Geography- Migration

• Globalisation has led to an increase in both internal and international migration
• As of 2014, 230 million people lived in a country that wasn't their place of birth (approx. 3-4% of the global population)
• Reasons for increase in migration

  • Advancement of transport networks to allow people to travel easily to other countries to live, work and visit
  • Rise in global trading has encouraged a recent rise in international migrants, the highest since the collapse of empires
• Most international migration is regionalised, like Mexicans to America or Poland to Germany
• Uneven economic growth

  May be linked originally to a natural advantage over other countries, such as a coastline or raw materials
• Initial imbalances

  Have been exaggerated over time due to the outflow of migrants, resources and investment
• The number of people migrating internationally has risen rapidly and from 1950 to 2015, the global population grew rapidly from 2.5 billion to 7.3 billion
• In the 1990s, international migration occurred mainly to world destinations like New York and Paris. Now, many cities in developing countries (e.g. Mumbai and Lagos) have become major hubs for migration
• Reasons for international migration

  • Voluntary Economic Migration
  • Refugees
  • Asylum seekers
  • Environmental Refugees
  • International Students
• Voluntary Economic Migration


  People relocate to try to improve their wealth and quality of life
• Often, an economic migrant's family may follow them in the aim of joining their family
• Refugees


  People forced to relocate due to war, conflict, persecution
• Asylum seekers


  People fleeing for international protection
• Environmental Refugees


  People specifically relocating due to tectonic disaster, natural events (wildfires, flooding) or Climate Change's impacts (desertification, sea level rise, etc.)
• International Students


  Within recent years, there has been a large increase in the volume of young people migrating to study elsewhere
• The flows of international migration will continue to change over time, as environmental, political and economic events occur and a country's development improves or declines
• Rationale FOR Encouraging Migration

  Migration is seen as an efficient way of ensuring that economic output of a country/place is optimised. Workers are integral to a growing economy, migration is a way of growing a country or place's workforce
• Internal migration (often from rural to urban areas) is mostly unrestricted, with some countries encouraging international migration within trade blocs and governmental agreements (for example, the EU has the largest free movement of migrants)
• Economic Theory


  Suggests that governments will maximise 'economic efficiency' - a productive workforce and a developed financial market - if they allow the free movement of goods, capital and labour
• However, some countries do not agree with the economic theory or fear they'll lose their national identity through unrestricted flows. Therefore flows aren't fully unrestricted on a global scale
• Rationale AGAINST Encouraging Migration

  Some governments have more restricted immigration controls to restrict the number of immigrants coming into their country
• National Culture


  Migration usually leads to changes in the ethnic composition of areas. Some countries believe that changes to their ethnic or cultural composition may lead to cultural diffusion, which could lead to the loss of their national culture or historical demography
• Employment


  Some governments may encourage migrants to fill skills gaps or improve economic activity. However, especially in areas with high unemployment rates, locals may blame immigrants for the loss of job opportunities in their area
• National Security


  Recent events (such as terror attacks on major cities and the so-called War on Terror) has caused political controversy regarding national security. Many people fear that freely allowing migrants to enter their country could pose a security risk. Views such as these have been exacerbated by some media outlets and politicians
• The backlash against unregulated migration has lead to changes within politics such as the election of Donald Trump, the rise of extreme right-wing political parties and Brexit
• Opportunity to Migrate


  The ability for an individual to migrate depends on the government's policies and border control, the physical environment (mountains, seas, etc) and the migrant's education and skills
• Migrants to Australia


  • Restricted to mainly skilled individuals. They require 65 points under the points based system, which takes into account the demand for a particular profession in Australia in addition to a migrant's age, qualifications and competence in English
• Singapore's migration policy


  • Divided into foreign workers and foreign talent. Workers are predominantly unskilled migrants, mainly working in construction and domestic services. Talents are mainly people with degrees and are highly knowledgeable
• The rise of smugglers in recent years means that migrants need money to migrate illegally across borders. Smugglers only operate across strict international borders, such as the Mexican-US border or across the Mediterranean Sea (towards Europe)
• State


  A territory that no other country has power or sovereignty over
• Nation


  A group of people who lack sovereignty
• Nation states don't necessarily have a single culture or language, and the borders (both physical and political) between states are often contested
• Cultural Unity


  There can be different languages, dialects, sports teams, music and literature within a single state. This can result from historic migration, such as in the USA, where the descendents of European settlers have vastly outnumbered the descendents of indigenous tribes
• Ethnic and cultural unity

  • Some states have a single ethnic group due to its physical location (e.g. Iceland) or political forced isolation (e.g. North Korea – the government restricts interactions with foreign countries)
• Natural borders


  Physical features such as lakes, mountains or rivers can separate countries. Often, natural borders are the most successful borders between states because of their inarguable division
• Colonial or Political Intervention

  Borders are drafted by the sovereign state, and may have been influenced by past empire expansion. Borders created by governments may not take into account differences between religious or ethnic groups, which could lead to conflict between social groups in the future
• Contested Border Examples


  • Ukraine and Crimea
  • Taiwan
  • Syria and Iraq
• Between 1500 and 1900, many European powers had built global empires. Newly discovered South America was invaded and colonised by the Spanish whilst the UK, France and Belgium colonised parts of Asia and Africa
• By 1880 Britain controlled a third of the world's land surface and over a quarter of the world's population. British culture spread across South Asia (sports, language, customs) through local governance and education, controlled by the UK
• The empires disintegrated following World War 1 because: the high cost of war had left the UK almost bankrupt, there was growing resistance to foreign rule and the rise of independence political groups, rapid population growth was a major problem for the UK government, and European countries were becoming less dependent on raw materials from their colonies