Analysis Report Pilot Territories Deliverable T1.4.1

Organisation(s) Eurac Research

Authors Miriam Weiß

Delivery date December 2018

Status Final

Distribution level Public

Contents

1. Summary ...... 4 2. Introduction and theoretical background ...... 4 3. Approach and research area ...... 5 3.1. Interview guidelines and questionnaire ...... 5 3.2. Brief profiles of the pilot territories ...... 6 4. Snapshot from the pilot territories ...... 8 4.1. Common challenges ...... 8 4.2. Range of established welcoming and integration services ...... 12 4.2.1. Service offered or facilitated by municipalities ...... 12 4.2.2. Services offered by other actors ...... 13 4.3. Involvement of staff ...... 15 4.4. Future needs and potential for improvement ...... 16 5. Success stories and limitations ...... 19 5.1. Stories of success ...... 19 5.2. Lessons learned ...... 19 6. Conclusions and outlook ...... 20 Related links...... 21 Bibliography ...... 22 Annex ...... 23

1. Summary

This report gives an insight into the current situation on welcoming culture in selected territories across the Alps. Planned at the beginning of the PlurAlps project, this report helps to get an impression of where the different territories stand in terms of welcoming culture. It presents common challenges that municipalities face when new inhabitants come to town and the services they have implemented to address these challenges. Based on input received from the selected territories, an overview is also given on how many staff members deal with the topic of integration and migration and how many hours they spend on welcoming and integration matters. The report provides insight into the range of welcoming and integration services which on one hand are already offered in the municipalities, and on the other, which are additionally needed and planned to be implemented (within WP T3 several offers and services are tested). It is also an attempt to identify the margins of improvement regarding the lack or inefficiency of offers and services and answer the following questions: which services were more, which were less successful? Which limitations have been experienced?

2. Introduction and theoretical background

The welcoming and integration of newcomers usually takes place in the local context; that is in schools, neighborhoods or town quarters, at public events, in free time as well as at the workplace but also in the town hall and at the administrative service counters (e.g. to register in the municipality, to register for school, to sign up for healthcare). As important and typical point of contact for both migrants and locals, municipalities (referred to as community but also referred to as administrative unit) have gained relevance over the last decades, in which international migration has increased (cf. Castles & Miller, 2003). In municipalities of some European states, this has led to an increased pressure in delivering services in activity fields like labour market, housing and education (cf. Kössler 2014, Castles & Miller 2003). Municipalities’ competences arise from the legal framework and related financial means as established in the national, regional or federal law. Commonly, they are locally responsible for housing, town planning, culture and leisure, as well as social affairs, healthcare and education; action fields that are all relevant for the cross- sectoral topic of integration (cf. Kössler 2014). Given this implicit responsibility (by law), municipalities assume a general responsibility for all citizens however, not exclusively for locals but neither explicitly-specifically for migrants (cf. Kössler 2014, Lynch & Simon 2003). Furthermore, regarding funding, it is observed that financial means commonly tend to fall behind the assigned municipal responsibilities for integration (cf. Steytler 2010, Kössler 2014). Since integration is not a stand-alone policy field but incorporated part of general budgets for health, social affairs, etc., the part spent on integration is often diminished in times of shortage of funds (cf. Kössler 2014, cf. Mitterhofer et al. 2016). Municipalities, nevertheless, remain a central actor in upholding and providing services relating foremost to the socio-economic and legal-political integration of newcomers1, particularly in the phase of first orientation in a new place but also in the phase of long-term settlement of newcomers (see Figure 1; BAMF, 2011). On the other side, integration is not a matter of administrations alone but one of interaction among

1 Entzinger (2000) defines three dimensions of integration: socio-economic, legal-political and cultural- religious.

individuals, organized groups and institutions on the part of newcomers and the receiving society (Penninx & Garcés-Mascareñas 2016).

Figure 1: Welcoming Culture and Recognizing Culture in different phases of the immigration process (BAMF 2011, Aumüller & Gesemann 2014, pp. 55)

Against this background, at the beginning of the PlurAlps project, there was the interest to get an overview of how the pilot territories are faring in terms of welcoming culture and what are possible paths of development for improvement. Are municipalities confronted with similar challenges and how are they overcome? Which services do municipalities themselves offer? Which are present on the territory that are offered by other actors? What is locally required to develop new or upgrade existing services to improve the overall welcoming of newcomers? This gives the possibility to learn from each other’s experiences as well as strengthening the transnational exchange and cooperation within the PlurAlps project. First, we introduce the approach to analyzing the pilot territories and give an overview of the research area that is constituted by the PlurAlps pilot territories. Section 4 gives a comprehensive snapshot from the pilot territories, providing insight into common challenges, the range of established welcoming/integration services, the involvement of staff and potential for improvement and future needs. A section on success stories and lessons learned ensues. The report closes with conclusions and an outlook.

