Forced Migrants in the Italian Mountains: Analyses of Georeferenced Italian Municipality Data

Montanari per forza (highlanders by force) 1 is a detailed research project that was initiated in 2016 to address a prior lack of knowledge regarding the impact of migrants on Italian regions and the role of mountain areas in providing migrant reception 2 . The research, which utilizes municipality data mapped with georeferencing and the qualitative analysis of regional models, is structured in two parts: the first relates to the study of comprehensive georeferencing data detailing each reception facility throughout all of Italy via summary tables and maps that compare mountain and non-mountain areas on a municipal scale. The second is a more in-depth assessment of case studies from Piedmont with key insights from seven examples of good practice, which enable concise reflections on the role that mountain areas may or may not have in addressing the issue of receiving forced migrants in Italy.