European, Ethnic and Expatriate: A Longitudinal Comparison of German and British Social Networking and Associational Formations in Modern-day Asia

Asia, while having seen a substantial degree of outmigration in recent years, has consistently received its share of European arrivals since the seventeenth century, and, given the region's economic growth over the last two decades, continues to witness an increase in their number. For these migrants, thrust into an alien cultural environment, ethnic associationalism and social networking are among the most common responses to life in the new home. By utilising such formal and informal strategies of sociability, they are building on an enduring tradition that has long since been part of the migratory chain. Yet despite its long history, the persistence of ethnic associations and networks among migrants in the Far East has received little attention, particularly when it comes to the new generation of expatriates. This research, therefore, will offer the first sustained reading of present-day expatriate social networks and associational forms in Asia within the wider context of their historical antecedents. By moving beyond the traditional focus on Anglophone cultures in the former British Empire in Asia, this project will compare contemporary migrant community life of migrants from the British Isles and Germany. This comparison throws up the prospect of better understanding both groups, facilitating scrutiny of the role of language and intercultural differences in expatriate social networking. The project will concentrate on how social networks in the two communities are channelled by different ethnic and cultural organisations, including ethnic societies, such as St Andrew's societies and German clubs, but also cultural organisations like the Goethe Institute or the British Council, and diplomatic missions, recognising their quasi-ethnic associational roles. Informal sociability, for instance through hashing, will also be explored.

Based on an analysis of activities in a select number of Asian case study locations, namely Mumbai (India), Bangkok (Thailand), Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), Singapore (Republic of Singapore), Hong Kong (Special Administrative Region (SAR) of the People's Republic of China), Shanghai and Beijing (People's Republic of China), and Tokyo (Japan), the project will collect diverse types of data, including data on association activities and membership, to shed light on expatriate social networking processes. Interviews with expatriates in the sites of study will form an intrinsic part of the research. The proposed project's overall aim is to unravel what expatriate social networks can tell us about present-day migrant life and identity in Asia, and shed light on the reasons behind the continued importance of ethnicity in migrant communities.

A wide group of academics and non-academics will benefit from the research, which offers a knowledge-shaping new approach to the transnational study of expatriate community life, networking and ethnicity. The core monograph and articles will make a major contribution to knowledge and be of interest to scholars in history (e.g. social history and migration history) and social sciences (e.g. human geography; anthropology; and political sciences). The end-of-project conference will bring together presenters from a wider geographical range than this project covers, seeking to facilitate new research networks beyond the proposed project's lifetime.

Knowledge exchange and user engagement is an intrinsic part of this project. Several public events will extend considerably beyond the academy. The data gathered throughout the project, some of which will be showcased in an exhibition online, will be accompanied by tailored community activities to directly engage users with the research, making it accessible to expatriate communities and the organisations under investigation. Impact strategies will ensure involvement of users, stakeholders and policy makers as the research progresses.

The project is carefully designed to ensure that the wider public will benefit from the research. First, the proposed programme of community engagement will ensure the dissemination of findings among the immediate user groups. This chiefly includes members of British and German expatriate communities in the Asian sites of study. These communities will benefit from the research as details on association activities and networking processes will offer them a new perspective on their immediate life experiences. The project website will showcase material and provide an interactive platform to facilitate transnational interaction and user exchange throughout Asia and beyond.

Secondly, research findings will be relevant for the cultural organisations and embassies identified. Many activities they promote, though not outwardly 'ethnic', are a key channel through which interactions of expatriates are filtered. Therefore, it is hoped that research findings will aid the development of more targeted engagement between organisations, their respective user groups, and the host society. This may extend to stakeholders in the host society, specifically those in the culture and heritage sector, facilitating collaborations between culture organisations from abroad and local museums or community groups. As a result, the research also holds potential to inform, and contribute directly to, educational and cultural initiatives in the culture sector in the sites of study, constituting a timely contribution to the wider debates about migration and identity in Asia.

To ensure that the non-academic users concerned have ample opportunities to benefit from the research, engagement activities in all sites of study will be integral to the project from the outset. In view of the specific primary user group of the research, a range of different impact strategies will be pursued to ensure that users will benefit from the research as fully as possible. The project website and user exchange platform will be supplemented by communication activities within expatriate communities, utilising social media as well as more traditional means of communication. Research findings will be prepared in a suitable way for this type of exchange, tailored towards users. Most importantly, there will be a series of events in the Asian sites of study at three points in time throughout the project's lifetime, with a dedicated impact phase taking place at the end of the project. These events will directly engage users groups with the research, and, where possible, activities will include training sessions for association members and expatriates in which they will be able to actively use research outcomes to learn about their immediate life world. Communication channels within expatriate communities will be utilised to ensure effective and wide circulation of information on research findings and events, seeking to facilitate opportunities for user engagement. The end-of-project conference, while also targeting an academic audience, will be developed to suit a 'blended' constituency of academics and non-academics, the latter including stakeholders and policy makers who are beneficiaries of this research (e.g. staff from the Foreign & Commonwealth Office). With that in mind, the PI will explore opportunities to host the conference in conjunction with relevant stakeholders or think tanks (e.g. Counterpoint).

Media liaison will be integral to disseminating the results of this project. The local press in the Asian sites of study will be contacted in advance of research visits to ensure wide dissemination of the research, and also to publicise events to be held. Ideally, there will also be opportunities for research findings to feed into press reports and local radio programmes. The media in Britain and Germany will also be approached with findings, as it too runs stories dealing with expatriate communities abroad.