3. Approach and research area

3.1. Interview guidelines and questionnaire A mixed method approach was adapted to study the state of affairs in 13 pilot territories regarding welcoming services. A standardized questionnaire with open-ended and closed questions (fixed-response) was developed to gather information and data relevant for this report. The questionnaire consisted in two parts (see Annex). Part I investigated the range of municipal services offered in the pilot municipalities, the involvement of other actors, the financing of the services, and the municipal staff working on integration issues. It also asked which municipal activities had proven to be more and which less successful. Part II explored the municipal future needs for services that would help addressing the needs of newcomers. Based on interviews in the project’s pilot municipalities/regions, the PlurAlps partner institutions filled in the questionnaires for 12 of 13 territories between September 2017 and June 2018 in cooperation with local partners.

3.2. Brief profiles of the pilot territories Figure 2 provides an overview map of the 13 pilot regions. It shows also three French territories (Communauté de communes du Massif du Vercours, Saint Martin d’Hères, Communauté de communes du Trièves) for which the information was not provided.

Figure 2: Map of the PlurAlps pilot regions (Laner P, Dalla Torre C, 2018)

Bezau is a small municipality located in the Bregenzerwald region, in the state of Vorarlberg, in the western part of Austria. Bezau has a population of 2.003 inhabitants (2018), of which 17% have a foreign nationality. Most of the foreign inhabitants come from Turkey.

Comunità di Valle della Val di Non is one of the biggest districts of the province of Trentino in Italy. It is located in the northwestern part of the province. In Val di Non live 39.420 people. The percentage of foreign inhabitants is 9% and the biggest group of foreign inhabitants have Romanian citizenship.

Engelberg is a tourist municipality in the half canton of Obwalden, Switzerland. Engelberg has a population of 4.430 inhabitants (2018), whose 26% has foreign nationality. Most of the foreign inhabitants come from Germany, the second largest foreign group are Portuguese.

Jesenice is a medium-size town of 21.000 inhabitants, located in the north-west part of Slovenia. 25% of the population have foreign nationality.

Kamnik is a medium-size town of 29.000 inhabitants, located in the northern part of Slovenia. 10% of the population has foreign nationality.

Kapfenberg is an Austrian municipality in the district of Bruck-Mürzzuschlag in Styria, a Land in the southeast of Austria. Kapfenberg has a population of 22.798 inhabitants (2018), whose 16.9% has foreign nationality. The main country of origin of these foreign inhabitants is Romania.

Mals (Malles) is an alpine municipality located in Vinschgau, in the western part of the province of South Tyrol, 85 km away from the main city of Bolzano. In Mals live 5.630 inhabitants and 6.4% have foreign origins and citizenship. The main country of origin of these foreign inhabitants is Germany.

Mellau is a small municipality located in the Bregenzerwald region, in the state of Vorarlberg, in the western part of Austria. Mellau has a population of 1.301 inhabitants (2018), whose 12% has foreign nationality. Most of the foreign inhabitants come from Germany.

Nizza Monferrato is an Italian municipality in the province of Asti in Piedmont. Nizza Monferrato has a population of 10.429 inhabitants (2018), and 13.8% have foreign citizenship come mainly from Macedonia.

Postojna is a medium-size town of 16.000 inhabitants, located in southwestern Slovenia. 18% of the population has foreign nationality.

Ortisei (St. Ulrich) is located in Val Gardena, in the north-eastern part of South Tyrol province. Val Gardena has a population of 10.723 inhabitants (2017) and 7.5% are inhabitants with foreign citizenship, mainly coming from Romania.

Saluzzo is a municipality in the Cuneo Province in the Piedmont region. Saluzzo has a population of about 16.960 inhabitants (ISTAT, 2017). Ca. 11% inhabitants have foreign citizenship, mainly the Albanian. Their settlement is mainly due to the availability of jobs in agriculture, construction and manufacturing SME that had made this area of Piedmont very attractive for them in the late 1990s, early 2000s.

