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Workshop report

Diaspora and development: The case of

May 2017

Greek Diaspora Project

Diaspora and Development: the case of Greece The Project at SEESOX

Workshop Report

The following report draws on discussions from SEESOX’s Greek Diaspora Project (GDP) workshop, entitled “Diaspora and Development: The case of Greece” which took place on March 3rd 2017 at St ’s College, University of . The workshop gathered a of distinguished scholars, from the field of diaspora studies, and from an interdisciplinary perspective, including , politics, international relations, law, economics, anthropology and sociology, to discuss conceptual, methodological and comparative perspectives, within which the study of the Greek diaspora and its relationship with the Greek crisis can be contextualised. The report represents SEESOX’s interpretation of discussions at the workshop and does not purport to reflect the views of any of the participants.

Introduction: The Greek Diaspora impact on their countries’ Project development. Othon Anastasakis, Principal In terms of the project’s approach, it Investigator (PI) of the Greek is historical insofar as the past offers a Diaspora Project (GDP) at SEESOX, contemporary understanding of introduced the themes, objectives abroad and their interaction and methodology of the multiannual with their homeland. It is also research venture. The GDP aims to multidisciplinary, comparative, and examine the interaction between driven by primary research. A key Greeks abroad and crisis-ridden example of this is the conducting of Greece and their actual and potential surveys of diaspora attitudes towards impact in the fields of the economy, the homeland, starting with a survey politics and philanthropy. In order to on Greeks in the UK and expanding it achieve this aim, the GDP produces to other countries with prominent conceptual, comparative and Greek diaspora communities. analytical work, primary research, and The project aims at establishing a policy relevant recommendations. commission entrusted with the The GDP seeks to create synergy in mission of engaging in evidence- and other parts of the gathering through hearings, meetings where the Greek diaspora is located and expert interviews. This (USA, , , , S. commission will publish a white paper and beyond), so networking distilling policy recommendations with other is an important unique to the relationship between component of the project. The Greece and its diaspora. project’s team also holds the ambition to extend the project Among its most ambitious goals, the regionally, encompassing other South GDP is preparing a digital East European and their map/interactive platform depicting diaspora organisations and media.

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The aim of this platform will be to engages with Greece’s facilitate research on the diaspora as developmental trajectory. His much as the interaction between presentation examined this lacuna diaspora and homeland, as well as through the prism of three diaspora actors themselves. interdependent angles: first the Anastasakis also highlighted some perspective of Europe; second the indicative themes which the project study of the diaspora elites; and third will be exploring in the fields of the the diaspora’s increasing power of economy, politics and philanthropy. agency in Greece. For instance, in the economic field, On the first point he argued that Greece is a country for which diaspora Greece’s accession to the European remittances are of declining Community has been a decisive factor importance. However, other issues in the scarcity of policy oriented such as transfer of knowhow, market studies on the Greek diaspora and the access and entrepreneurial motherland. The transfer of EU funds networking, all via the diaspora, are stemmed Greek migration to Western connected to the vital efforts of Europe and lessened commensurably Greek policy makers and economic the importance of already declining stakeholders to boost the remittances of post-WW II Greek international competitiveness of the migrants. Consequently, the Greek Greek economy. In politics, the study research community focused on the of political participation involves the EU as the main locus of funding and assessment of the diaspora as a its corollaries, values and knowledge, political and technocratic actor from for the Greek state, economy and abroad, and how this relates to the society. country’s contentious reform efforts. From a second perspective, the Greek Finally philanthropy, very much Diaspora scholarship has failed to connected with the role of the notice that diaspora elites were a diaspora during the creation and constitutive element of Greece’s evolution of independent Greece in th Europeanization project, influential the 19 century, has become actors in Greece’s public and policy resonant once again, particularly so at discourse, and active philanthropists a when state budgetary cuts (particularly in Greek education, create spaces of opportunity for high culture and ). Commencing impact, diaspora philanthropic giving with the market reforms induced by in public goods such as health, culture Greece’s entry to the , Greek and education. bankers and corporate lawyers, , Kamaras, GDP mostly residing in the City of , associate and representative of the have played a crucial role in the project in Greece, proceeded with a management of expanding access to short analysis of the current state of money and the capital markets of the existing literature. He argued that Republic. Since the 1990’s, there has been a decades-long particularly with the advent of the omission in the involvement of internet, diaspora academics have scholars and policy makers in the been increasingly prominent in some issue of how the Greek diaspora of Greece’s most contentious public

