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EUFIRST Workshop on 

“Migration and Politics: Current and Future Challenges”

13-14 October 2023  (Caglio)

LISER, in collaboration with leading researchers from the Bocconi University and Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Milan, organized this workshop , serving as a component of the EUFIRST project. The workshop took place in the Town Hall of  the charming village of Caglio (Lombardy, Italy).Program available here.
Scientific committee: Massimo Bordignon, Frédéric Docquier, Massimo Morelli, Eugenio Peluso, and Hillel Rapoport.

XingB Visiting Program 2023-24



Linked to the Doctoral Lecture Series on Cross-Border Mobility



Human history is a migration story. It features men and women on the move in search of better opportunities or seeking protection abroad. Notwithstanding being a constitutive element of societies, migration represents an ever-divisive topic in political and public debates, as well as a renewed challenge in policymaking. Economic scholars have extensively investigated the socio-economic determinants and implications of economic and forced migration in both origin and destination countries. New methodological tools are increasingly available to investigate these issues. LISER and DEM (University of Luxembourg) organize this Ph.D. course for the two FNR-funded doctoral programs devoted to migration research: MINLAB (Migration, Inequalities, and Labor Markets) and ACROSS (Analysis of Cross-Border Human Mobility). The course consists of monthly lectures given by renowned scholars in the field. It is meant to equip PhD students with state-of-the-art research insights and methods. Upon completion of this course, students will have learned how new pressing questions over the role played by migration in the distribution of resources, labor market outcomes, and economic prosperity are currently addressed in the literature.

Conference Series on Racism and Ethno-Racial Discriminations in Luxembourg


From September 2022 to January 2023
Racism and ethno-racial discrimination are significant social phenomena that demand attention, particularly in a multicultural, multilingual, and immigrant-rich country like Luxembourg. While combating all forms of intolerance and discrimination is a top priority for the Government, effective policy implementation necessitates collective reflection on these phenomena, as well as a foundation of factual knowledge and empirical evidence. In response to this need, the Chamber of Deputies has called upon the Government to conduct a national study on racism in Luxembourg. In 2021, the MiFa led the production of an exploratory report on the subject and tasked LISER with conducting a national survey on racism and ethno-racial discrimination. Simultaneously, CEFIS conducted a qualitative survey.
Following the official presentation of the report in March 2022, the MiFa, LISER, and CEFIS collaborated to organize a series of conferences aimed at raising awareness among the resident population. The primary objective was to disseminate the key findings from the aforementioned study, contextualize them with results from surveys conducted in neighboring countries or on at-risk groups, and stimulate critical reflection on concepts, strategies for identifying discriminatory practices, and the policies that should be implemented. 
See conference program on the LISER website. and video of the sessions on the MiFa website

Annual International Conference on Immigration in OECD countries


Forthcoming editon on 11-12 Dec. 2023
The CEPII, LISER, OECD, Fondazione Rodolfo De Benedetti, Paris School of Economics, University of Lille, and University of Luxembourg collaborated to organize the Annual Conference on "Immigration in OECD Countries." The 13th annual edition will be held on 11-12 December 2023. This conference explores the economic dimensions of international migration in OECD countries, including mapping migratory patterns, analyzing socio-economic factors, and studying the resulting outcomes.. 
Keynote Speakers in 2023: 
  • George Borjas, Harvard Kennedy School.
  • Sandra Sequeira, London School of Economics. 
  • Romain Wacziarg, UCLA Anderson School of Management

Selected papers from the conference are being considered for publication in a special issue of the Scandinavian Journal of Economics.

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Research Unit on Impact Evaluation of Development Policies


From June 2022
Developing countries confront significant challenges encompassing poverty, inequality, insecurity, political instability, and climate change, demographic changes. In response to these challenges, cooperation and development policy actors are increasingly engaging with the research community to enhance knowledge and understanding of the underlying and intricate causes of persistent poverty.
In June 2022, a research partnership was initiated between LISER, JPAL-Europe, and the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs (Directorate of Development Cooperation). This partnership focuses on three research axes: (i) sectoral analysis to examine the impact of development policies/programs, (ii) detailed geographical-level modeling of development disparities, and (iii) coordinated impact evaluation through randomized controlled trials led by JPAL-Europe.  The LISER team consists of Michel Tenikue, Michal Burzynski, Frédéric Docquier, Rana Cömertpay, and Marijo Vargas-Silva.
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CRHOUSINQ


CRoss-border mobility, HOUSing market developments, and spatial INeQualities
Sept 2022 - August 2025
CRHOUSINQ is a 36-month research project funded by the FNR that investigates the interconnections between labor mobility, spatial concentration of economic activity, and core-periphery inequalities in the Greater Region. The project's main objective is to evaluate the sustainability of core-periphery development from 2000 to 2020 and its implications for regional and individual inequalities. The project is structured into three work packages:
  1. WP-I focuses on studying the factors influencing commuting and residential migration decisions.
  2. WP-II examines the macroeconomic effects and distributional impacts of international labor inflows.
  3. WP-III aims to model the relationships between growth, labor mobility, and the housing market within a multi-regional general equilibrium framework.

The LISER team responsible for this project includes Vincent Dautel, Frédéric Docquier, Antoine Paccoud, Silvia Peracchi (from Jan 2023), and Alexander Yarkin (from May 2023). In addition, the project collaborates with three external partners: Giovanni Peri from UC Davis, Michel Bierlaire from EPFL, and Michel Beine from UniLu.