Zermatt is a Swiss municipality with 5.759 inhabitants (2018) in the canton of Valais, in the district of Visp. It is bordered by the districts of Hérens, Sierre and Leuk to the west, Westlich Raron to the north-west and Brig to the northeast and Italy (provinces of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola and Vercelli in Piedmont to the southeast and Valle d'Aosta to the south). The percentage of foreign inhabitants is 39%, and the biggest group of foreign inhabitants come from Portugal.

4. Snapshot from the pilot territories

4.1. Common challenges For the PlurAlps pilot areas, various challenges in managing the welcoming of newcomers have been identified. They relate to labour market integration, language barriers, feeling of belonging and the socio-cultural dimension of integration, education, housing, mobility, and the provision of information – or to a combination of them. For each challenge, more detailed accounts from the pilot areas are given. We present a selection of statements from the pilot territories expressing difficulties and challenges in welcoming and integrating newcomers in Figure 3:

Figure 3: Voices from the partner regions

Labour market integration In this field, the challenges met in the pilot territories are manifold. By and large, labour market integration is not an isolated field. Challenges cannot be separated from issues like education, language skills, socio-cultural life, mobility and housing. They differ also based on the legal status of a migrant (EU national, third country national, asylum seeker, refugee). For a Swiss pilot territory, it is mentioned that newcomers focus predominantly on work and making enough money and less on the social-cultural dimension of integration (language, social life in the municipality or with co-workers, etc.). They seek to acquire any language that will allow them to communicate, while this is not necessarily the widely used German language. In one Italian territory, a major issue is for migrant women in remote areas with low qualifications and mobility to find a job. In a Slovene territory, it is mentioned to be especially difficult for women of a certain minority as they are in a subordinate position already in their home environment and are rarely allowed to work, even though there is demand for services that they could offer (e.g. care etc.). Moreover, finding work is

difficult for some persons as they do not dispose of (the required level of) competences essential for a certain job (including language skills) or because their academic titles are not recognized in the territory (Italian, Austrian territory). Additionally, newcomers are considered to be lacking the social capital infrastructure that can be helpful for finding work (Italian territory). Then again, there are legal aspects to consider for immigrants that impede obtaining all permissions for work (Slovene territory). Other territories state that the city or municipal administration does not have the competence to support newcomers in their job search since there are dedicated services for this (labour market service, regional employment agencies) (Austrian territories). They can only help indicating where to find further information (Austrian territories). In an Italian pilot territory, the municipality states there is a limit in welcoming newcomers, justifying it with the number of locally available workplaces and personnel/time available to answer to the needs of newcomers. In another Italian territory, which is currently experiencing an economic downturn, it is said that both locals and newcomers suffer from job instability and are unable to secure jobs. This applies also to the construction sector that has collapsed, in which many migrants were working. All the efforts of another municipality aim to manage in a structured way the problem of reception of seasonal workers that is generated by the ways in which supply and demand meet in the local agricultural labour market. At the time of interviewing (June 2018), the main activity was strengthening a widespread reception model in the area, integrated with the new reception structure, working with the agricultural employers’ associations, trade unions and the local Caritas, in which to receive and host a large group of seasonal foreign workers, often without having real work opportunities. With respect to this problem, the main challenge is connected to finding resources (economic and non) and to start up a structured network with the world of profit, non-profit and associations, also soliciting support provided by supra-municipal institutions (Italian territory). There is a pilot territory, which receives newcomers who already have a job so that the “job search is usually not a major issue” (Austrian territory).

Language skills and courses A recurring issue in the pilot territories are the missing language competences, presenting a communication barrier to both newcomers and locals alike. Often municipal staff has no foreign language skills and migrants are not able to speak the local language or only very little so that “communication is happening using gestures and hand signs” (Austrian territory). The lack of language skills presents “a serious barrier in nearly all fields of everyday life […] when trying to communicate in kindergarten, schools, at the doctors, within social services” (Slovene territory). Also, where other foreign language skills are missing that would allow at least a basic communication, getting acquainted with the local language is all the more important (ibid.). In one pilot territory with a strong tourism sector where many different languages are spoken, employed migrants try to find one language to use at work, which is not necessarily the local original language (Swiss territory). Also, foreigners with strong network ties to members of their own nationality have difficulties communicating in the language of their new hometown even after a longer time of settlement (Austrian, Slovene territory). Lastly, in a trilingual pilot territory, foreigners face challenges to integrate as they need to learn at least two languages once they arrive. As a consequence, pilot territories generally attach great importance to language instruction, focusing though mainly on improving the language skills on the