2 debates - ranging from the Greek civil states and develop complex war to the recent contestation relationships with communities, around whether to assign blame to families, and neighbourhoods, not the creditors or to Greek necessarily involving the state itself. governments for the country’s failure Therefore, an initial challenge is that to exit the memoranda. Last but not of capturing the complexity of this least, philanthropic organisations situation, and identifying what founded by -owning loyalties can be commanded by the families have become actors in state. Moreover, when looking at Greece’s culture and the arts. Their spatial concentrations outside funding processes, their Greece, it is important to understand commissioning of public works and how these spaces - in terms of family, their internal operations and financial and cultural flows – connect governance are discreetly different to each other, as well as to the from those of the Greek state or of homeland. Cohen noted that it used wholly home-grown, non-profit to be the case that a country has a organisations. population that disperses and it re- It is therefore necessary that the gathers. Now instead people are research community the starting to connect through a variety diaspora’s increasing power of of experiences, ranging from summer agency vis a vis the Greek polity, vacations to professional economy and society. The diaspora collaboration. These types of can now be the demandeur as the engagement with the homeland are Greek state, due to its fiscal straits, less than return, but more than has been discredited in local disengagement. communities which have to fend for In the discussion that followed, the themselves and may reconnect with point was made that diaspora their diaspora brethren. The tens of financial resources, depending on thousands of recently emigrated their country of origin, carry different individuals demand vocally active values, methods and strategies. political participation, and in Greece’s Therefore when we look at diaspora ageing society and bankrupt pension entrepreneurs investing in the Greek system, their voices carry extra economy, and active in Greek political weight. Finally diaspora investors are and civic life, we also have to analyse important players as the Greek how host country features of economy strives to shift its emphasis diaspora entrepreneurs are shaping from state to private investment. their pattern of interaction with Robin Cohen, Professor of Greece. Indicatively there are Development Studies, Oxford, began significant differences separating in his remarks by challenging the Greek-Americans from Greek- assumption that the state can due to the very distinct US command the loyalty of its diaspora. and Russian business cultures and This assumes the unity of the state institutions shaping business and the diaspora. But diasporas, the behaviour. It was also noted that Greek case included, are research should look at studies on intermittently loyal to their home previous diaspora waves in the 1960s-

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70s, not only from Greece but also Orthodox Church will be very high on from and elsewhere, and in the research agenda of the GDP. particular examining the interaction between return patterns and home Session I: Brain Drain Dynamics country conditions, as in the case of In contrast to the rather limited public Turkey during the high growth period discussion about the actual and of the 2000s. potential impact of the Greek The potential of the GDP’s digital map diaspora on the country’s project was also discussed by socioeconomic development at participants. Would it be a of crisis, considerable attention has participatory map where diaspora been paid on the new major of entities can register and make their out-migration from Greece and the links visible to other groups? Or would concomitant formation of new this be something that GDP map diasporic communities across Europe administrators would do by and beyond. Since 2010, more than themselves? A map project in 400,000 Greek citizens have left the for refugees which visualises local country. Approximately two-thirds of services and has a participatory the outflow comprises of university aspect to it was offered as a graduates, a phenomenon that has comparable project worthy of study. spurred public concern about the With regard to the digital map, it was negative impacts of the on-going noted that such an exercise inevitably brain drain on Greece’s economy and turns the GDP into a political actor, society. because simply by making the Manolis Pratsinakis, Marie Curie diaspora aware of its worldwide researcher at the University of organisational expression, it and Onassis/SEESOX enhances the ability of diaspora fellow for the Greek Diaspora Project, communities and actors to identified two misconceptions in this coordinate between themselves and debate in his presentation. Firstly, with homeland entities. crisis-driven emigration is presented Other important observations as exclusively pertaining to the young regarded the cultural and social and the educated, and the emigration interactions of the wider diaspora of older people, the less well communities, not just of diaspora educated, or minority groups is often elites, and the impact of the Church neglected. Secondly, the emigration on diaspora . From the GDP’s of the highly skilled is presented as a perspective, the focus in its new phenomenon resulting from the philanthropy and volunteerism pillar crisis, whilst the underlying structural on diaspora elite participation seeks causes of the phenomenon, relating to redress a bias in the literature in to nepotism and the labour market’s favour of the average immigrant, focus on the production of low-cost which has resulted in the products and services, are not underestimation of both the actual addressed. and the potential impact of diaspora Due to these structural weaknesses the elites in Greek political and civil life. Greek economy has been unable to As for religion, the role of the Greek take advantage of the presence of a

4 highly educated workforce, and even positive impact can be very before the crisis many highly significant. educated people were leaving the Given that return to Greece is not country in search of employment that something most emigrants are corresponded to their qualifications. planning in the current What differs, however, in present circumstances, the focus of state circumstances is the sheer size of the policy should be the establishment of phenomenon. In addition, while most different means of cooperation with pre-crisis emigrants saw their them. However in view of the emigration as a career step and generalized reservations among planned eventually to return to expatriates towards state Greece, only a minority of the post- institutions, policy aims should not be 2010 migrants view their emigration in framed in such a way as patronizing that way. Most of them feel they lack Greeks abroad, but rather as any prospects in their home country, collaborators in a common mission. feelings which often go hand in hand The approach needs also to be as with a deep disillusionment with the inclusive as possible, addressing older Greek political establishment and expatriate communities and lower state institutions. skilled migrants, recognizing their The departure of these individuals existing contributions and support, could be detrimental for the longer starting from the fact that they are term development potential of the ones most likely to be sending Greece. Yet in the literature views on remittances back home. Such an this issue are divided, Pratsinakis approach should thus include noted. On the one hand, there are interventions and measures that those who argue that the support initiatives abroad international migration of empowering low skilled emigrants, as professionals massively erodes the well as better-educated Greeks and fiscal revenues of abroad who are facing difficulties. The sending countries, driving them into a smoother the adjustment of spiral of underdevelopment. On the emigrants to their new homelands, other hand, there are those who the greater their willingness and argue that the international migration ability to contribute to Greece is likely of professionals may act as a potent to be. In relation to the more highly force for developing the economy of educated migrants, existing bottom- sending countries through up initiatives need be supported not remittances, trade, direct foreign only as a means of recognizing their investment, and knowledge transfer. contributions, but also as a way of Even though the limits to the ability of identifying the areas in which diasporas to bring about political- expatriates perceive opportunities or economic change and social the need for action, and as an optimal transformation should be taken into way of connecting and expanding account against simplistic views that relations with them. fit into currently dominant neoliberal In conclusion, Pratsinakis identified development paradigms, their some of the challenges of conducting research on this topic. He cautioned

5 that diaspora academic experts, connected with its communities similarly to diaspora policy abroad through state institutions, ‘entrepreneurs’, may be in fact co- political parties, and regional constituting the phenomenon under governments. However this examination by their very research institutional nexus had been built for practice. How can the political goals the old diaspora, mainly factory and of the SEESOX Greek Diaspora Project unskilled workers. Moreover, (mobilizing the Greek diaspora in although Italians abroad can vote, the affecting Greece's political and representatives that get elected economic transformation) be best originate from, and represent, the balanced with the academic post-war migration, while the new considerations of doing research on emigrant wave has not yet promoted the matters at hand? and selected its own candidates. In terms of contextualizing Greek Italian migrants have traditionally brain drain/gain dynamics, most of benefitted from a strong network of the evidence in the literature on brain associations connected with Catholic drain/gain comes from research Church, trade unionism or with conducted in developing countries. localities and regions in . Today However, there are several European new associations are emerging, countries that experience significant mainly on the web and social media, outflows of professionals with which some of which are pointing out the Greece shares a number of common deficiencies of the Italian political socioeconomic and political system or lobbying for a more characteristics. The freedom of meritocratic academic system in Italy. mobility in EU provides a unique Franck Duvell, from the Centre on context that necessitates particular Migration, Policy and Society attention. We need to interrogate (COMPAS) at the University of whether the mobility options granted Oxford, pointed out that in fact to Greek citizens by the EU-wide emigration to acquisition of freedom of movement also help experience and new knowledge, create transnational social spaces enhancing the brain (brain-gain). that might compensate in economic, Emigrants also enjoy better pay, they political and civic terms for the costs tend to be employed for their skills, of the ‘exit’ from Greece. and even when they are working at Elizabetta Zontini, University of positions below their potential, they Nottingham, started by noting the still have higher wages, so there is a parallels between Greece and Italy, gain for the individual migrant. In with 300,000 Italians having left their view of these realities, some country between 2009-2012, 30% of countries are even deliberately them highly skilled. However, she producing skills in order to export added that emigration had already them to destination countries. He also started prior to this, from the early noted that the concept of brain drain 1990s, so it has not been exclusively neglects the perspective of crisis induced. In contrast to Greece, “temporality”. Brain drain as a the Italian state has been more concept tends to be associated with a involved with its diaspora. Italy is rather short-term perspective and

6 that is why, when we examine the structures, are not relevant for the phenomenon, we should look at new migration wave. The group previous waves as well and the return proposed some suggestions such as patterns which they gave rise to. the use of professional and university People at some point may return, so based networks, given that the new we cannot say for certain that the diaspora is more educated and tends brain drain is going to last. to socialise around their professional A point which was raised during and educational affiliations, such as discussion was that we need to take doctors, engineers, alumni of into account Greece’s demographics particular high schools, and so on. when estimating the brain drain / brain Another approach would be to focus gain calculus. By 2050, 40% of the on city based networks as many new population is expected to be over 60 emigrants in European cities try to years old, so those who have left will locate their co-nationals, sign up for not pay social security and the Greek news in restaurants, or inquire back in state will be even more fiscally unable Greece who among their wider circle to support the elderly. lives in their European city of choice. Considering that there is a type of Caution was encouraged towards the self-aggregating/self-selection idealisation of the Greek diaspora’s dynamics to these choices and trends, positive contribution to the the surveying and analytical challenge homeland’s exit from the crisis, given is to identify these dynamics and that the latest emigrants do not yet ensure that no groups which are necessarily perceive themselves as excluded from them are left such, i.e. as those that will provide unrecorded. best practices, invest in Greece and so on. Therefore, the GDP’s approach In response to the discussion, the should identify distinct diasporic research entry point of brain drain / communities and investigate what brain gain that was identified was the different kinds of agencies these study of the outflow of professions diaspora groups might possess or from Greece and its contextualisation discover. within crisis-driven emigration. It was also mentioned that the Greek The group discussed the technical Diaspora Project will conduct challenges of surveying the new questionnaire-based surveys on the emigration waves, given that one of recent emigrant wave. These surveys the missions of the GDP is to produce will examine issues relevant to the primary findings through survey Project’s research remit such as work. Some methodological willingness and ability to engage with problems involve questions such as Greece, experiences abroad, ‘How does one approach a socioeconomic situation, and values community that does not have clear held, in terms of how they differ representatives, clear channels and within the diaspora and how they spaces of collective action?’ relate to Greece. Organisational structures that were It was also acknowledged that there developed in previous migration waves, such as the church or the are distinct research alternatives, homeland locale of origin-based such as micro- versus macro-stories

7 and the anthropological approach  The founding of new versus the economists’ big-data institutions in the post- approach. Such choices must communist 1990s for the inevitably be made. of Greeks from the and North in Session II: Political Participation , in order to manage The second session discussed the their integration into the Greek Greek diaspora and its participation in polity and society. Greece’s public life and was presented by Othon Anastasakis and It is important to note that there is no Lamprini Rori, SEESOX/A.G. Leventis right for Greeks abroad to vote for fellow. The traditional way of national elections. Since the 1970s, approaching Greek diasporas has the diasporic voting behaviour been through “long distance traditionally has been clientelistic and ”, dominated by the party politicized, based on the party- notion of national interest and the funded transportation of voters promotion of homeland causes through the use of the then state- entered on foreign and national owned carrier, . As security policy. In the economic such the diasporic vote was divided domain, diaspora-relevant state between the two big parties, PASOK institutions have been mostly and New . focusing on maximizing remittances. The financial crisis and its economic In its more recent history the Greek repercussions have increased the state adopted relevant clauses in the flow of exit and thus the potential constitution, as well as some political significance of the Greek mechanisms of engaging with its diaspora. That said, two main diaspora, for example: observations can be made.  Article 108 of the 1975 Greek The first observation regards the low constitution, which refers for motivation of the crisis-driven the first time to the Greek emigrants to engage politically with diaspora as Hellenism that Greece: once one takes the decision requires interest from the Greek to exit the country, one has less state. incentive to interfere with the Greek  The 1983 creation of the General reality which one decided to leave. Secretariat of Hellenism The second observation relates to an Abroad, with the mission of anti-bailout political narrative catering for Greeks abroad in featuring conspiracy, nationalist and the fields of education, anti-elite perceptions of (a) crisis conferences, cultural events fabricated by external forces in order etc. and coordinating and to sell Greece’s property to multi- organizing state diaspora nationals, (b) victimhood at the policies individual and national level (c) cold-  The 1995 creation of the Council blooded technocrats, experts and of Greeks Abroad with its basis intellectuals who propose irrelevant in cookie-cutter solutions irrelevant to the Greek reality. These perceptions

8 do not leave the diaspora and  How can the different diasporas homeland relationship untouched. engage with the Greek crisis and Envy and resentment build relate to each other with regard stereotypes for Greeks both living in to Greece? Can they benefit Greece and abroad. Greeks living from the possibilities existing abroad are frequently perceived as through information and “well-off”, “rescued”, “not having communications technology to sense or comprehension of how institutionalize a horizontal people in the homeland make ends between them? meet”. The “outsiders” may hold Nicholas Van Hear, Deputy Director of stereotyped views of the “insiders” COMPAS, Oxford, injected a word of as incapable of pursuing another life caution on the congruence between abroad, as lazy, and agents of a - politics and ideas between the seeking, clientelistic and frequently diaspora and those back home. As an corrupt mentality are also present in extreme case he mentioned the the narrative of the expatriates. Palestinian example, where in the Countervailing forces to these Oslo Accord negotiations obstacles are: participating diaspora individuals who  The financial strength of had not been in Palestine for years diaspora Greeks which enables rather incredibly had forgotten, or did them to be active players in the not know, the of the Bank. inflow of foreign capital, which has become a top priority of Van Hear also emphasised the Greece’s official creditors. disaggregation of diaspora  Strong support among Greek engagement with the homeland at parties of the centre left and three levels: first, the extended family centre right or among some (as the most common and constant media, for a meaningful form of diaspora-homeland diaspora contribution to engagement); second, the imagined Greece’s exit from the crisis. community (the nation as the largest unit that one claims affiliation to); Some indicative questions and, thirdly, the meso-level, the posed, in the context of this familiar communities, neighbours, brief outline are: schools, work places, sports clubs,  How to form a new state- cultural and religious groups and diaspora institutional activities. relationship during a period of Maria Koinova, Principal Investigator severe budgetary constraints? of the European Research Council  What kind of political funded project “Diasporas and interactions can be established Contested Sovereignty” at the (votes, policies, identities, ideas, University of Warwick, relayed her intellectuals etc.) in a period of expertise on diaspora relations generalized limited trust and toward conflict or post-conflict states negativity of political discourses (such as and Bosnia). She talked at home? about the importance of -

9 building across all levels of actors had three main strategies for government in the diaspora and influencing politics in : first, they homeland relationship, which the offered symbolic support for activists development literature has been in Egypt by being visible in the public grappling with. Koinova emphasised sphere in the receiving country; the role of individuals and the skills second, they sought to influence sets, tactics and strategies that make public opinion by inciting debates and a diaspora actor effective or not, and by connecting to political actors and the extent to which such qualities can civil society organizations in the be generalised and connected with receiving country; and third, they policy making. She underlined that provided the European – and context is important in the sense that sometimes Egyptian – public with diasporas are embedded in the alternative information about Egypt. particular spaces, cities and networks The most successful diaspora activists in which they function, providing were those who managed to find opportunities as well as constraints allies in the receiving country by on how they engage with their attaching their cause to a bigger homeland. She also spoke of the need political cause, such as human rights to theorise about the notion of issues, social justice and Christian positionality - how is a diaspora minorities in the . entrepreneur encouraged by the Pavlos Eleftheriadis, Associate local context and/or how does Professor in the Faculty of Law, positionality between the host-state Oxford, talked about his personal and home-state shape the ability of a experience as a diaspora scholar diaspora actor to make a increasingly active in national politics contribution? of his homeland, where he ran as an Lea Muller Funck, OxPo visiting parliamentary candidate in Greece research fellow at the Department of and was involved in his party’s Politics and International Relations, governance and policy deliberations. Oxford University, made references He underlined that it is very easy to politics in nowadays to keep in touch (via email, European capitals during the recent video calls, Facebook, Twitter etc) revolutionary and post-revolutionary with Greece, so he could regularly period. Her operating term is interact with party colleagues in “transnational political networks”, a Greece and participate in party non-normative concept that pays deliberations as if he were a resident. attention to networks related to On the other hand this ability to national origins. Her research modus communicate and interact did not operandi is to find these networks, necessarily translate into bridging the most prominent actors mental maps between those and then follow their presence on politicians abroad and those in the social media. Muller Funck’s main homeland. finding is that diaspora politics are Discussion on political participation often directed towards both the reviewed longer trends, such as the country of origin and the receiving progressive or regressive character of country. In the case of Egypt, diaspora Greece’s diaspora communities and

10 what this implies for the of Session III: Philanthropy and their involvement with Greece. It was Volunteerism pointed out that historically, and even The third session discussed prior to the foundation of the Greek philanthropy and volunteerism, and state, the diaspora was the agent and the obstacles and politics that define conduit of some progressive ideas of the diaspora’s role and capacity to nation building in Greece. Having said make a difference in the country’s that, diaspora communities shaped in th public and non-profit sectors. Antonis the 20 century where distance was Kamaras started by stating that considerable and families were not philanthropy and volunteerism able to go back to Greece so often, as constitute an issue of mutually in the case of Greek migration to reinforcing demand and supply Australia in the 1950s, were constraints. He argued that there are committed to a nostalgia-shaped public and private demand constrains Greece and thus alienated by the in Greece. More specifically, following exposure to the Greece they the 2011 educational reform more rediscovered decades hence. than a hundred Greek academics from More generally, it was pointed out overseas were elected members and that diasporas are not necessarily one even presidents of newly founded or the other, progressive or boards of the state universities in regressive, and that apart from the Greece. This development undercut specificities and diversities within the the position of Greek University diasporas themselves, attitudes and faculty who had previously parlayed outlooks can change over time. The with student unions to new wave of the is dominate the leadership ranks of such a case, with younger, urban, Greece’s universities, despite in some better educated Italian emigrants cases the lack of a distinguished having a different outlook to the older scholarly record. Thus resistance to Italian diaspora communities. the diaspora-filled boards can be Nevertheless, it was also pointed that found across the political spectrum of we should not conceptualise diaspora university faculties in Greece but it is features exclusively in terms of waves more prominent, according to and generations, and adopt more Kamaras, among the far left faculty fluid and time-compressed for a combination of ideological and demarcations. Finally, it was career profile reasons. mentioned that in surveying Another institutional conflict particular diaspora communities the demonstrates that the pro- and anti- Greek Diaspora Project would not diaspora philanthropy and limit itself to measuring party volunteerism split goes beyond the identification, but also examine the traditional public versus private or the underlying value systems of diaspora left versus right divisions. A typical communities, the factors that shape example is College, which has them, and how they compare with the been ruled by two boards since its changing value system of the foundation, one headquartered in population in the homeland during New York and one in Athens, the the crisis. latter initiating an effort in 2007 to

11 eliminate the influence of the New of ship-owners. Ship-owners have York board. On the one side stood a personal and professional lives lived group of residents of Athens for both in Greece and abroad. They have whom control of and genuine stakes in Greece due to their of its legacy admissions policy, constitutionally protected tax privileging entry of alumni children, amnesty, their sourcing of crews and was de facto a source of significant management teams, and their social influence. On the other side investment in non-shipping sectors in stood a group of mostly Greek- Greece. They have also attained a Americans, with less incentive in level of wealth that places them enhancing Athenian social influence amongst the global financial elite and due to their non-resident status, and they live for long periods of time in associating their effort to maintain places such as London, Geneva, their governance role at Athens or New York. Ship-owners College with a meritocratic and thus have the local motives and the modernisation agenda. know-how to become important These demand constraints in Greece philanthropists in Greece. They also interact with supply constraints in the bring their philanthropic enterprise to diaspora as in the case of Greek- Greece with the kind of operational American philanthropists. The excellence and best practice to which unwillingness to invite the input and they are exposed to internationally. participation of the Greek-American The second category is Greek diaspora has meant that Greece has Americans who are board members had minimal influence on the of US institutions operating in Greece, evolution of Greek-Americans. This such as Deree and Colleges vacuum has been filled in the US by or the Archaeological School of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Athens. According to Kamaras, these America and by US-relevant giving. An institutions offer to their Greek- investigation of Greek-American American Trustees high quality US patterns of philanthropic giving governance standards, a long track reveals (a) a pattern of donations record of navigating the intricacies of directed towards church related operating in Greece, in addition to the activities in the US and to the possibility of making a tangible Patriarchate in and contribution to Greek society. (b) a number of Greek-Americans, , Professor of History usually highly educated, involved in and Emeritus fellow of St Antony’s sectors such as high technology and College, highlighted the effort of UK entertainment, that have opted out universities to attract scarce Greek of the traditional Orthodox Church donor funds, diaspora and non- charitable vehicles, while being diaspora, for Byzantine and Modern generous donors to other causes Greek studies. He argued that irrelevant to Greece. particularly in the present juncture Kamaras offered two alternative Greek diaspora funding should be categories on how to mitigate these directed mainly at Greek universities demand and supply constraints. The and at subject matters that are first category comes from the world directly relevant to the crisis

12 besetting Greece, and ‘not to the Dimitris Tziovas, Professor of Modern glory that was Greece’. Greek Studies of the University of Iryna Lapshyna, Senior Researcher at Birmingham, analysed in depth the COMPAS, Oxford, in her discussant’s Greek-American diaspora’s allegiance comments asked for a more detailed to a notion of Hellenism that relates investigation of the Athens College to Greece’s classical tradition but not conflict, in terms of motivation, board so much with contemporary Greece. composition and the issues at stake. Tziovas also referred to past failed She also related the Greek experience attempts, mainly by the Greek state to the Ukrainian case, where the and /or Greek state institutions, such diaspora is negatively perceived as as the Council of the World’s Hellenes “didactic and superior”, as not and the Institute for the Cooperation helping economically, and that they of Scientists, to effectively might even be perceived as institutionalise diaspora and treasonous towards their own homeland relations. Tziovas country. Lapshyna also questioned encouraged us to explore other forms the focus of Greek philanthropy on of institutionalising diaspora and wealthy donors, pointing out that homeland interactions, not while in the past philanthropy was necessarily involving the Greek state, associated with wealthy industrial but instead mostly private actors. donors, more recently many middle- On the subject of diaspora’s income and even low-income commitment, via philanthropy and individuals donate money and volunteerism, the importance of resources for philanthropic causes. contingency in the shaping of major She related this trend to her own events ranging from the cataclysmic research findings on the Ukrainian to the transformative, was stressed. diaspora, where those born in This includes the case of the poverty that then succeed are more reanimated in the likely to donate and that relatively wake of the major in poor and middle-income individuals in 1988, this natural disaster make considerable contributions to occurring just prior to post-Soviet charities. In particular the revolution independence. Another indicative in in 2013 has had a profound example is that of Chinese Americans impact on the Ukrainian community in who long avoided connecting with UK and with both the motherland until Nixon made his communities demonstrating the opening to in 1972, after which ambition, willingness and resources they started articulating themselves to contribute to the development of as a community. The Jewish Ukraine. This is not a monopoly of and the developments of a wealthy or highly skilled or “survivors’ guilt” made Jewish- intellectual diaspora; instead all American philanthropic engagement diaspora groups make contributions with both unique and non- to the home country. Many unskilled replicable amongst other diaspora and even undocumented migrants try communities. to contribute, for instance through An interesting example of diaspora humanitarian aid. volunteerism that was mentioned

13 was diaspora undertaken and , by internationally recognised in their involvement with Greek state diaspora figures from the world of universities, engaged in a transfer of arts and sports. Important best governance and organisational personalities in their field utilise their practices? Or do they become wide recognition and their time and enmeshed in the pathologies of Greek endorsement in the service of higher education, reproducing, homeland causes. through their own distinct Finally, a participant criticised contribution, these pathologies? Kamaras’ binary driven analysis of On the subject matter of focusing on diaspora as modernising, standards- elite donors and volunteers versus driven philanthropists and donors and volunteers across the volunteers, versus home country socioeconomic spectrum, it needs to opponents with a retrograde and be established whether Greece, even clientelist agenda. In particular, the amidst a severe economic crisis, can disinterestedness of diaspora actors resemble countries like Ukraine which was questioned and it was posited are engaged in military conflict and that the drive for public recognition thus able to generate mobilisation either outside Greece or in Greece across the socioeconomic hierarchy in might be what explains diaspora the diaspora community. If this is not involvement, and not determination the case, then it is incumbent to to advance a modernisation agenda assess the impact of elite which, in and by itself, could also be volunteerism and philanthropy by the subjected to critical scrutiny. In the diaspora, the choices it privileges, and same vein, the Greek academic the it might or might not diaspora’s assumed superior enjoy, in such domains of public professional ethos and cultural interest as culture, education, health norms, demonstrated through their and and the Third engagement with the governance of Sector at large. Greek state universities, was also considered problematic. Assuming that philanthropic and volunteer engagement in the US is fuelled by a diversity of motives, including self-interest such as network building and social recognition, it is important to question whether there are strong normative expectations shaping the way this engagement will be actualised in Greece, in terms of continued adherence to such concepts as fiduciary responsibility, meritocracy and best governance practices. Similarly, are Greek academics from elite universities in

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Ten key points Reviewing the presentations and the minutes of the workshop, we selected ten indicative points that emerged which we consider to be of future benefit and relevance to the research focus of the Greek Diaspora Project: 1. As per Kalypso Nicolaidis’ final commentary, the questions of how, who, why and when, are very important framing research devices. How do we connect time to the formation of outlook and the initiation of action by the diaspora in relation to the homeland? Who among the diaspora interacts with the homeland and under what conception of the self and the diaspora group to which he or she belongs? Why and for what reason and incentive does this interaction take place, out of what commitments does it ? And when does action become implemented and is or is not rendered effective? Does it involve networks, is the homeland state able to shape and direct the interaction, do the particularities of the Greek crisis combine with the realities of present day diasporic existence in particularly noteworthy ways, or they do so on the basis of well-recognised, global paradigms? 2. The power and ability of contingency to shape diaspora attitudes towards the homeland and thus the diaspora and homeland relationship. Thus it is incumbent upon us to look, through a comparative exercise, at whether the powerful contingency represented by Greece’s severe economic crisis has a similar capacity to that of other cases mentioned to transform the outlook and interaction of the Greek diaspora communities with their homeland. 3. The diverse modes of engagement of diaspora actors with the homeland, be they intermittent or periodical, family-driven or professional and associational, and the three spheres of interaction, namely the micro-, meso- and macro- national levels. 4. The exploration of positionality, of the skills and entry points which make for successful impact by diaspora actors on their homelands, and the utilisation of political influence in pursuit of economic aims. 5. The evaluation of freedom of movement within the EU as a key aspect of brain drain/gain dynamics. The policies both of the EU and the level of a member country like Greece can shape one of the Union’s four freedoms, such that it continues to the needs and rights of the individual EU citizen and of the receiving but particularly of the crisis-hit homeland countries. Relatedly, the temporality of exodus and return, as illuminated by other diaspora wave episodes. 6. The comparative character of the Greek Diaspora Project, focusing on particular countries of and of Central and , and the distinct research angles that different comparator groups can bring forward. Relatedly, the issue of whether policy instruments created for developing countries by transnational organisations, such as the , are appropriate for a country like Greece and, if so, what are the obstacles in being perceived as such by Greek actors.

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7. The question what capacity does the Greek diaspora have, old and new, for cross–border mobilisation in receiving countries? Moreover, whether the economic crisis itself is sufficient to activate or create such cross-border networks. The strategies and effectiveness of such cross-border mobilisations in receiving countries in terms of effecting change in the homeland. 8. The distinction between a progressive or a regressive diaspora and indeed what it means to be one or the other. Relatedly the issue of the formation of identities of particular diaspora communities, such as the Greek-American community, and whether such identities hinder or facilitate, and under what conditions, interaction with the homeland. 9. The interaction between the debtor and creditor relationship and the diaspora’s political impact on policymaking and the economy. Relatedly, the way the diaspora and homeland relationship might be refracted through the creditor and debtor, foreign and indigenous relationships. 10. The issue of whether emphasis on upper level professionals and the extremely wealthy, in terms of diaspora volunteerism and philanthropy in Greece, is justified. If indeed it is, does elite involvement in philanthropy and volunteerism by the diaspora privilege particular choices in the public domain and does it raises issues of legitimacy?

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Programme The aim of the workshop is to discuss how diasporas engage with home-countries in socioeconomic crisis with a special emphasis on the case of Greece. The working premise of the workshop is that Greece, in order to meet its developmental challenge and escape the systemic crisis that still bedevils it, needs to mobilize all available resources: in order to renew its institutional foundations, create an internationally competitive economy and restore its severely undermined international stature. Many of these resources either exist in the Greek Diaspora or are being dissipated through the ongoing brain drain phenomenon. The workshop will examine this premise, conceptually and comparatively, by looking at three themes: brain drain/brain gain dynamics; political participation; and philanthropy. Introduction of the project Presentation of the project by Othon Anastasakis & Antonis Kamaras Comments by Robin Cohen

SESSION I: Brain drain dynamics Introductory presentation by Manolis Pratsinakis Comments by Franck Duvell, Elisabetta Zontini Chair: Eirini Karamouzis Following the outbreak of the economic crisis in 2009, Greece is experiencing yet another major wave of out-migration, this time composed predominantly of highly skilled professionals. Greece has long postponed the move from a low-cost to a knowledge-based economy, despite the fact that since the 1990s a significant upward trend in higher education studies was observed in the country. As a result, the Greek economy has been unable to take advantage of the presence of a highly educated workforce and even before the crisis significant of highly educated people left the country in search of employment that corresponded to their qualifications and career ambitions. Yet it is during the crisis that the ongoing brain drain has acquired alarming proportions, triggered by a sudden aggravation of the unfavorable conditions in the national labour market that were already acting as push factors. The first session will discuss:  What policies may be implemented in the shorter, medium and longer term as a means of alleviating the negative consequences of the phenomenon, and potentially turning the situation into an opportunity for the restructuring of the country in the future?  What can scholars on Greece, policy makers and non-state Greek stakeholders learn from other countries which have experienced meaningful brain circulation processes and /or have sought to effect and compound the impact of brain circulation in their economies and institutions?

SESSION II: Political participation Introductory presentation by Othon Anastasakis and Lamprini Rori Comments by Nicholas Van Hear, Maria Koinova, Lea Muller-Funk Chair: Kalypso Nicolaidis

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Diasporas have the potential to affect domestic developments in their homelands through the flow of political ideas and distinct political practices. Historically, the Greek diaspora had enjoyed a measure of influence in Greek foreign policy. The economic crisis has catalyzed the participation of the diaspora in a number of different ways on issues of domestic concern and / or issues which straddle the domestic & international domains, such as the negotiations with the country’s creditors. From Greece’s public discourse and policy debate to the increasing demands for the participation of the diaspora in the electoral process, the diaspora has become a meaningful political actor. The second session will discuss the implications of this process and learn from other experiences.  What types of sociopolitical remittances may be expected to flow from the Diaspora to the homeland and what types of networks may be expected to emerge in a period when levels of trust towards established political institutions in Greece are extremely low?  How can these new sociopolitical transnational spaces be creatively mobilized in an attempt to renew the country’s institutional foundations? What can be the policy responses, considering similar developments in the interaction between diaspora communities and homeland polities elsewhere in the world?

SESSION III: Philanthropy Introductory presentation by Antonis Kamaras Comments by Richard Clogg, Iryna Lapshyna, Dimitris Tziovas Chair: Renee Hirschon Diaspora philanthropy and volunteerism, has defined Greece’s diasporic prominence in the homeland since the inception of the Greek state. This tradition which progressively atrophied in the post WW II period is becoming particularly relevant in the present period of deep and prolonged economic crisis: Both the severe budgetary cuts and the crisis-driven reform process have drawn to Greece’s public and non-profit driven institutions, such as hospitals, universities and , diaspora volunteerism and donations. Yet it is commonly acknowledged that the diaspora’s contribution could be much more significant both in terms of funding and know-how.