Ethno-Racial Discrimination & Racism in Luxembourg


Since June 2021
To gain insights into the prevalence and targets of racism and ethno-racial discrimination in Luxembourg, as well as the contexts and situations in which residents perceive such discriminatory acts and treatment, a comprehensive national survey was carried out by LISER between June and August 2021. This survey aimed to gather the perspectives of adult residents regarding racism and ethno-racial discrimination, considering factors such as skin color, nationality, country of origin, surname, religion, and more. Concurrently, CEFIS conducted a qualitative survey involving experts and field actors.
The results are presented in a joint report available HERE, or via the website of the Ministry of Family Affairs, Integration and the Greater Region. The LISER team is coordinated by Frédéric Docquier and Michel Tenikue, and includes Jean-Yves Bienvenue, Ariane Gordan, Maria Guadarrama Sanz, Aleksa Uljarevic. 
Following the official presentation of the report, we organized a series of conferences in 2022-23, aimed at raising awareness among the resident population. See conference program on the LISER website. and video of the sessions on the MiFa website

Doctoral lecture series on cross-border mobility


Since October 2019
This PhD course is a collaborative effort between Michel Beine (University of Luxembourg) and Frédéric Docquier (LISER) and forms a part of the ACROSS and former MINLAB doctoral programs, which receive funding through the FNR's PRIDE funding scheme.
The course delves into contemporary issues concerning the determinants of migration, its ramifications for both sending and receiving countries/regions, and its influence on global income distribution.
Structured as a series of monthly lectures, the course features renowned economists who present cutting-edge analyses of existing methodologies and academic findings within their respective areas of expertise. By the end of the course, students have acquired comprehensive knowledge of the latest advancements in migration literature and are required to compose an essay on one of the covered topics.
Speakers in 2023-24: Sandra Sequeira (London School of Economics), Klaus Desmet (SMU Dallas), Anna Maria Mayda (Georgetown), Mariapia Mendola (U. Milano Bicocca), Joan Llull (Barcelona School of Economics), Toman Barsbai (U. Bristol), Diego Puga (CEMFI), Stelios Michalopoulos (Brown U.).

Globalization, Inequality and Populism Across Europe


Sept 2020 - August 2024
EUFIRST is a 4-year INTER project funded by the FNR, which brings together experts in trade/migration economics and political economy. The project aims to achieve the following objectives:
  1. Understand the conditions that elicit either positive or hostile reactions among native populations towards trade and migration.
  2. Identify the specific determinants of left-wing and right-wing responses in relation to these phenomena.
  3. Examine the political competition that arises as a result of the entry or rise of populist parties.
  4. Investigate the reverse causal impact of populism on the size and structure of trade and immigration.

LISER team consists of Eugenio Peluso, Hillel Rapoport, Frédéric Docquier, Bertrand Verheyden, Michel Tenikue, Adam Levai and Etienne Bacher. LISER collaborates with partners including Dorothée Hillrichs and Gonzague Vannoorenberghe from UClouvain, Massimo Morelli and Massimo Anelli from Bocconi, Riccardo Turati from UAB, Elie Murard from UAlicante, Florian Mayneris from UQAM, Stefano Iandolo from USalerno, and Francesco Andreoli from UVerona.

Past events


In partnership with the French Development Agency (AFD), the World Bank, and the University of Luxembourg , we jointly organized the 14th International Conference on “Migration and Development” in September 2021.  Keynote speakers: Patricia Cortes (Boston University),  Marta Reynal-Querol (Universitat Pompeu Fabra),  Mathias Thoenig (Université de Lausanne). A selection of papers from the conference will be published soon in a  special issue of the European Economic Review. 
In April 2020, we launched an online twin-webinar series on the Economics of Migration, divided into a Junior and a Senior segment. This was a joint initiative of CERDI, PSE, LISER, University of Luxembourg, Universidad Carlos III, CEPII, ICM, Global Migration Center of UCDavis and the World Bank's Development Research Group.  The senior seminar series stopped in Dec. 2021. The Junior seminar series is still active. Organizers: Etienne Bacher, Maria Alexandra Castellanos, Melchior Clerc, Lukas Delgado-Prieto, Bertille Evreux, María Gertrudis Fernández Maciá, Elsa Gautrain, Felix Stips. The organization of the seminars is supported by: Michel Beine, Simone Bertoli, Patricia Cortes, Frédéric Docquier, Jesús Fernández-Huertas Moraga, Çağlar Özden, Giovanni Peri, Hillel Rapoport.
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Economists' contribution in the battle against COVID-19


Based on a voluntary participation, RECOVid – a group of 27 economists based in Luxembourg – joined forces to help decision-makers understanding the economic consequences of their actions and to inform public opinion. The report was released in April 2020. Get it from LISER website
On the heels of RECOVid, a new research project funded by the Covid-19 funding scheme of the FNR started in May 2020. MODVid involves partners from Unilu, STATEC and LISER. It aims to inform public decisions during the crisis. MODVid provide estimates of the economic, distributional, and epidemiological effects of the crisis in Luxembourg. It also aims to inform public decisions in the aftermath of the crisis, in order to predict medium-term effects on employment and income inequality. See MODVid page on Research Luxembourg, and see LISER special Issue on Covid-19.
More recent studies focus on the link between cross-border mobility and the spread of Covid-19 variants in Europe: