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The Power of Contact: Designing, Facilitating and Evaluating Social Mixing Activities to Strengthen Migrant Integration and Social Cohesion Between Migrants and Local Communities
Rooted in the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, this publication aims to provide project managers and developers, as well as event organizers and facilitators, with guidance in developing, facilitating and evaluating a wide range of “social mixing” activities. It draws from IOM’s emerging programming on migrant integration and social cohesion and extensive research on intergroup contact theory, which posits that increased interaction and mixing of people from different backgrounds can cultivate trust and decrease prejudice under the right circumstances. It provides key principles and evidence-based recommendations that project managers and event facilitators can leverage to ensure maximum positive impact in the communities.