part of the newcomers and less on the part of municipal staff or the local population. Challenges encountered by the territories are for example: ▪ ensuring continuity of language training in terms of duration, at different levels and in varying formats (often depending on available financial resources, number of participants, availability of volunteer teachers, etc.) ▪ offering new or ensuring continuation of interpreting services, ▪ inviting and motivating newcomers to participate (e.g. due to lack of interest, predominant interest in work and not language skills).

Feeling of belonging and the socio-cultural dimension of integration In most pilot territories, a lacking interest for and engagement on the part of the newcomers in the local culture, community and society has been articulated as a challenge. In some cases, this lack is mirrored also in experiences of discrimination and racism in the pilot territories. A recognition for integration as a “two-way process” instead of a “one-way street” is said to be missing. There are pilot territories, in which social integration of persons from a foreign speaking background is said to be difficult sometimes and there seems to be little will to be involved in social life of the community (e.g. these persons do not attend the local events like village festivities). The same goes for events that particularly target newcomers; it remains open, however, what is the reason behind this (disinformation, unsuitable timing, willingness, interest etc.). Same with regard to political involvement, e.g. in participatory processes (Austrian territory). In one pilot municipality, some migrants are said to be predominantly interested in employment but less in social integration and in learning the language (Swiss territory). Sometimes the cultural background is completely different, with different codes of conduct in everyday life, which renders communication and integration much more difficult (ibid.). Different opinions about migrants exist among the local population, despite the fact that the municipality has a long tradition with foreign guests. Not everybody shows an understanding for the particular difficulties of the migrants or is interested in learning more about their cultural background. For some of the locals, this process will take more time (ibid.). There are (specific) issues with a group of migrants of the same nationality: ▪ Children are often left alone at home, especially during summer holidays. Reasons for that are the excessive workload of the parents as well as differences in mentality. This results in a negative influence on a child’s opportunity at school. ▪ Immigrants tend to create their own community and connections, making the local language less necessary in everyday communications.

It is further maintained that individuals of certain nationalities are often isolated and they socialize only with people of their nationality. It is difficult to attract them to participate in multicultural events and/or activities organized for them (Slovene territory). As for the aspect of cultural integration, in an Italian territory there have been good experiences with one group of newcomers whose first arrivals on the territory date back to over 25 years ago. These groups live in the area, have bought houses, the second generations are attending school and are generally well integrated. The first generations are well integrated workwise while from a cultural and social point of view they tend to remain within their own communities. In two pilot territories in Italy and Slovenia, events are organized especially (exclusively and not exclusively) for newcomers/migrants but the organizers experience a low level of participation (or none at all) of the target group.

Education For three pilot territories challenges in the field of education have been mentioned. One Italian territory states the high importance of education and participation of children in the educational system, considering it a relevant step/part in the integration process. In another Italian territory, in this regard, it is observed that children do not participate in extracurricular school activities, a practice is considered to foster learning and social cohesion, and that parents do not attend or have difficulties in communicating with teachers (e.g. at teacher-parent meetings). In addition, it is observed that difficulties exist in homework supporting activities for migrant children (Italian territory). In an Austrian pilot territory, availability of nursery school places is a challenge because on the one hand there are not enough places and on the other hand the number of places cannot be increased as there is also a lack of qualified personnel. Choosing the right/fit school for the children is also difficult in more rural areas as there is not a wide range available (in the city there is everything from elementary school to University of Applied Sciences).

Housing In three pilot territories, challenges regarding housing have been mentioned. For an Austrian territory, the identified challenges are to build up a housing management system and to improve/increase the real estate supply for flats which can accommodate families with children. For an Italian pilot territory, “housing is the most crucial aspect” for the refugees since they have to leave the community housing within 30 days after receiving a positive reply to their asylum application. In another Italian territory, all efforts of the municipality aim at managing in a structured way the problem of reception of seasonal workers that is generated by the ways in which supply and demand meet in the local agricultural labor market. At the time of interviewing (June 2018), the main activity was strengthening a widespread reception model in the area, integrated with the new structure of a reception center, working with the agricultural employers’ associations, trade unions and the local Caritas, in which to receive and host a large group of seasonal foreign workers who arrive in the area in April, often without having real work opportunities. With respect to this problem, the main challenge is connected to finding resources (not only economic) and to start up a structured network with the world of profit, non-profit and associations, also soliciting support provided by supra-municipal institutions.

