Since 2015, over 5 million people have arrived, or tried to arrive in the European Union seeking refuge. Other refugee receiving countries are faced with similar situations. Many of these refugees are young people. But whilst much has been written about the experiences of adult refugees and to a lesser extent about unaccompanied minors, there is very little research on the experiences of young refugees who are not (or are not recognized as) “unaccompanied”, and specifically about how these experiences impact their pathways to adulthood in or across borders. This in turn leads to an absence of effective policies to protect young people and to ensure their access to services which are essential to their well-being – both as young people and for their future adult lives.
Ouvert est le ciel Ouvert est le ciel Dense est son porté Multiples sont ses couleurs Classe sont ses nuages Mais unique il est. Nous avons tous tendance à penser très fort A des personnes qui sont loin Mais hélas la distance un petit grand facteur qu’on a tendance à minimiser Mais au fond c’est…
by Jorojina Elisha, August 2025 In this world we live in, we are faced with a lot of suffering and trouble. Day by day, weencounter something unbearable. It could be getting an F on a math test, breaking up withyour girlfriend, or losing your job. But what if your pain and suffering were constant—everyday, every…
Building Not pretty but it raised me. Broken outside but whole inside. From these walls I rose. Unsafe to others, sacred to me. Unsafe walls, safe memories. Foundation may be cratered but it held me up. You see danger, I see my origin story. Poem by Maria, eThekwini-Durban, South Africa, July 2025 … Credit: Photo…
Family Tree We grow and disperse We learn the ways of life Ways that lead us astray Some learn and gain wisdom Others learn to use knowledge against others The ways of life Life is like a tree Starts from a simple seed Sprouts into what we call the beauty of nature Each slowly fades…
Fieldwork and scoping visit to K’jipuktuk-Halifax, NS, Canada: A Comics-based essay This comics-based essay is both a report and a methodological exploration produced during my fieldwork and scoping visit to K’jipuktuk-Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, between 18 July and 4 August 2025 K’jipuktuk, which means “Great Harbour” in Mi’kmaw language, forms part of Mi’kma’ki, the ancestral…
By Glenda and Jane “One of my clients is 9 months and one week pregnant. She was turned away from her local hospital. I’ve been worried all weekend about her and her baby” These are the words of a social worker at Refugee Social Services, a GRABS partner, and one of the only organisations providing support…
Borders Crafted with Care: Biscuits, Trains and Little Ships The title of this piece is inspired by the packaging of the biscuits provided to our team while staying in Dover during a scoping trip in the UK. The biscuits were called “Borders” with the tagline: “crafted with care”. Besides the irony of biscuits in Dover…
Of fenced playgrounds, happy places, and contained spaces Of fenced playgrounds, happy places, and contained spaces is a reflection from a recent field trip part of the GRABS team did to eThekwini / Durban and eGoli / Johannesburg in South Africa, in early May 2025. I wrote about this influenced by my position and experiences…
Episode 12: Mothers’ love and GBV by Khrestie, Esther, Joshua and Shallom
Episode 11: Sense of Identity by Victoire, Asia and Jay-Jay
Episode 10: Stateless but not voiceless by Sean, Jojo, Jean & Marie-Claire
Episide 9: Cultural differences in parenting and family relationships by Ramazani, Mel, Aisha & Maria
The GRABS team took part in the SOCIN Conference in Macerata, Italy (23–26 September 2025). We presented a paper entitled…
On 2nd July, the GRABS team hosted an online panel part of the 22nd IMISCOE Annual Conference Decentering migration studies,…
On 20th of June, Jessi took part in the PhD Conference ‘Reimagining Migration: Decolonisation and Identity Across Time and Space’,…
On 20 May 2025, Izzy and Jane from the GRABS team presented our project to the Asylum and Refugee Research…
Two of our team — Jane Freedman and Glenda Santana de Andrade — conducted a two-part trip to South Africa between 11 and 29 November…
In October 2025 Jane and Izzy visited Athens to work with young people in situations of forced migration. We met…
The first round of participatory activities in Paris has now come to an end. In this initial phase, we organised focus…
In late July, Juan Manuel Moreno, one of GRABS PhD candidates, travelled to K’jipuktuk-Halifax, in Eastern Canada for a two-week…
