Jesuit Refugee Service - Europe

EU Legislative Interests

EU Policies (EU DGs): _ Justice, Rights and Citizenship; _ Home affairs, Asylum and Migration; _ Social affairs, Inclusion, Integration, Employability, Employment; _ Volunteering, Culture, Education and Youth; _ Communication; EU legislative files and systems: _ Common European Asylum System _ EU Pact on Migration and Asylum _ New Action Plan on Integration and Inclusion _ Consultative Forum Frontex _ Consultative Forum EUAA _ Humanitarian Visa _ Asylum Procedures Regulation _ Qualification Regulation _ Recast Reception Conditions Directive _ Recast Dublin Regulation _ Union Resettlement Framework _ European Union Agency for Asylum _ Eurodac Regulation _ Recast Returns Directive

Communication Activities

JRS Europe (JRS-E) has 21 years of experience as a coordinator and lead agent of Consortia in the development, implementation, project management, evaluation and audit of joint EU grants with JRS country offices in the field of youth (Education and Culture), Home and Justice. JRS-E coordinates and undertakes several EU and privately funded projects with 23 European national JRS offices and other NGO partners, about EU member states legal practices and conditions for asylum seekers and forced migrants in the EU, including administrative detention, forced migrant’s destitution and externalization of asylum and border management. Projects include community-building initiatives such as Communities of Hospitality with refugees and local volunteers, or school classroom actions with local students and young refugees to counter racism and xenophobia, or to better understand the relation between climate change & forced migration. Projects result in a publication or an analytical report, with policy recommendations based on facts found during the research, followed by actions and dissemination of the results jointly with volunteers and local communities of hospitality with refugees. The findings are shared with the wider public during a conference at the national or EU level, combined with awareness raising through social media and advocacy campaigns. Examples: _ In 2024, JRS-E continued its dedicated work on advocating for the rights of people being detained for migration-related reasons. In May, a three-year long project end with a detailed analysis on the Access to Justice and Legal Aid in immigration detention across Europe: https://jrseurope.org/en/resource/detained-and-unprotected-access-to-justice-and-legal-aid-in-immigration-detention-across-europe/ _ For June 2024 Elections, JRS launched a new campaign to influence young voters https://jrseurope.org/en/news/why-your-vote-matters-for-creating-a-culture-hospitality/, calling on all EU citizens to vote by highlighting how the EU parliament decisions can foster solidarity and hospitality, end migration detention, protect those in need and expand safe and legal pathways. Reached +500K persons. In 2019 we did: Voters Mobilization for EU Parliament Elections 2019, more info at https://jrseurope.org/en/resource/thepowerofvote-materials/. _ AMIF funded Project CHANGE 2019-2022, reaching out with 400 schools and over 46.000 in 9 EU countries to foster the positive contribution of migrants https://www.jrschange.org/. _ In 2020-2022, JRS implemented a project on lessons learnt from COVID19-sanitary situation, providing recommendations for CEAS, promoting small scale reception systems as the preferred option, prioritizing community-based Alternatives to Detention. _ In 2020-2024, JRS implemented a project on monitoring detention conditions of forced migrants in 14 countries and advocates for ending the practice of administrative detention https://jrseurope.org/en/news/bringing-hope-without-losing-hope-the-aim-of-the-dvsg/. _ In 2022-24, JRS-E undertook a new E+ project on Climate Change & Migration. JRS Europe and partners in 7 countries educating young students on the issues of environmental change and human migration https://jrschange.org/projects/change-environment/. In 2024, a new E + project was initiated: Together For Change. Our goal is to create and foster encounter in the space of schools across Europe to help students develop critical thinking, avoid discrimination and become active members of our society, with a cultivated respect for people with migrant and refugee background. _ In 2020-2024 JRS-E hosted ESC for volunteers in its Brussels office. Volunteering enabled young people to show solidarity with refugees and migrants, contributing to more inclusive European societies https://jrseurope.org/en/take-action/volunteer/. _ In 2022-24, the JRS-E Ukraine emergency response supported 100k Ukrainian refugees and IDPs https://jrseurope.org/en/project/the-one-proposal/

Interests Represented

Does not represent commercial interests

Member Of

ECRE PICUM INTERNATIONAL DETENTION COALITION (IDC) EPC EPAM Christian European Parliament NGO Group Consultative Forum of Frontex VOICE (through JRS International)

Organisation Members

https://jrseurope.org/en/about-us/