Provision of information and use of services Pilot territories identify a lacking provision of information and reluctant use in offered services and limited access to services. In part, for an Italian pilot territory, this is presumably due to a limited mobility of people living in isolated/distant villages (limited public transport, limited possibilities for individual travel/mobility). It is stated in an Austrian territory, for example, that information targeted at newcomers on certain topics like mobility (public transport), leisure time and cultural activities or healthcare and social services are missing. On the other hand, there is a Swiss pilot territory, which states that voluntary/optional services are rarely used although they are available. It seems that “there needs to be a certain pressure to use a service or the possibility to use it during working hours” in that territory.

Role of volunteers, cooperation and anti-discrimination In this category, different challenges are presented that proved difficult to assign to the above-mentioned categories. They are subsequently listed:

▪ There is a large pressure on the volunteers in the territory, who could reach a point when they could feel overwhelmed. ▪ A cooperation framework with other municipalities to address welcoming/integration of newcomers is lacking. ▪ The public is afraid of migrants. ▪ Connecting all participants that work with migrants – the state should take are more active role in this issue. ▪ Lacking long-term perspective and vision concerning the future of asylum seekers once they leave the reception camp (they are not independent yet; illiteracy issue, language barriers, economic barriers).

4.2. Range of established welcoming and integration services In the PlurAlps pilot municipalities, a variety of welcoming and integration services and activities is offered, that can be summarized in seven categories (see Table 1). Municipalities are either provider or facilitator of services, while the services are then carried out by individuals, organizations or institutions in the local community. Please consider that the financing source (public or private) of all services has not been defined so that there is a limited distinction between services paid for by the municipality (publicly) and services financed by the private sector.

4.2.1. Service offered or facilitated by municipalities Municipal services, which specifically target newcomers, are welcome folder/materials and personal welcome talks. In these conversations, different aspects of working and living in a new place can be discussed with the newcomer. Administrative tasks like handling visa and registration issues are offered to all citizens. Single municipalities also provide information in various foreign languages on their website or printed flyers. In Switzerland, for example, the services and information (not) given to newcomers corresponds to the permit2 on which they enter the country. To some extent, though, municipalities seek to offer services that address at the same time also locals, e. g. through welcome events for both newcomers and locals, intercultural events at schools and libraries or workshops. The aim of these services is to promote places and opportunities for locals and newcomers to meet and get to know each other. The inquiry among the pilot territory representatives showed, though, that municipalities are generally not expected to offer any welcoming services in particular. They do offer administrative services for anyone (registration, provision of general information) as above-mentioned but welcoming events, welcome talks and welcome folders as well as integration activities are usually offered on own initiative of the municipalities after a need has been identified. Regarding the fields labour market, healthcare and social services, the pilot territories indicated that no responsibility is assumed. By and large, integration in the labour market is rather considered a matter of enterprises and local/regional job facilitation centers. And healthcare and social services are commonly a national matter. Municipalities more often are facilitators of welcoming and integration services. Some pilot municipalities are expected to offer accommodation for refugees/asylum seekers or organize literacy and language courses. They are expected to be provider of those services or to facilitate their provision through contracts with private organizations and third sector organizations like registered charities, cooperatives, social enterprises, etc.

2 There are C-permit, L-permit, and B-permit. Holders of the C-permit receive a welcoming folder and are invited to a welcome event every two years while holders of L-permit and B-permit are not.

The range of services which municipalities support through (co-)financing is broad. This can be in form of a financial contribution of the regional welcome and integration program (e. g. in Switzerland municipalities participate in the cantonal integration program by providing a budget share) or in form of contributions to different programs of other, also public, institutions like schools, libraries, etc. (e. g. in Slovenia). In some cases, the municipality functions as coordinator of the actors and institutions involved in activities related to accommodation and integration of unaccompanied minors, for example.

