www.mihub.eu Page | 3 Building Bridges, Not Walls: Why Social Cohesion with Migrants in Cyprus Is a Shared Responsibility Dr. Stefanos Spaneas miHUB Scientific Coordinator In today’s rapidly changing Cyprus, the increasing presence of non-European migrants with diverse residence and working status has become part of our social fabric. This fact generates a question of how we can live together. It has to be addressed through the lens of diversity, equality, inclusion, participation, and solidarity. In the current fast-evolving Cyprus, where close to 1 in 5 residents now has a foreign origin, the demographic and cultural change has completely altered the neighborhoods, schools, as well as the workplaces. Here lies the central challenge: while diversity is increasing fast, it seems that the society has not always been able to meet that level. Tension and distrust are growing because of ignorance of the other, lack of intercultural interaction and the fear of the unknown in many communities. By the other side, a great number of migrants experience legal insecurity, restricted access to services, and a sense of exclusion, despite their willingness to participate and feel a part of this island. As diversity increases, therefore, our collective effort for the development of social cohesion must also be increased accordingly. we have to create a society in which all of us will feel like we are a part of, in which we all have the possibility to contribute effectively and have the opportunities to succeed no matter where we or our forefathers were born. Social cohesion is not just an aim of migrants' communities; it is the societal need which new immigrants have common with their local partners. It is not how people live together in shared areas, but also how to develop a perception of joint identity taking into consideration diversity, and common sense of responsibilities. It is about creating communities, where people trust each other, where newcomers are not used as a scapegoat during times of crisis, and where every individual has a fair opportunity to thrive, economically, socially, and culturally. The article explores what social cohesion with migrants in Cyprus truly requires, from state policy to neighborhood practice, and from shared economic participation to the power of trust. It unpacks the current realities, examines systemic barriers, and highlights the tools and strategies that can play a role in shifting the local population into social cohesion culture. It attempts to reminds us that social cohesion is not a responsibility for migrants alone; It is a shared endeavour.
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