Karen Jacobsen spoke at a workshop, Migrant Journeys Interrupted: Challenges of “Permanent Transience,” in Tijuana, Mexico, on May 20, 2017. The Tijuana workshop focused on cities in Mexico that are grappling with flows of IDPs, third-country migrants and refugees, and Mexicans deported from the United States. It brought together practitioners from the Mexican government (local, state, and federal) and civil society groups from the Tijuana/San Diego border region to share perspectives and generate innovative proposals for improving the lives of migrants and host communities.

The workshop provided a forum for interaction, networking, and problem-solving for stakeholders who noted that they “had almost never found themselves in the same rooms together to discuss mutual problems.” They have already scheduled follow up meetings to continue to address joint issues.

The workshop was part of a grant from the Carnegie Foundation to “bridge the gap” between academics and policymakers on the issue of transit migration and deportation in the Americas.