly due to geographic proximity or migration history, and unique genetic characteristics, possibly due to adaptations or selective pressures. The results of this study provide valuable insights into the genetic diversity of the common strain black carp, which can have implications for conservation, breeding programs, evolutionary studies, and fisheries management.

Understanding arrival contexts of local refugee reception using a ‘phase space’ perspective

AbstractMigration is an inherently spatial phenomenon as it depicts the processes and effects of humans' movement from one place to another. Recent debates in geographical migration research highlight the need to adequately understand how the distinct nature of space and place shape migration and arrival processes. Taking up this call, this contribution proposes to bring together more‐than‐relational approaches to space in geography and the ‘local turn’ in research on migration and integration. Drawing on the empirical example of refugee reception and integration in the city of Rostock in Germany, the contribution explores how space, it's persisting and changing elements, impacts migration flows and constrains or supports migrants' arrival processes. The analysis works along three aspects of more‐than‐relational approaches to space, namely the role of persistent spatial aspects, such as the topography or national borders, and their interplay with relational space; the impact of spatially confined administrative units and regional embeddedness; and the temporal depth of space. The contribution closes by proposing two points how a more‐than‐relational approach can enhance the conceptualisation of space in geographical migration studies: (1) the mutual constitution of relational and non‐relational aspects of space into a specific space shaping migration flows through their interplay, and (2) the openness of a ‘phase space’ approach towards future developments admitting that the inner logic of a place can develop and change.

Placing African Cities in Chinese Lives: A Comparative Study of Migrant Geographies

Based on ethnographic research on Chinese migrants in Nigeria, Botswana, and Namibia from 2011 to 2015, this article has three lines of argumentation and contribution. First, it proposes a framing of migrant geographies from a humanistic comparative perspective in order to complement the political economy approaches in geographies of migration. Second, lying in the intersection of urban studies and migration studies, it illustrates the different positionalities of cities in three aspects of migrant geographies – migrant space, network, and belonging – echoing the multiscalar analysis of city-making in migration processes. Third, specifically in the context of Chinese migrant geographies, three African cities, Lagos, Gaborone, and Windhoek, are placed in three migrants’ geographic worlds, not always according to their positions in multiscalar power structures, but partly through migrant experiences in which top-down power horizontally works.

The Impact of China's Family Floating Population on the Participation of Medical Insurance in the Inflow Areas.

With the transformation of China's economy and society, the floating population has also shown a new development trend, from individual migration to co-migration with family members. In 2020, among the 376 million floating population, the population flowing to cities and towns was 330 million, accounting for nearly 88.1%. The family mobility of the floating population is not just a simple personal gathering or geographical migration, but a profound adjustment of the living environment, social interaction and the interests of family members. Migrants no longer simply play the role of "urban passers-by", but gradually move with spouses, children, parents, and even settle in the city, which will inevitably produce different public service and social security needs. To explore the impact of floating population's familyization on the participation of medical insurance in the inflow areas. This study adopted the form of non-systematic literature review. The key words were floating population and medical insurance. The related analysis of PubMed, Embase, CNKI, Wanfang, and VIP databases were reviewed and summarized. Due to the flow between domestic immigrants and regions, their medical insurance is difficult to be guaranteed. The domestic floating population's demand for health services is increasing, but the coverage of medical services provided by medical insurance is not comprehensive enough. It is necessary to integrate the medical insurance system and improve the adaptability of medical insurance to family mobility; protect the welfare needs of migrant families and increase their willingness to participate in medical insurance at the destination; pay attention to the interaction and integration of floating population families, understand and guide them to participate in the status quo of medical insurance, and improve the status quo.

Envisioning futures at new destinations: geographical imaginaries and migration aspirations of Nepali migrants moving to Malta

ABSTRACT Imagination is central to migration. Geographical imaginaries, often shaped by historical narratives and mainstream media, allow people to envision futures elsewhere and influence migration aspirations. Using interviews with Nepalis who migrated to Malta in recent years, this article seeks to uncover how people imagine new destinations about which they have limited or no prior knowledge, and how these imaginaries compare to those of established destinations. Through this lens, the article then examines participants’ aspirations to migrate to Malta. The analysis shows how participants contextualised the information they found about Malta by drawing extensively from imaginaries of better-known European destinations, in a mechanism I call spatial imaginary spillover. Participants moved to Malta seeking increased personal freedoms, rights and safety, economic stability and affluence, exploration and social prestige linked to migration to Western destinations. As such, Malta is part of a group of new European destinations for Nepalis that are more accessible than established destinations in the West, and which participants prefer over historical destinations for Nepali workers. This article provides novel insights into how imaginaries of new destinations and other unfamiliar places are produced, and how the lens of geographical imaginaries yields rich perspectives on migration aspirations and destination preferences.

Chinese dialect speech recognition: a comprehensive survey

As a multi-ethnic country with a large population, China is endowed with diverse dialects, which brings considerable challenges to speech recognition work. In fact, due to geographical location, population migration, and other factors, the research progress and practical application of Chinese dialect speech recognition are currently at different stages. Therefore, exploring the significant regional heterogeneities in specific recognition approaches and effects, dialect corpus, and other resources is of vital importance for Chinese speech recognition work. Based on this, we first start with the regional classification of dialects and analyze the pivotal acoustic characteristics of dialects, including specific vowels and tones patterns. Secondly, we comprehensively summarize the existing dialect phonetic corpus in China, which is of some assistance in exploring the general construction methods of dialect phonetic corpus. Moreover, we expound on the general process of dialect recognition. Several critical dialect recognition approaches are summarized and introduced in detail, especially the hybrid method of Artificial Neural Network (ANN) combined with the Hidden Markov Model(HMM), as well as the End-to-End (E2E). Thirdly, through the in-depth comparison of their principles, merits, disadvantages, and recognition performance for different dialects, the development trends and challenges in dialect recognition in the future are pointed out. Finally, some application examples of dialect speech recognition are collected and discussed.

Multi-layered mobilities: unaccompanied minors’ trajectories, decision-making and mobility after arrival in Italy

ABSTRACT This article explores the evolution of unaccompanied minors’ (UMs’) decisions and migratory experiences after arrival in Italy through Libya. Until now, research has not longitudinally documented UMs’ decision-making processes and experiences during their migration in Europe. We draw on data collected within the ERC-ChildMove project, a multi-sited and follow-up study, and used a trajectory approach (Schapendonk et al. [2020]. “Re-Routing Migration Geographies: Migrants, Trajectories and Mobility Regimes.” Geoforum; Journal of Physical, Human, and Regional Geosciences 116: 211–216.) to analyse in-depth interviews initially conducted with thirty-nine participants that were followed across Europe over a two-year period. We use the notion of ‘mobility-in-migration’ (Veale and Donà [2014]. Child and Youth Migration: Mobility-in-Migration in an Era of Globalization. Springer.) to question UMs’ migratory decisions and analyse the periods of mobility and immobility experienced during these trajectories. Our findings indicate that UMs’ decisions in Europe are heavily influenced by the quality of formal support and care, the length and outcomes of legal procedures, and trans-local support networks. The study analyses how such factors may repeatedly re-route or distort initially planned trajectories, produce involuntary mobility or end the minors’ trajectories. Finally, the paper demonstrates that periods of mobility and immobility coexist at different local scales within the overall migration trajectory of unaccompanied minors.

