Uploaded June 2025 | Updated September 2026, 1 day ago
Public debates about migration and return often frame migrants and refugees as victims of difficult situations and restrictive laws. But is this reflective of their lived realities?
In this video we explore the concept of agency: the ability to make choices about our lives, even when faced with barriers and challenges. As part of their research into return migration, experts from the GAPs Project have spoken to migrants, refugees and returnees in many different communities to gain a better understanding of how they adapt to their circumstances and make active decisions about how to continue their migration journeys.
The researchers in this video highlight some of the structural hurdles and legal barriers that many migrants must navigate when considering return, and explain why including migrants' perspectives in policymaking is key to making return a viable option for some migrants.
with Dr. Susan Beth Rottmann (Özyeğin University, Istanbul), Dr. Ngozi Louis Uzomah (University of Nigeria Nsukka), Minos Papakyriakopoulos (Voluntary Return and Reintegration Counsellor IOM), Karima Belhaj (Association Migration Internationale (AMI) Morocco)
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These videos have been produced under a contract with the EU’s Horizon Europe Research Program (HORIZON-CL2-2022-TRANSFORMATIONS-01-09, Project Reference GAPs 101094341), financed by the European Union’s budget. The opinions expressed are those of the contractor and do not necessarily represent the contracting authority’s official position.
Please visit migrationmatters.me to learn more about our work and subscribe to our courses. You are free (and encouraged!) to embed this video and use it for any non-commercial purposes: CC BY-NC 4.0
Produced by: Migration Matters e.V. 2024 - 2025
Editorial & production: Sophia Burton, Bernadette Klausberger, Frankie Reid
Edited by: Karoline Schulz
Graphic and Motion Design by: Liv Bustorff & Paula Bambach
Music: Mello C by Mapigavo (Free Music Archive, CC BY-NC 4.0), Hippo (MF-198, Musicfox)
Stock footage: unsplash.com
Public debates about migration and return often frame migrants and refugees as victims of difficult situations and restrictive laws. But is this reflective of their lived realities?
In this video we explore the concept of agency: the ability to make choices about our lives, even when faced with barriers and challenges. As part of their research into return migration, experts from the GAPs Project have spoken to migrants, refugees and returnees in many different communities to gain a better understanding of how they adapt to their circumstances and make active decisions about how to continue their migration journeys.
The researchers in this video highlight some of the structural hurdles and legal barriers that many migrants must navigate when considering return, and explain why including migrants' perspectives in policymaking is key to making return a viable option for some migrants.
with Dr. Susan Beth Rottmann (Özyeğin University, Istanbul), Dr. Ngozi Louis Uzomah (University of Nigeria Nsukka), Minos Papakyriakopoulos (Voluntary Return and Reintegration Counsellor IOM), Karima Belhaj (Association Migration Internationale (AMI) Morocco)
***
These videos have been produced under a contract with the EU’s Horizon Europe Research Program (HORIZON-CL2-2022-TRANSFORMATIONS-01-09, Project Reference GAPs 101094341), financed by the European Union’s budget. The opinions expressed are those of the contractor and do not necessarily represent the contracting authority’s official position.
Please visit migrationmatters.me to learn more about our work and subscribe to our courses. You are free (and encouraged!) to embed this video and use it for any non-commercial purposes: CC BY-NC 4.0
Produced by: Migration Matters e.V. 2024 - 2025
Editorial & production: Sophia Burton, Bernadette Klausberger, Frankie Reid
Edited by: Karoline Schulz
Graphic and Motion Design by: Liv Bustorff & Paula Bambach
Music: Mello C by Mapigavo (Free Music Archive, CC BY-NC 4.0), Hippo (MF-198, Musicfox)
Stock footage: unsplash.com
