The EMN Educational Seminar on Migration is a unique learning platform about migration organised in Slovakia which for three days fosters networking, experience sharing and discussions among (inter)national experts and participants. The seminar provides professionals working in the state institutions, non-governmental sector and other entities (e.g. research bodies, academia, media) with comprehensive and up-to-date information on migration and in this way aims to contribute to enhanced policymaking process in Slovakia, other EU countries and Norway. It reaches out also to the public through various evening events. The seminar has been organised by IOM as the coordinator of the EMN activities in Slovakia with funding by the European Union since 2012*. Each year it focuses on a specific migration related topic. 

In 2019, the seminar "Impacts and Opportunities of International Migration“ focused on the relationship between politics and migration, how and why people decide to migrate, good governance as a way forward in migration, and migration in urbanizing world, with special focus on cities. 

In 2018, the Educational Seminar on Migration “Causes and Consequences of Forced Migration” discussed migration myths and data based migration policy-making, migration governance and future scenarios of international migration, current migration development from the countries of origin perspective, vulnerabilities and human rights of migrants, environmentally induced migration as well as labour migration and the risks of modern slavery. Participants had a chance to explore impact of current actions for the future migration policy-making through interactive role-play board game developed by the EU Policy Lab of the European Commission's Joint Research Centre.

In 2017, the seminar focused on “Addressing the Needs of Forced Migrants in the 21st Century” including migratory trends, enhancement of safe and legal pathways for migrants, protection of migrants, and empowerment of refugees of the 21st century.

The 2015 seminar “Irregular Migration – Borders and Human Rights” was devoted to irregular migration in the world, EU and Slovakia, smuggling and other forms of irregular migration, measures to tackle irregular migration, ways to deal with a situation of irregular migrants and protection of their rights as well as intermingling of forced and irregular migration.

The topic of the seminar in 2014 was “Forced Migration – Causes and Possible Solutions”, dealing with causes of contemporary displacement and current situation with regard to forced migration, asylum and other forms of international protection globally and in the EU, resettlement as a vital tool of international protection, and refugee hotspots in the Mediterranean region.

In 2013, “Labour Migration Opportunities and Challenges” seminar focused on labour migration management, the status of labour migrants on the labour market, risk factors of labour migration and human trafficking.

The first 2012 Educational Seminar on Migration “Migration Globally and Locally” introduced various aspects of migration: migration as a global phenomenon, migration policy of the Slovak Republic in the global and EU context, labour migration worldwide, ability of the Slovak Republic to respond to labour market needs through migration, migration and development, forced migration and irregular migration.

*Notes:

In 2016, the seminar did not take place due to the organisation of the EMN Annual Conference under the first Slovak Presidency of the Council of the EU.

In 2020, the organisation of the seminar was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.  

The EMN Educational Seminar on Migration reaches out also to the public through free-of-charge evening programme: film screenings and/or discussion evenings. EMN Discussion Evenings combine a documentary screening and moderated discussion with experts in the particular field.

In 2021, two film screenings accompanied the online seminar programme. Midnight Traveler (2019) captured an uncertain journey of Afghan director Hassan Fazili and his family to Europe. Gleis 11 (2021) told five parallel stories about Germany’s first generation of labour migrants and their untold stories. The 2019 EMN Discussion Evenings included theatre play by Nová scéna Theatre Home (where is yours?) followed by discussion with experts on how to talk about migration in an accurate and balanced way as well as screening of documentary movie The Good Postman (2017) following the election for mayor of an almost deserted Bulgarian village on the Turkish border. Previous EMN Discussion Evenings Migration Caused by Climate Change (2018) highlighted devastating consequences of this phenomenon for people and Refugee Camp, My Home (2017) the dire conditions which refugees face. Older EMN Discussion Evenings included topics Europe or Die? (2015) on irregular migration and current situation in the Mediterranean, People Forced to Flee (2014) about the forced migration, refugees and assistance to them, The Tree Workers Case (2013) on labour exploitation and human trafficking, Are we at Home Here? (2012) about migrant integration in Slovakia and Czech Republic. In 2015 and 2017, film screening extended the educational seminar’s accompanying events and offered the Slovak premiere of the Hollywood movie The Good Lie about Sudanese refugees resettled to the United States of America.

Each year, the seminar welcomes more than 70 participants with different professional backgrounds. It targets mainly professionals from the public administration, non-profit sector and academia based in Slovakia who deal with or are interested in the topics related to migration of third-country nationals. In 2017, the seminar for the first time opened up also to participants coming from/nominated by other EMN National Contact Points based in all EU Member States and Norway.

