Transatlantic Discourse on Integration: "Integration of Migrants and Local Housing Policies in Germany and the U.S.", Juli 14, 2006

Since 2003, the european forum for migration studies (efms) has been organizing the workshop series "Transatlantic Discourse on Integration" which is supported by the German Marshall Fund of the United States. In the course of this series, the efms hosted the seminar "Integration of Migrants and Local Housing Policies in Germany and the U.S." on July 14th, 2006 in Berlin-Schwanenwerder.

The workshop brought together manager and architects of integrative housing projects, representatives of the government as of nongovernmental organizations, municipal commissioner for integration and academics. These experts from Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States discussed about the integration of migrants in the field of housing: To which extent does segregation inhibit or foster the integration of migrants? How are the urban living conditions of migrants? How can disadvantaged neighbourhoods be improved? What are the roles of municipal administrations, public housing enterprises or migrant organizations? The international comparison and the transatlantic transferability of solutions are matter of particular interest.

The conference report can be found here.

Contact: Doris Lüken-Klaßen

Conference Program

9 a.m.

Welcome

• Prof. Dr. Friedrich Heckmann, european forum for migration studies, Bamberg

• Doris Lüken-Klaßen, european forum for migration studies, Bamberg

9:20 a.m.

Effects of ethnic segregation

• Prof. Dr. Hartmut Häußermann, Humboldt-University, Berlin

Recent trends in neighborhood change in the US: Consequences for immigrants and implications for local, state, and federal housing policy

• Victor Rubin, PolicyLink, Oakland, U.S.A.

10:45 a.m.

Coffee break

11:00 a.m.

UK Housing Policies and Immigrant Integration

• Julia Hieber, University of Oxford, UK

Segregation patterns and residential integration paths of migrants in Nürnberg

• Simone Zdrojewski, University of Bamberg

12:15

Lunch

1:30 p.m.

Integration requires planning - The Project Grimmelsiepen

• Isa Karatas, Architect and coordinator of the project "Grimmelsiepen" Dortmund
• Niels Back, Pastor and Commissioner for Christian-Islamic Dialogue

Affordable Housing Needs of New York's Asian Community

• Margaret Chin, Asian Americans for Equality, New York, U.S.A.

The Efforts of the Mannheim Communal Housing Company in Integration of their Migrant Clients

• Stefan Möhrke, GBG - Mannheimer Wohnungsbaugesellschaft

3:00 p.m.

Coffee break

3:15 p.m.

Immigrants and the Housing Crisis in New York

• Javier H. Valdés, The New York Immigration Coalition, U.S.A

Immigrants in the city - recommendations for urban integration policy

• Melanie Kloth, Institute for Housing, Real Estate and Urban and Regional Devlopment, Bochum
  

4:15 p.m.

Concluding discussion

List of Participants (in alphabetical order)

• Niels Back, Pastor, Beauftragter des Kirchenkreises Dortmund-Süd für christlich-islamische Begegnung, Dortmund
• Nicole Bosch, europäisches forum für migrationsstudien (efms), Bamberg
• Wolfgang Bosswick, europäisches forum für migrationsstudien (efms), Bamberg
• Margaret S. Chin, Asian Americans for Equality, New York, U.S.A.
• Werner Distler, Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik - Deutsches Institut für Internationale Politik und Sicherheit, Berlin
• Christina Elvers, The German Marshall Fund of the United States, Berlin
• Prof. Dr. Hartmut Häußermann, Institut für Sozialwissenschaften, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
• Prof. Dr. Friedrich Heckmann, europäisches forum für migrationsstudien (efms), Bamberg
• Lisa Henschel, The German Marshall Fund of the United States, Berlin
• Julia Hieber, Oxford School of Geography, Centre for the Environment, University of Oxford, United Kingdom
• Margarethe Hofmaier, Nachbarschaftshaus Prinzenallee e.V., Berlin
• Isa Karata, Architekt und Projektkoordinator "Projekt Grimmelsiepen", Dortmund
• Gudrun Kirchhoff, Schader-Stiftung, Darmstadt
• Melanie Kloth, Institut für Wohnungswesen, Immobilienwirtschaft, Stadt- und Regionalentwicklung GmbH an der Ruhr-Universität Bochum (InWIS), Bochum
• Doris Lüken-Klaßen, europäisches forum für migrationsstudien (efms), Bamberg
• Mekonnen Meshgena, Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung, Berlin
• Stefan Möhrke, GBG - Mannheimer Wohnungsbaugesellschaft mbH, Mannheim
• Wolf Müller, Bezirksamt Mitte von Berlin, Integrationsreferent des Bürgermeisters, Berlin
• Sybille Münch, Institut für Länderkunde, Leipzig
• Nuno Oliveira, EUMC, Wien, Austria
• Victor Rubin, Ph.D., PolicyLink, Oakland, U.S.A.
• Dr. Robin Schneider, Büro des Beauftragten des Senats von Berlin für Integration und Migration, Berlin
• Dr. Philipp Schwertmann, Migrationsrat Berlin-Brandenburg, Berlin
• Ulrich de Taillez, Bayerisches Staatsministerium des Innern, München
• Dr. Haci-Halil Uslucan, Otto-von-Guericke Universität Magdeburg, Institut für Psychologie, Magdeburg
• Javier H. Valdés, The New York Immigration Coalition, New York, U.S.A.
• Layla Yüzen, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Auswärtige Politik e.V., Berlin
• Simone Zdrojewski, Graduiertenkolleg "Märkte und Sozialräume in Europa" an der Universität Bamberg