MILE TRAINING TESTIMONIALS

MILE stands for Migrant Integration through Locally designed Experiences and is about empowering the local community as a whole, including migrant communities. MILE is two-year project co-funded through the European Union’s Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund and involves partners in six European countries: Belgium, Greece, Latvia, Spain, the Netherlands, and the UK.

In 2022, MILE produced reports of local and EU-level inclusion policies with the help of existing evaluation frameworks, such as the Integrating Cities Toolkit.
For these analyses, our research teams worked together with the four implementing municipalities of the MILE project as well as partnering migrant communities in the countries to collect evidence of the current local contexts.
Read the full research papers, covering Birmingham (UK), Ioannina (GR), Riga (LV), Ripollet (ES), and the EU:

Three questions to: Paul Soete, European Economic and Social Committee
In our Q&A series “Three Questions To”, we present different European perspectives on migration, participation and local inclusion, this time with Paul Soete, Chair of the Group on Immigration and Integration, European Economic and Social Committee (EESC). The EESC is an advisory body to the EU,

Taking a closer look at the MILE training for migrants and municipalities on meaningful participation
This interview was conducted by Vanessa Cotterell (coordinator of MILE, UNITEE) with Seyran Khalili from New Women Connectors (NWC). NWC are faciliating the training for municipalities and migrant communities in the context of the MILE project. Seyran is an organisational psychologist working in the field

Co-designing policies with migrants for more inclusive cities
What makes a city truly inclusive? How can municipalities ensure that local policies can meet the needs of newcomers, refugees and migrants while providing opportunities and space for them to participate in the design of these policies? The traditional, often top-down policy-making process tends to

MILE Fireside Chat celebrating International Migrants Day
To celebrate International Migrants Day (18 December) this year, MILE held an online “Fireside Chat” on Thursday 22 December from 11:00-11:45 AM CET. Together with speakers from INTEGRIM Lab, EKKE and UNITEE, we explored the EU and local policy landscape at the intersection of migration,

Young Migrants and Cities – Event for the European Week of Regions and Cities 2022
You can rewatch the event here. As part of the 2022 edition of the European Week of Regions and Cities, MILE, in collaboration with the UNITES project, UNITEE, INTEGRIM Lab and Eurocities, hosted an online workshop titled “Young migrants and cities – new pathways for local participation

CREME Annual Conference on Ethnic Minority Entrepreneurship
On 10 November 2022, MILE participated in CREME’s (Centre for Research in Ethnic Minority Entrepreneurship) 26th Annual Ethnic Minority Business Conference. Supported by Lloyds Banking Group the theme this year was: ‘Towards a New Agenda for Ethnic Minority Entrepreneurship’. The annual conference brings together leading researchers
MILE IN A NUTSHELL
MILE stands for Migrant Integration through Locally designed Experiences and is about empowering the local community as a whole, including migrant communities. We believe that policy-making – especially at the local level – should be a co-creation process that reflects the diverse population of cities and includes migrants and refugees.
MILE aims to promote the inclusion and active citizenship of migrants and refugees at the local level. We want to do this by connecting municipalities and migrant-led associations and provide them with tools for exchange and participatory policy-making.
The project currently involves municipalities in six European countries – Belgium, Greece, Latvia, the Netherlands, Spain and the UK. Taking into account the different contexts and current needs of cities and local migrant communities, MILE is producing tailored tools for participation and inclusion that can be replicated across Europe.
In 2022, diversity and leadership training for municipalities and migrant communities paved the way for the establishment of consultative bodies in each municipality where migrants can raise their issues.
In 2023, we will launch two Europe-wide exchange platforms: one for migrant-led organisations and one for municipalities to promote exchange, collaboration and inclusive policy-making.
MILE'S GOALS
- Understand the needs of municipalities and migrant and refugee communities in their local context;
- Boost the political participation and leadership of migrants and refugees;
- Promote inclusive policy-making in cities;
- Turn the experiences into recommendations for better integration policies;
- Create long-term networks of exchange and collaboration for municipalities and migrant communities;
MILE'S APPROACH
MILE is a two-year project focusing on creating sustainable ecosystems of exchange between cities and migrant communities.
Taking different local needs into account, MILE uses research and local insights to train municipality staff and migrant communities and enhance inclusion, diversity and participation policies.
Local and European events and campaigns will raise awareness around the issues of migration, inclusion and participation.
See the full info-brochure here.

















