Forced Migration and Refugee Studies: Networking and Knowledge Transfer

Cooperation. Promotion. Dialogue.

The project Forced Migration and Refugee Studies: Networking and Knowledge Transfer (FFVT) is a collaboration between three renowned institutes whose aim it is to sustainably strengthen interdisciplinary forced migration and refugee studies in Germany. At its core, FFVT is committed to promoting internationalisation and diversity in the academic engagement with forced migration and displacement.

In its second funding phase, FFVT builds on the success of its predecessor project FFT and can look back on a long and successful trajectory. FFVT brings together leading scholars from Germany and abroad—through the organisation of conferences, the hosting of fellows and the promotion of academic cooperation.

The project also makes research findings accessible to a wider public through various media formats, thereby contributing to informed societal debates.

FFVT is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMBF).

To foster academic exchange, networking and collaboration, FFVT organises a wide range of workshops. More than 750 researchers from different disciplines from over 46 countries have participated in FFVT events. In addition, FFVT regularly hosts large international conferences in the field of forced migration and refugee studies, most recently in 2024 for the German Network for Forced Migration Studies (Netzwerk Fluchtforschung). The project also hosts international researchers at its institutes, bringing new expertise and underrepresented perspectives to Germany. These networking activities frequently lead to successful applications for innovative research projects. FFVT's work is recognised across borders, and today, the project actively contributes to shaping major global networks, such as the International Migration Research Network (IMISCOE) and the International Association for the Study of Forced Migration (IASFM).

To support early-career researchers and ensure the long-term development of forced migration and refugee studies in Germany, FFVT promotes cooperation and networking among forced migration-related master’s programmes at German universities. It also provides a comprehensive overview of study opportunities for prospective students. A biennial international Summer School at Nuremberg Castle and a steadily growing alumni network contribute sustainably to capacity building. Furthermore, FFVT strengthens the integration of early-career researchers into international structures through active exchange with international partners.

FFVT members and cooperating experts maintain regular dialogue with journalists and policymakers. The FFVT website serves as a hub for evidence-based information, offering tools such as the research network and the Ukraine Information Hub. In addition, FFVT publishes the annual global refugee report (Report Globale Flucht, in German), which has quickly established itself as a key reference point for the media, politics and the wider public on one of today’s most pressing issues. The project also maintains a strong presence on social media and offers public debate formats such as “FFVT-on point”.

With its diverse activities, FFVT contributes to establishing a sustainable infrastructure for forced migration and refugee research in Germany, enabling excellent, practice-oriented and impactful academic work.

Implementing Institutions: Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies (bicc), Centre for Human Rights Erlangen-Nürnberg (CHREN), Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg), and the Institute for Migration Research and Intercultural Studies (IMIS, Osnabrück University)

Sponsorship: German Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR)

Project Management Agency: German Aerospace Center (DLR)

Project duration: First phase: January 2020–December 2024. Second phase: January 2025–December 2029

Project Management: Professor Dr Andreas Pott (IMIS), Apl. Professor Dr Jochen Oltmer (IMIS), Professor Dr Christine Lang (IMIS), Professor Dr Conrad Schetter (bicc), Professor Dr Petra Bendel (CHREN)

Project Coordination: Maarit Thiem (bicc), Dr Franck Düvell (IMIS), Tino Trautmann (CHREN)

Team Members: Rolf Alberth (bicc), Lars Wirkus (bicc), Dr Benjamin Etzold (bicc), Dr Daniele Saracino (bicc)

Student Assistants: Julia Reichert (bicc), Isabelle Pooth (IMIS), Antonia Philipp (CHREN), Melina Müller (CHREN)

FFVT is currently in its second funding phase, which began in early 2025. The websites of its predecessor project ‘Forced Migration: Research and Transfer’ (FFT), which ran from 2016 to 2019, as well as the first funding phase (2020–2024) remain accessible online.

The project ‘Forced Displacement: Research and Transfer’ laid the groundwork for a sustainable strengthening of the field by consolidating existing knowledge, mapping the state of academic debates and developing concrete policy recommendations based on the state of research. The project also published state-of-research papers and policy briefs on specific topics.

In addition, various workshops and conferences with policymakers, the media and practitioners ensured the transfer of research findings, exchange and networking. However, FFT also revealed that at the time, forced migration and refugee studies in Germany suffered from weak networking and a lack of academic cooperation, particularly at the international level. Its follow-up project FFVT therefore aims to strengthen networking within forced migration and refugee research and to enhance integration into the international research community.

FFT was funded by the German Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) from 2016 to 2019 and jointly implemented by bicc - Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies (then Bonn International Center for Conversion) and the Institute for Migration Research and Intercultural Studies (IMIS) at the University of Osnabrück.