Living in two countries: Transnational living as an alternative to migration

Abstract

After three decades of scholarship, transnationalism remains understood as connections between people who have migrated and people who remain in the country of origin. Such ties are important and prevalent. But perhaps a radical extension of transnationalism is also warranted: There are people who are neither ‘migrants’ nor ‘non‐migrants’ but lead transnational lives that evade these categories. In such cases, transnationalism is not a consequence of migration, but rather a fundamental challenge to it. This article connects the established literature on transnationalism with this potentially significant perspective. We draw on the phrase ‘living in two countries’, which incorporates the tensions and contradictions that transnational living entails. Drawing upon diverse empirical data, we ask how we might identify lives that span two countries and, how such lives are differentiated, and why they are significant even if they are rare.

Overcoming the mobility bias in transnational entrepreneurship

“…(1) as an alternative survival strategy in the context of poorly working economies and malfunctioning states (Turaeva, 2013) and/or (2) as a well-being improvement strategy and an alternative to emigration (Carling et al, 2021).…”

Fluchtursachenbekämpfung

“…Weitere wissenschaftliche Beiträge zielen darauf, die neue Konjunktur des Diskurses und der Politiken um Fluchtursachenbekämpfung im Kontext von Entwicklungs-und Migrationspolitik einzuordnen (Carling/Talleraas 2016). Die Fragestellung, inwiefern die »europäische Flüchtlingskrise die Entwicklungszusammenarbeit« verändert, wird auch in dem von Hartmut Sangmeister und Heike Wagner herausgegebenen Buch behandelt (Sangmeister/Wagner 2017), wobei die Folgen der Forderung nach Fluchtursachenbekämpfung für die deutsche Entwicklungszusammenarbeit (EZ) im Fokus stehen.…”

Rethinking migration networks on the move: Associative, professional and global encounters between Romanians in Spain

“…Certain authors (Collins, 2009; King & Lulle, 2015) argue that people on the move shape the urban and rural landscapes of host destinations through both their bodily presence and the cultural and material modifications brought about by their transnational connections. Carling et al (2021) introduce the concept of ‘transnational living’ to emphasize the potential conflicts and tensions that exist while living in two countries. Cachia and Maya Jariego (2018) explore how different mobility patterns influence the composition and structure of the transnational social support networks created in time and space.…”