I am a social scientist, migration researcher, and consultant. I have been analysing trends, debates, and political developments regarding (forced) migration, integration, and asylum in Germany, Europe, and globally for many years. I have extensive experience, and I work for and with many organisations in Germany and other countries. In recent years, I have worked for the Humboldt University of Berlin, the University of Osnabrück (IMIS), the Expert Council of German Foundations on Integration and Migration (SVR), several (political) foundations, the GIZ (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit, German Corporation for International Collaboration), and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).

My work encompasses many diverse activities: I conduct research projects and offer consultancy services; I give lectures; I run seminars, workshops, and training programmes tailored to different target audiences; I am an author; and I am available to take part in panel discussions, both as a participant or facilitator. Lastly, I am a point of contact for media enquiries regarding migration and integration.

My interests and expertise focus on the following themes:

· International refugee and migration processes and migration routes

· Protection of refugees globally, and international sharing of responsibility

· European asylum and migration policies

· Asylum policy, migration policy, and integration policy in Germany

· Resettlement, humanitarian admission schemes, and other safe migration routes

· Statistics relating to migration, refugees, and asylum seekers

· Migration policy and integration policy in France

· Intra-EU mobility

· Migration and development

Public and political discussions relating to migration, refugees, and integration are frequently characterised by:

· One-sided problem statements which neglect potential positive outcomes

· Extremely short-term perspectives which ignore the fact that migration has occurred since man first walked the earth; that migration processes can last several years; and that their concomitant integration processes can sometimes span several generations

· Debates shaped by ideology and emotion which often obscure the complexity of the motives underlying migration as well as the complexity of migrants’ life projects and needs

· Narrow geographical perspectives which focus on the interests and needs of the host country without considering the complexity of migration processes and the importance of migrants, their countries of origin, and their countries of transit

In view of these limitations of public and political discussions, it is my personal goal to:

· Keep my work dispassionate and fact-based (although I will acknowledge and consider emotionally charged debates)

· Convey complexity and outline contexts using clear, uncomplicated language

· Maintain a long-term focus and evaluate international comparisons

· Conduct politically impartial analyses (while maintaining an awareness of different positions) whose normative compass derives from international refugee and human rights agreements