Urban governance of refugee integration in Hamburg and Izmir
Development summary
Çağla Ekin Guner investigates how solidarity with refugees became institutionalised at urban level in Hamburg and Izmir, comparing two institutions founded in 2020 that developed from earlier local initiatives. The article finds that proactive mayoral leadership and cross-sector collaboration enabled coordinated integration bodies, while local political climates and wider structural dynamics continued to shape and constrain these forms of solidarity.
Research note
Issue
How refugee integration is organised through institutional urban governance structures in Hamburg and Izmir.
Why does it matter?
The article shows that refugee integration may be shaped not only by the national asylum framework but also by municipal choices and allocations of authority. It is therefore directly useful for research on the relationship between urban governance and the practice of international protection.
Concepts
Academic details
“Institutional solidarity with refugees: urban integration governance in Hamburg and İzmir”
Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies · 2026
DOI 10.1080/1369183x.2026.2698323