Geography of population migration of the Southern Federal District

The article, based on state statistics, conducted a study of the transformation of geography and trends in the development of migration of the population of the Southern Federal District. Using an interdisciplinary integrated approach, an analysis of migration flows, their directions, scale and intensity was carried out, the geography of migrations of the most migratoryly attractive subject of the district - Krasnodar Territory - was determined, and mapping of migration indicators was carried out using modern information technologies for studying space and visualization.It is shown that, despite the decrease in migration turnover due to the coronavirus pandemic, the long- term trend of positive migration dynamics in the Southern Federal District has remained, and in terms of the intensity of net migration in 2021, the macroregion took first place among all Russian districts.There have been no major changes in the geography of incoming and outgoing migration flows. Intra- Russian migration is characterized by a migration outflow of the population to the Central and Northwestern federal districts, and migrants from all other districts, but most of all from Siberia and the Far East, come to the southern macroregion. The main flows of international migrants come from citizens of the CIS countries, primarily from Ukraine, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Azerbaijan.A comparative analysis of the migration movement of the subjects of the Southern Federal District showed that in the macroregion Krasnodar Territory ranks first in terms of the volume and effectiveness of migration, and in terms of the intensity of migration movement, it exceeds the Russian average. To date, the steady trend of positive dynamics in the migration balance that has developed in Kuban since the middle of the last century has been preserved. However, there has been a significant decline in net migration. The main modern vector of intra-Russian migration flows is movement to Kuban from the northern regions of Russia, Siberia and the Far East. Most international migrants arrived in the Krasnodar region from CIS countries. During the study period, the main suppliers of cross-border migrants were Ukraine, Armenia and Kazakhstan.

Features of contemporary migration of the population of Ukraine: dynamics, directions, scale, problems

Population movement is an important factor in the socio-economic development of a country and its individual regions. Its geographical characteristics make it possible to identify, as quickly as possible, areas of depopulation and those where population flows clearly increase local and regional resources. In stable conditions, this provides an opportunity for a well-considered migration policy; in emergency situations, this becomes very difficult. The problems of contemporary migration geography in Ukraine are particularly relevant and painful in the context of Russia’s military attack and invasion of the territory of sovereign Ukraine in 2014 and a full-scale war since 24 February 2022. The aim of this article is to attempt to characterize migration in Ukraine, outlining the causes, directions, scale, intensity and dynamics of the processes over as broad a time horizon as possible, with a focus on the two sub-periods 2007–2013 and 2014–2021. Data for 2014–2021 are presented without taking into account the temporarily occupied territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, the city of Sevastopol and part of the temporarily occupied territories in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions, as these data are not available. According to the study, the number of migrants who crossed the state border of Ukraine only after Russia launched a full-scale war against Ukraine (UN data as of 15.11.2022) amounted to 15.3 million people, of whom 7.6 million remained abroad.

Intermittent migration can induce pulses of speciation in a two-island system.

Geographic barriers can come and go depending on natural conditions. These fluctuations cause population cycles of expansion and contraction, introducing intermittent migrations that may not hinder speciation but rather promote diversification. Here, we study a neutral 2-island speciation model with intermittent migration driven by sea-level fluctuations. Seabed depth modulates isolation and connection periods between the islands, with migration occurring during connection periods with a certain probability. Mating is restricted to genetically compatible individuals on the same island and offspring inherit genomes from both parents through recombination. We observe speciation pulses that would not occur under strict isolation or continuous migration, with infrequent, temporary increases in species richness happening at different times depending on the combination of geographic settings and migration probability. The resulting dynamic patterns of richness exhibit contrasting behavior between connected and isolated scenarios, often including species that do not persist. Prolonged isolation can reduce richness to 1 species per island, resembling patterns commonly associated with archipelagos under sea-level fluctuations. Together with other studies, our results in out-of-equilibrium populations support the relevance of investigating the impact of variable migration on diversification, particularly in regions of high diversity.

Historical account and current knowledge of the southernmost Chiropterofauna in the world: the Magellanic/Fuegian bats

ABSTRACT A depauperate Chiropterofauna consisting of essentially three bat species (the year-round residents Histiotus magellanicus and Myotis chiloensis, and the apparently migratory Lasiurus varius), exists in the challenging cold and windy environment of the Magellanic/Fuegian region, which encompasses territories in Argentina and Chile, both continental and insular. Knowledge of that bat fauna benefitted from earlier explorers and naturalists visiting such southerly and isolated geographical confines, but still lacks a comprehensive scientific study, particularly in face of expected green-energy projects using aerogenerators known to cause bat fatalities elsewhere. Currently, there is a paucity of information on the fine-scale geographic distribution, local abundance, and migration patterns of those bats that needs to be remedied as soon as possible. Our review may aid orienting and focusing such a research program, which should hopefully be binational, on account of the artificial nature of the border between Argentina and Chile in Tierra del Fuego.

