For a Humanitarian Asylum Policy in Europe

What We Do

With our activities and events, we foster partnerships with local authorities and community groups to strengthen local governance and build capacities to contribute to humanitarian practice. City conferences are the main platforms for our intercity exchanges and strategic alignments (e.g, Palermo Conference 2021, Villeurbanne Conference 2023 and Berlin Conference 2024). Besides IASH organizes workshops and webinars, working meetings, and lobbying events with its partners. Together we facilitate knowledge exchange and peer learning among member municipalities and civil society organizations. Another focus is the exchange and cooperation with other city and civil society networks, e. g. the French city network ANVITA and the EU-funded project Cities4Refugees.

 

10-11 October 2024: Berlin Conference 2024 “Cities as Change Makers in European Asylum and Migration Policy”

The final Cities4Refugees conference, co-funded by the EU, held in Berlin in October 2024, brought together more than 100 municipal representatives, civil society, EU institutions, and city networks from more than ten countries. Its main aim was to reflect on the project’s outcomes and discuss the role of cities in the implementation of the Common European Asylum System (CEAS).

The event included best-practice on-sight visits as well as a two-day conference. The first day of the conference included panels focussing on city networks, City-ID cards, and cooperation between administrations and civil society. The second day featured policy-level discussions with Members of the European Parliament and human rights experts on CEAS impacts, including distribution mechanisms, border procedures, and irregular migration. The conference strengthened cooperation, promoted best practices, and supported the future of the IASH network.

Photo credit: Michael Kuchinke

 

27 June 2024: Webinar “Amplifying Local Voices, Shaping the Common European Asylum System Implementation Plans“

On 27 June 2024, a cities4refugees webinar brought together 199 participants from 20 countries, including representatives from municipalities, parliaments, civil society, and EU institutions. The goal was to engage stakeholders who could not join in-situ activities in a dialogue on best practices in refugee reception and to amplify municipal and civil society assessments of the EU’s New Pact on Migration and Asylum.

The event featured a panel discussion with speakers from municipalities, city networks, civil society, and the European Parliament. The panel addressed three key topics: local impacts of the CEAS reform, implementation challenges, and strategic cooperation among city networks. The event aimed to strengthen cooperation between cities and civil society, promote best practice exchange, and reinforce the role of local authorities in shaping EU migration policy—contributing to the expansion of the IASH network.

 

21 March 2024: Webinar „Local Innovation in Migration Governance: Exchanging Best Practices in Cities”

It is in the cities where protection seekers are welcomed and integration takes root. Across Europe, municipalities develop best practices together with civil society, laying the groundwork for a more solidarity-based migration governance. To share these local innovations, this online event took place, gathering 125 participants from 16 countries.

In five breakout sessions, municipalities presented local solutions: fair distribution with Re:Match, Berlin’s digital streetwork, Zagreb’s EU funding approach, Utrecht’s Plan Einstein, and Villeurbanne’s citizen card.

Key objectives included strengthening cooperation between municipalities and civil society, promoting the exchange of best practices, and expanding the IASH network to reinforce the role of local actors in EU migration policy.

 

22 February 2024: Webinar “Financing for the reception and integration of migrants with the Council of Europe Development Bank”

For many municipalities, the Council of Europe Development Bank is a less well-known actor in the context of financing of refugee and migrant integration measures. The webinar intended to provide an overview on financing opportunities for the reception and integration of refugees and migrants with the CEB (loans, grants, lending with guarantee and advisory services). IASH created a space for exchange on one of the most pressing issues of urban integration work in close cooperation with civil society partners and other stakeholders.

 

November 2023: Villeurbanne Conference “The right to the city for all: European municipalities daring local citizenship“

At the conference, the Villeurbanne Declaration was officially presented. The declaration reinforces that legislation enabling pushbacks and closed camps contradicts Europe’s humanitarian values. Municipalities and civil society can provide expertise in reception, integration, and participation. 115 citizens from seven EU countries engaged in interactive exchange at the conference. Highlights included:

  • “The Right to the City for All” – promoting local citizenship and a universal city ID card
  • Exhibitions by SOS Mediterranée and artist Bassirou Sigue
  • “Practitioners’ Exchange on Irregular Migration” with Utrecht, Berlin, Zurich, ANVITA

 

9-11 October 2023: Brussels Event “Solidarity Cities Reshaping Migration in Europe”

This lobbying event in Brussels in the frame of Cities4Refugees and IASH broadened the alliance for a humane asylum governance in Europe, bringing together 10 cities (Munich, Berlin, Utrecht, Amsterdam, Ghent, Liege, Cascais, Villeurbanne, Wrocław and Zagreb) to exchange views and voice their concerns about the New Pact on Migration and Asylum with EU representatives. Sixty people from eleven countries attended the event.

 

27 June 2023: Online Conference “Cooperation for A Welcoming Europe”

The event involved municipalities, activists, NGOs, city network representatives interested in improving the current situation for migrants and refugees coming to Europe.

The online public event presented the cities4refugees project and the EU CERV programme, shared best practices for refugee inclusion, and fostered cooperation between cities and civil society through public panels, breakout sessions, and a final plenary. 153 people from 18 countries participated in this event.

 

19-21 April 2023: Zagreb Conference

The in-situ meeting in Zagreb, part of the Cities4Refugees project, aimed to strengthen cooperation between municipalities and local civil society, promote best practice exchange, and support active citizen participation. The event included presentations from partner cities (Zagreb, Barcelona, Berlin, Munich, Villeurbanne) on local integration strategies, an introduction to the Cities4Refugees project and the IASH network, a field visit, discussions on EU migration and asylum law, improving information exchange, and drafting a Joint Statement. The seminar, organized by the Steering Group and the City of Zagreb, brought together 41 participants from six countries.

 

25-26 June 2021: Palermo Conference

The International Alliance of Safe Harbors (IASH) was founded in June 2021 at the “From the Sea to the City” conference in Palermo. The conference was co-hosted by Palermo and Potsdam city councils and co-organized by the From the Sea to the City (FS2C) civil society consortium, with whom we work closely together. As a civil-institutional tandem, we encourage other cities to join us in building stronger alliances with their local civil society and engage more actively in European migration governance. As a cross-border network, we increase the visibility of welcoming municipalities and their interests at the EU level. IASH is based on the Palermo Declaration.