 What are the determinants of diaspora philanthropy and interest in homeland investment?  Which are the obstacles and the politics that drive and / or constrain the diaspora in its capacity as a volunteer and a donor in Greece and what other cases of cross-border philanthropy and volunteerism can us about the Greek case?

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Participants Othon Anastasakis Director, South East European Studies at Oxford and Coordinator Greek Diaspora Project Maria Anastasopoulou MSc Student, Migration Studies, Oxford Richard Clogg Emeritus Fellow, St Antony’s College Robin Cohen Emeritus Professor and former Director, International Migration Institute, University of Oxford Franck Duvell Associate Professor and Senior Researcher, Centre on Migration, Policy and Society, University of Oxford Pavlos Eleftheriadis Associate Professor of Law, University of Oxford Leslie Fesenmyer ESRC Future Research Leaders Fellow, Centre on Migration, Policy and Society, University of Oxford Kira Gartzou PhD Student, London School of Economics Renee Hirschon St Peter’s College and St Antony’s College Antonis Kamaras Country Representative, Greek Diaspora Project, South East European Studies at Oxford Foteini Kalantzi PhD Student, , Thessaloniki Eirini Karamouzi Lecturer in , University of Sheffield Maria Koinova Reader in International Relations, Warwick University Iryna Lapshyna Senior Researcher, Centre on Migration, Policy and Society, University of Oxford Michalis Moutselos Post-Doctoral Fellow, Department of Socio-cultural Diversity, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity, Founding member, Braingain Lea Müller-Funk OxPo Postdoctoral Fellow / Research Associate, CERI (Sciences Po) Yiorgos Mylonadis Adjunct Professor of Strategy, London Business School Kalypso Nicolaidis Professor of International Relations & Director of the Centre for International Studies, University of Oxford Elli Palaiologou MPhil Student, DPIR, University of Oxford (Rapporteur) Elias Papaioannou Professor of Economics, London Business School Manolis Pratsinakis SEESOX/Onassis Fellow, Greek Diaspora Project, Department of Politics and International Relations; Marie Curie Fellow, University of Macedonia, Thessaloniki Lamprini Rori SEESOX/A.G.Leventis Fellow, St Antony’s College Dimitris Tziovas Professor, Department of Classics, and Archaeology Centre for Byzantine, Ottoman & Studies School of History and Cultures, University of Birmingham Nick Van Hear Deputy Director, Centre on Migration, Policy and Society, University of Oxford Vassiliki-Eleni Milonidis MRes Student University College London Effie Voutira Professor, Department of Balkan, Slavic & Oriental Studies, University of Macedonia Elisabetta Zontini Associate Professor, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Nottingham

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Greek Diaspora Project

The Greek Diaspora Project explores the relationship between Greece and the Greeks abroad in the context of economic crisis and beyond. It investigates how the Greek diaspora can affect Greece's political and economic transformation and explores ways for the Greek state, economy and society to interact with its diaspora and vice versa. This project is designed to reach a wide audience beyond academia.

Goals The project seeks to:

 Become the preeminent forum for debate between the wider diaspora scholarship and scholarship dedicated to the Greek diaspora;  Relate Greece and its diaspora to countries which can serve as benchmarks in the way they conduct diaspora-homeland interactions and pursue in-depth comparative studies;  Be a port of call for anyone interested in contemporary aspects of the Greek diaspora, in terms of its library and archival resources, activities, institutional affiliations, policy relevant research;  Analyse the new trends characterizing the current Greek diaspora in conjunction to the historical context, socio-economic change, varieties of cultural affinities and so on;  Assess the developmental impact of the diaspora on the Greek economy and identify policies that can maximize its contribution;  Provide valuable insights by serving as the nexus between research and policy;  Inform Greek public debate and Greek policy makers on the Greek diaspora, its evolution and the policy implications of actual and potential interactions between the diaspora and Greece;  Secure funding and research opportunities for a young generation of scholars dedicated to the study of the Greek diaspora.

SEESOX Greek Diaspora Project University of Oxford

E-mail: [email protected]

www.sant.ox.ac.uk/research-centres/south-east-european-studies-oxford/greek-diaspora-project

20 Greek Diaspora Project: Interactive Map

21 About SEESOX

South East European Studies at Oxford (SEESOX) is part of the European Studies Centre (ESC) at St Antony’s College, Oxford. It focuses on the interdisciplinary study of the , Greece, Turkey and . Drawing on the academic excellence of the University and an international network of associates, it conducts scholarly and policy relevant research on the multifaceted transformations of the . It follows closely contemporary developments and analyses the historical and intel- lectual influences which have shaped perceptions and actions in the region. In Oxford’s best tradi- tion, the SEESOX team is committed to understanding the present through the longue durée and re- flecting on the future through high quality scholarship.

Principal objectives:  To support high-quality teaching and research on South East Europe;  To organise conferences, workshops and research seminars;  To promote the multi-disciplinary study of the region within the University of Oxford (e.g. politics, international relations, anthropology, sociology, economics) working in collaboration with other Centres and Programmes within the University, including student societies;  To spearhead intellectual exchanges and debate on these issues among networks of individuals and institutions beyond Oxford;  To foster cooperation between the academic and the policy making communities.

SEESOX European Studies Centre St Antony’s College University of Oxford

E-mail: [email protected]