The seminar participants have the opportunity to meet various experts from the European Commission, EU agencies, international organisations like ICMPD, IOM, UNHCR and UNODC as well as from renowned universities and other institutions. Over the past years, among numerous guest lecturers were for example (in alphabetical order):

• Alexander Randall | Climate Outreach and Information Network
• Argentina Szabados | IOM Regional Office for South-Eastern Europe, Eastern Europe and Central Asia
• Arjen Leerkes | Erasmus University Rotterdam & Maastricht Graduate School of Governance
• Asmita Naik | independent consultant
• Boldizsar Nagy | University of Eotvos Lorand & Central European University
• Caroline Van Buren | UNHCR Regional Representation for Central Europe
• David Brown | University of Nottingham’s Rights Lab
• Elizabeth Collett | Migration Policy Institute Europe
• Emir Comor | Project Coordinator, Tripple Win, Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Euridice Marquez | UNODC
• Evan Easton-Calabria | University of Oxford’s Refugee Studies Centre
• Federico Soda | Chief of Mission, International Organization for Migration (IOM) Libya
• François Gemenne | environmental geopolitics expert
• Frank Laczko | Director, IOM's Global Migration Data Analysis Centre (GMDAC), Germany
• Georgette Gagnon | United Nations Assistant Secretary-General - Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Libya, United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL)
• Gianluca Rocco | Chief of Mission, International Organization for Migration (IOM) Greece
• Ingrid Brockova | State Secretary, Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic
• Gilles Reckinger | University of Innsbruck
• Giuseppe De Giorgi | Admiral (r) and former Chief of Staff of the Italian Navy, Italy
• Gudrun Biffl | Danube University in Krems
• Jacob Townsend | Seefar
• Jan Orlovsky | Director of Migration Office, Ministry of Interior of the Slovak Republic
• Janne Teller | award winning novelist & former conflict advisor for EU and UNO
• Jeffrey Labovitz | IOM Regional Office for East and Horn of Africa
• Jill Helke | Director of International Cooperation and Partnerships Division, IOM Headquarters, Switzerland
• Jose Angel Oropeza | IOM Coordinating Office for the Mediterranean & IOM Mission for Italy and Malta • Kanta Kumari Rigaud | World Bank Group
• Kate Hooper | Policy Analyst, Migration Policy Institute (MPI), USA
• Kari Anne Klovholt Drangsland | Human Geographer & Postdoctoral Fellow, Centre for Women’s and Gender Research (SKOK), University of Bergen, Norway
• Kilian Kleinschmidt | Innovation and Planning Agency
• Klara Skrivankova | Anti-Slavery International
• Lara White | IOM Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific
• Lars Johan Lönnback | Chief of Mission, International Organization for Migration (IOM) Moldova
• Lefteris Papagiannakis | Vice-Mayor for Migrants, Refugees and Municipal Decentralization, Municipality of Athens, Greece
• Liza Schuster | Afghanistan Migrants Advice and Support Organization & City University London
• Margo Baars | Senior Programme Coordinator, International Organization for Migration (IOM) Afghanistan

• Mariam Safi | Organization for Policy Research and Development Studies
• Marina Brizar | UK Director, Talent Beyond Boundaries, United Kingdom
• Martin Kahanec | Founder and Scientific Director, Central European Labour Studies Institute (CELSI), Slovakia & Professor and Head of the Department of Public Policy, Central European University, Austria
• Martin Xuereb | Migrant Offshore Aid Station
• Mathias Czaika | Professor in Migration and Integration and Head of Department for Migration and Globalization, Danube University Krems, Austria
• Mauro Martini | Programme Officer at Financing Facility for Remittances, The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), Italy
• Melissa Siegel | Professor of Migration Studies, Maastricht University, The Netherlands
• Michael Gray | IOM Headquarters’ Resettlement and Movement Management Division
• Michael Newson | Senior Labour Mobility and Human Development Specialist, IOM Regional Office for South-Eastern Europe, Eastern Europe and Central Asia, Austria
• Miroslava Vozaryova | Director of Legal Department, Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic
• Montserrat Feixas Vihé | Regional UNHCR Representative for Central Europe, Hungary
• Nassim Majidi | Samuel Hall & Africa Center for Migration Studies, Wits University
• Nicolas Rollason | Partner and Head of Immigration Department at Kingsley Napley LLP, United Kingdom • Ola Henrikson | Director, IOM Regional Office for the European Economic Area, the European Union and NATO, Belgium
• Patrick Taran | Global Migration Policy Associates
• Penelope Kyritsis | Worker-Driven Social Responsibility Network & Worker Rights Consortium
• Peter Kresak | UNHCR Office in the Slovak Republic
• Peter Barnett | Head of Libraries, Advice, Health and Information Service, Coventry City Council, United Kingdom
• Petra Hueck | International Catholic Migration Commission Europe
• Raúl Delgado Wise | Professor of Developmental Studies, Autonomous University of Zacatecas, Mexico
• Renald Gregoire | Embassy of Canada
• Richard Danziger | IOM Regional Office for West and Central Africa
• Roger Zetter | University of Oxford
• Ronald Skeldon | University of Sussex
• Simona Vezzoli | University of Oxford
• Sonia Plaza | Senior Economist, The World Bank & Global Knowledge Partnership on Migration and Development (KNOMAD), USA
• Stéphanie Winet | Head of Stakeholder Engagement, International Organisation of Employers (IOE), Switzerland
• Tesseltje de Lange | Professor of European Migration Law & Director of the Centre for Migration Law, Radboud University, The Netherlands
• Vicki Squire | Professor of International Politics, The University of Warwick, United Kingdom
• Zoi Sakelliadou | EU Anti-Trafficking Coordinator Office
• Zuzana Vatralova | Head of Office, International Organization for Migration (IOM) Slovakia