4.2.2. Services offered by other actors Then there is a variety of services in the pilot territories, which are offered by other actors, like third sector organizations, private institutions, or private individuals. For example, in Bezau, the tourism office, a facility covering several municipalities, functions also as a contact point for questions of newcomers and migrants. In Zermatt, where the cantons assume responsibility for integration measures, a private organization has been mandated by the region to offer counselling and language courses to migrants. In the two fields labour market and healthcare and social services, where municipalities generally do not assume a role, third sector actors have developed services, e.g. to help refugees enter the labour market or auxiliary services to provide health or specialized mental health services to traumatized refugees (e.g. Red Cross, Caritas in Austria).

Table 1: Range of services offered by the pilot municipalities and other actors

Services offered and facilitated by the municipality Services offered by other actors ▪ Welcome folder (information, voucher) ▪ Personal welcome talks ▪ Welcome event Welcoming, ▪ Information events, information booth for immigrants + locals ▪ Tourism association functions as contact point for newcomers administration ▪ Administrative services (visa, registration, migration control, ▪ Private organization (forum) mandated by the region to offer and consulting consulting) counselling for migrants

▪ Municipality as a networker ▪ Integration program for immigrants ▪ Municipality website in different languages

Interpretation ▪ Interpreter/translation services and translation ▪ Interpreter concession pool ▪ Translation services (for the parents at school, counselling) services ▪ Financial resources for translators

▪ Language offers in libraries and kindergarten ▪ Subject-specific (intensive) courses for EU-citizens ▪ Language courses and exams Education, ▪ Educational services for the acquisition of diplomas ▪ Writing courses literacy and ▪ Language courses (basic, advanced) ▪ Teaching aid for pupils language ▪ Literacy courses ▪ Support of unaccompanied minors to find apprenticeships acquisition ▪ Writing courses ▪ Private organization (forum) mandated by the region to offer ▪ Bike courses and diploma language courses ▪ Cooking courses/coffee meetings: information and exchange ▪ Intercultural mediators about daily life and municipal services ▪ Parenting support ▪ Program for social (re)integration of vulnerable groups Living together ▪ Intercultural events in kindergarten, youth center and ▪ Culture and sport associations and everyday intergenerational center ▪ Intercultural events life ▪ Library multicultural events ▪ Festival for cultural diversity ▪ Workshop among local stakeholders and newcomers to ▪ Private organization (forum) mandated by the region to offer understand newcomers’ needs integration courses

Labour market No services assigned to this category. ▪ Support in job search for refugees and migrants

▪ Service “Migrants Care” (auxiliary care service) Healthcare and ▪ Provision of food packages No services assigned to this category. social services ▪ Offers targeted at mental health of people with migratory background and who have experienced escape ▪ Shared accommodation for refugees Accommodation ▪ Shared accommodation for refugees ▪ Additional housing possibilities ▪ Support with search for housing

4.3. Involvement of staff In all pilot territories there is one or more persons involved in the welcoming and integration of newcomers. This can be a full-time or part-time position, though information on full-time equivalents could not be gathered. Mostly, this is municipal staff. In two Italian pilot territories, the dedicated staff engages on the inter-municipal level, thus being the contact point for more than one municipality. In the Swiss pilot territories, the dedicated staff is located on the regional (cantonal) level, a fact that is grounded in the Cantonal Integration Program (KIP). 12 of 13 pilot territories were able to indicate the administrative level of the staff. The amount of hours dedicated to welcoming/integration of newcomers is 0-8 hours in more than half of the pilot territories. In 15% of the territories, staff dedicates between 17-24 hours to integration related issues. In 14% of the territories, staff dedicates between 33-40 hours, while in 14%, staff is involved 41 hours and more. It needs to be mentioned that out of 13 pilot territories, only seven were able to provide an indication of the hours (Figure 4).

Figure 4: Hours/week staff dedicates to migration issues, welcoming newcomers and integration (Eurac Research 2019)

In the pilot territories, the majority of the staff involved in migration and integration issues bring in intercultural competences or has received a specific training or disposes of both (53%). Less than half of the staff has not received any specific training or disposes of any intercultural competences (Figure 5). For some pilot territories, the type of training has been indicated and information given on the education of the staff involved in migration/integration issues. For example, in an Austrian territory, staff received a specific municipal training course on diversity and intercultural openness. In an Italian territory, the dedicated staff are commonly social workers. In another Italian territory, staff has a degree in social work and/or gained intercultural skills through professional and personal experience over the years, in addition to personal training through conferences and seminars. In a Slovenian pilot area, competences of staff also base on the educational background, several years of experience and exchange of information and knowledge with others involved. In yet another Italian territory, inter-municipal staff has attended courses and meetings within specific projects (related to welcoming and integration of migrants), where part of the training is ‘on the job’.