Performing the ‘global citizen’ in social imaginaries: the value of intercultural exchange for Australian students in Mexico

ABSTRACT Due to the recent increase in Australian students undertaking study abroad opportunities, an effect of a neoliberal society, there has been a plethora of literature in this area with the extant literature focusing on students’ motivations and subsequent benefits of exchange. This paper examines how the capital acquired during intercultural experiences are performed by Australian exchange students. Interviewed before, during, and after Mexican sojourns, the students initially (re)produced a stylised pastiche of ‘Mexico’. Made in urban Australia, this imaginary comprises Frida-Kahlo themed restaurants and Day-of-the-Dead exotica. As a result of geographic distance and limited migration from Mexico, Mexicanidad in Australia operates as a vacant conceptual category into which ‘cool’ yearnings can be inscribed. Despite problematising their pre-departure constructions at times, the students continued to employ this version of Mexicanidad in their performance of the role of Mexican expert, in Mexico and on their return. This article theorises the functions of such identity performances, proposing that exchange experiences, and the intercultural capital they acquire, serve as a method by which students can construct and perform transnational identities.

The international transmission of local economic shocks through migrant networks

Using newly validated data on geographic migration networks, we study how labor demand shocks in the United States propagate across the border with Mexico. We show that the large exogenous decline in US employment brought about by the Great Recession affected demographic and economic outcomes in Mexican communities that were highly connected to the most affected markets in the US. In the Mexican locations with strong initial ties to the hardest hit US migrant destinations, return migration increased, emigration decreased, and remittance receipt declined. These changes significantly increased local employment and hours worked, but wages were unaffected. Investment in children’s education also slowed in these communities. These findings document the effects in Mexico when potential migrants lose access to a strong US labor market, providing insight into the potential impacts of stricter US migration restrictions.

Conceptualising US Immigration Detention as Carceral Real Estate

AbstractThe US Immigration and Customs Enforcement operates the largest detention system in the world, holding over 35,000 people in October 2023. The vast majority of this capacity is outsourced to corrections firms, particularly the two largest, CoreCivic and GEO Group. This article analyses how private corrections firms finance US immigrant detention capacity as a specialised asset class of government real estate. To understand the emergence of “carceral real estate”, I bring political geographies of migration into conversation with economic geographies of real estate. In doing so, I argue that creating “carceral real estate” enables the abstraction and valuation of migrant life as rent and, in turn, presumes a continuously flowing, fungible migrant population. In this context, migrants valued as underpaid labour in the wider economy are re‐valued for their unproductivity in detention. And yet this idealised geography of human and economic flows never fully materialises, but is instead rife with volatility, disruption, and political contestation. The article closes by discussing implications for abolition geographies.

Radio geopolitics: Imaginative geographies of Europe's migration ‘crisis’ on BBC Radio 4

Geographers have examined the history, materiality, and geopolitics of radio but there has been relatively little interest in contemporary radio broadcasting and its capacity to shape geographical imaginations. This is surprising given the ubiquity and popularity of radio, and its enduring role in communicating global news and current affairs to mass audiences. This article reflects on the power of media to represent people and places, and regulate imagined communities of identity and belonging by exploring how BBC Radio 4 constructs imaginative geographies of forced migration to, and refugee settlement in, Europe between January 2014 and March 2019. It joins recent efforts in geography to engage in methodologies of listening through a thematic analysis of 172 radio broadcasts that reveals two contrasting imaginative geographies of migration: first, a geopolitical imaginary of ‘crisis’, exemplified in news broadcasts, that reports from a top-down, state-centric perspective and is articulated by ‘expert’ voices, principally politicians; and second, a place-based, immersive, multi-sensory imaginary, exemplified in ‘feature’ programmes, that explores personal stories and experiences ‘on the ground’, and is articulated by multiple voices, most notably refugees. Radio 4 emerges as a diverse and contradictory space of journalistic storytelling which invites multiple ways of listening to, understanding, and imagining people on the move. By focusing on Radio 4 and the audible story of Europe's migration ‘crisis’, the article demonstrates how imaginative geographies are constructed through sounds and the spoken word, and evidences radio's imaginative, discursive, and sonic power.