Figure 5: Competences of the staff involved in migration issues, welcoming newcomers and integration (Eurac Research 2019)

How the staff interacts on the local and regional level with cooperation partners has been assessed and is described in a comparative report on “Governance and social networks for welcoming and integrating newcomers” available on the PlurAlps website.

4.4. Future needs and potential for improvement We have previously seen the vast range of activities municipalities and actors in the community offer for welcoming and integrating newcomers. Building on this and experiences gained, the PlurAlps partners together with the pilot territories, seek to improve services. They design, implement and test pilot actions in work package T3. Along with that go capacity-building measures and support and trainings for stakeholders The pilot territories are seeking to improve existing services as well as to introduce new ones. Table 2 lists the activities that should be introduced, indicating what would be crucially required for their introduction. Most of them regard services in the socio-economic and religious-cultural spheres of integration. Services regarding the political-legal integration of newcomers are not mentioned. With a new service, pilot territories aim at satisfying the needs of a specific target group (e.g. families, asylum seekers/refugees, children in kindergarten, foreign minors), like introducing a “welcoming protocol” to be followed when newcomers arrive in the municipality to facilitate procedures (Comunità di Valle della Val di Non). Other services target the general public (both locals and newcomers), e.g. with a welcome party/event or organized gatherings in the municipality or on inter-municipal level. Some pilot territories seek structural improvements in personnel, financing and management. They propose introducing new positions like (inter)cultural mediators, youth and street workers or a job coach e.g. in Engelberg, Mals and Zermatt. In Kapfenberg, the municipality plans to set up a professional arrival management and a professional housing management that facilitates the entrance and settlement of locally needed foreign workforce. With a certain budget, the integration council of the St. Ulrich territory would be enabled to offer a set of integration and welcoming activities. In Postojna, various measures could be introduced if support structures for migrants were improved. To be able to offer a new service, selected pilot territories require the cooperation with neighboring municipalities (Bezau, Saluzzo), e.g. to share on inter- municipal level a service for mediating labour demand and supply in the agricultural sector, or offer a welcoming event. For some offers, the commitment to the activities

by political decision-makers is considered fundamental, for example in Comunità di Valle della Val di Non and Zermatt.

In the course of the PlurAlps project, selected services shown in Table 2 will be implemented, tested and evaluated in the pilot territories (within work package T3). The implementation concepts and lessons learned are afterwards shared among the project partners and published on the project’s website.

As the literature suggests, integration is interaction among individuals, organized groups and institutions on the part of newcomers and the receiving society indicating that many actors and stakeholders are involved in the process (Penninx & Garcés- Mascareñas 2016). Studies further show that integration in rural areas works better if certain conditions are met (Aumüller & Gesemann 2014): ▪ Welcoming is made a matter of the boss (i.e. mayor) who considers integration a municipal leadership-, cross-sector and steering-task ▪ Develop a comprehensive strategy/concept for integration, involving relevant actors in the process ▪ Networking of actors in municipal integration politics ▪ Support to civil actors networks is given, also from the regional and national levels ▪ Sustainable structures for municipal integration work are set up ▪ Link securing skilled labour with the promotion of integration ▪ Intercultural openness of educational institutions is enabled

Thus, in developing the new services, actors and stakeholders together with the PlurAlps partner institutions are well advised to involve and win over the mayor as well as the network of local integration actors, and embedding welcoming and integration activities in a broader and jointly elaborated integration concept or strategy.

Table 2: Need for new services and requirements for introduction

Pilot territory Future service need Requirement for introduction Bezau - Welcome party/event - Good coordination between involved municipalities. - Invitation in easily understandable language. Personal invitation. Include people with migratory background to organize the event. Comunità di - Service to specifically support new families in town. There is no - Collaboration with municipalities, professional mediators. Valle della “welcoming protocol” that is followed. It would be useful if there was one - Political support needed for implementation Val di Non contact person the family could turn to. Engelberg - Extension of services for early childhood intervention and childcare from - Political willingness for childcare/early childhood intervention one to more municipalities3 - Financial means and support - Intercultural mediator, “youth worker” and “street worker”3 - Commitment of municipality Kamnik - More targeted financing No information provided. Kapfenberg - Professional arrival management3 - Regional first contact and coordination point. - Professional housing management - Relevant information on the region for new arrivals. Mals - Job coach, housing coach3 No information provided. - Competence check for asylum seekers and refugees - Training center/places for newcomers to adapt their educational background to EU standard - Therapeutic support for people involved in work with asylum seekers Nizza - Increase activities favoring cultural exchange; activities supporting No information provided. Monferrato active involvement of foreign minors in schools and sports - Launch an institutional table involving public and private services, to build an integrated network of answers Postojna - Language courses - More places to house migrants - Swimming lessons - Better support structures for migrants - Organized gatherings for locals and newcomers - Learning support for kids - More housing projects in different locations Saluzzo - Local mediation service between labour supply and demand for - Shared service with neighboring municipalities to structure reception agricultural sector (e.g. specialized branch of the local employment process and projects for seasonal agricultural workers. office) coordinated by the Piedmont region St. Ulrich - Info evening events concerning culture3 - Budget of approx. € 10.000 - Meetings of associations and migrants3 - Mountain excursions3 - Language courses3 Zermatt - Cultural mediators and coaches in SMEs (local residents/employees - Cultural mediators / coaches should be well-integrated migrants willing that introduce newcomers to local culture and habits to function as to engage in the community bridge between migrants and local inhabitants (accompanying brochure)3

3 Activities implemented within work package T3 of the PlurAlps project.

5. Success stories and limitations

5.1. Stories of success Asked about which activities proved to be the most successful in the pilot territories, representatives replied:

▪ Welcome brochure because it provides all important information in a single document. It is good to have something that can be given to a newcomer (instead of digital information only). ▪ Welcome meetings and events ▪ Language courses were well received as language is basic for everyday life in the pilot territories. They worked as door-openers to the municipal services. Municipalities learned about the needs of newcomers. ▪ Financial sanctions for those who do not speak the locally used language (e.g. in SME, hotels) ▪ Translation and interpretation services that help in various situations (at school, at social services, healthcare, etc.) ▪ Cultural exchange among asylum seekers and pupils telling about their cultural background ▪ Cooking classes and manufacturing works for asylum seekers ▪ Opportunities for EU and non-EU nationals to complete a vocational training. ▪ Setting up an advisory council on integration in the municipality that develops project ideas, launches initiatives, and offers room for exchange and discussion. ▪ Facilitating access to services during working hours (which requires flexibility on the part of service providers, employers and employees)

5.2. Lessons learned Asked about which activities were less successful and the reasons behind, representatives answered:

▪ When asylum seekers arrived in the pilot territory, there was a surplus of activities targeted at them that was overwhelming for those newcomers and thus poorly used. ▪ Certain integration programs available to municipalities are not used or put in practice e.g. by schools and kindergartens. It seems that information on those programs is ineffectively distributed and that a dialogue (communication)

between the regional and municipal level is necessary to organize a presentation of the program to local schools by regional personnel. ▪ In one territory, many SME employ people of the same foreign language. To improve understanding and exchange between that language group and that of the local employees, the latter were offered a foreign language course. However, there was no interest.

6. Conclusions and outlook

The PlurAlps pilot areas find themselves in different situations and stages of development in terms of welcoming services and integrating newcomers. They seek to respond to the various needs of several target groups at different stages of the welcoming and recognition/valorization process (Figure 1). It is also observed that the challenges predominantly relate to the socio-economic and socio-cultural spheres or integration. On the other side, the political-legal integration of newcomers has hardly been addressed in the challenges section or the part on existing and needed services. The pilot territories face different personnel, financial, organizational and regulatory environments which influence the way they (can or cannot) develop services. Equally diverse is the situation on the demand side, i.e. on the side of the people for whom services are developed. Some newcomers are forced to a new place without an occupation and language skills (e.g. asylum seekers, refugees), while others already have a job in a new place but cannot find housing/accommodation or require additional competence training to name just an example. Then again, many services aim at improving the exchange and co-living of newcomers with long-time locals, and achieving an overall good quality of life for the community as a whole. Overall, the collected information shows the diversity of services offered and services being developed that can be an inspiration for others within the PlurAlps project and beyond. In this regard, also the learned lessons (positive/successful and negative/unsuccessful) can be useful. Until October 2019, PlurAlps partners are introducing pilot projects together with local and regional partners to introduce needed future services.