In fact  is a thorny subject field need to examine a sample of the community represented in question to know the answer

Your question is really interesting. One point that may be worth considering is that many "entrepreneurial" activities in cities are carried out more or less directly in relation to commissions set by the public actors themselves. So I guess that would not disavow your question, but define one field where it can be studied: which subcontractors are chosen to deliver on public calls, for e.g. grants or commissions, how many of them are migrant/immigrant entrepreneurs? And linked to that, you would probably have to consider the capacity of the given city to "produce" or "grow" entrepreneurs from all sources, including immigrants/migrants. One more point or question could be to what extent the immigrant/migrant entrepreneurs engage with public calls (as opposed to a more direct market orientation in their ambitions, or as a supplement to this). There is a neighbourhood regeneration project in Copenhagen which will focus on developing what they call a "socioeconomically responsible entrepreneurial neighbourhood", that might be an interesting case to follow, to see in which directions this might take the entrepreneurs that are "cultivated" in the area. One more thing: cultural distance may have many aspects, it might be about differences that cut across ethnic groups, gender, etc - it might be about background, education, policy orientation, ideology, willingness to comply etc. Anyway, I look forward to studying the answers to your question! 

http://www.kk.dk/fuglekvarteret

Recently I have supervised a PhD thesis partly covering the issues of participation of migrants in urban economic and social renewal. The author is Giulio Mattiazzi ([email protected]), and the title is "Migrant's participation in public policies for local development. The cases of Lisbon and Padua" (original in Portuguese).

Taking into consideration the confrontation between conflicting perspectives of public policy, the author considers the implementation of migration policies in Portugal and Italy. In these contexts, he reconstructs the epistemological conflicts in terms of national policies and innovative experiences in four local governments in urban and peri-urban areas of Lisbon and Padua. To study national and local contexts, the author conducted several interviews, focus groups and direct observations; in two years fieldwork, he focused on participation and representative of migrants in local arenas for local development. The results give conflicting account local contexts where the clash between hegemonic and counter-hegemonic principles recombines forms of inferiority of migrants, as colonial legacy, with emergencies practices supporting social transformation. To this end , the study describes the presence of contradictory phenomena that often appear hybridized in municipal bodies: on one hand, the existence of conditions of subordination, objectification of the other, human suffering, fear and insecurity; on the other, participative experiences, innovative solutions in the management of local government, empowering forms of migrants subjectivism. The social consequences of these disturbances involve social exclusion, political segregation and territorial fragmentation which, according to the author, do not take place only for migrants but, through a paradigmatic shifting function, for other social groups (youth, women, elderly, precarious workers). Finally, from interaction between local players do emerge generic mechanisms in the field of social relations that allow for local emancipatory and solidarity practices. From this long process of content analysis, the author makes a number of technical, policy and methodological proposals. Final goal is dissemination policies for resolution of conflicts and strengthening of cohesion social, political and territorial contexts.

(1). Comparatively, the homeland of an immigrant and  a native, if it is a devloping or developed state, is an important element in the creation of the balance versus dominance, in majority. (2). The background of the entrepeneure's previous experiences in this vicinity is essential. (3). The educational level and the status of the both sides in understanding the condition of each other is helpful. (4). The specific era for each ethnicity or culture in being or not being accepted by the international communities, is another historic factor. (5). The economical gap between the immigrant and native could open another avenue of possiblities, especially if there is an educational difference exists in between.             

Good question! It is also interesting, how the discourse of the "dangerous" or "illegal" ethnic community leads to the adoption of alternative economic strategies. Very helpful literature on urban informality (e.g. services and products offered by ethnic or migrant groups in cities) you can find in here: http://www.ashgate.com/isbn/9781409441328

Thanks all for the insightful and precious remarks!

@ Blama: Indeed, you're right on the fact that questioning a sample of the community involved is one of the best way to get the answer! This is actually a (tentative) hypothesis of a current research I have been carrying out and, indeed, we are going to survey both ethnic/migrant entrepreneurs and public local actors to verify such hypothesis. Have you already worked on this issue? If so, do you have any preliminary data you could share? Thanks!

@ Oleg: Thanks for your remarks on the binding relations that the entrepreneurs experiment vis a vis the public actors, because of the former's interest to win the latter's commissions! Would you say this is, in a sense, an indirect way public actors use to control entrepreneur actions? Also, thank you for your interesting suggested questions!

Since I am studying the transformation of ethnic neighbourhoods, I would guess the probability that ethnic/migrant entrepreneurs take part in public calls (if any) to regenerate those urban areas would be - in theory - quite high. Now, the extend to which those entrepreneurs engage with public calls may, indeed, need to be further explored, as, according to many authors, ethnic/migrant entrepreneurs generally/primarily refer to their ethnic social networks to fundraise for their entrepreneurial activities. I suppose that professional bodies, such as entrepreneur associations, may, on one side, help public actors to disseminate their calls and, on the other side, help entrepreneurs to engage with the calls. Also, what do you mean exactly by "the capacity of the city to "produce" or "grow" entrepreneurs from all sources, including immigrants/migrants"?

As for the neighbourhood regeneration project in Copenhagen, indeed, it would be great to follow how it goes, especially given the socioeconomically responsible entrepreneurship that - I understand - will drive all the project. I had a look to the link you sent me… unfortunately it is only in Danish… and I don't speak Danish. Has the project already started? And how long it is going to last? Let us hope some main findings re published in English!

Finally, as of the different aspects/dimensions of the cultural distance, I was thinking of paying a particular attention to similarities/differences (between natives and immigrants), i.e. in terms of languages spoken, religions, gender considerations, etc., as, they seem to be amongst the most explicitly observable.

Ralph

@ Pedro: Many thanks for sharing this interesting PhD research! I will definitely drop an email to Giulio (thanks for giving me his contacts!) to further exchange with him on his work.

The background you provided (subordination of immigrants versus their participation to social transformations) seems to be related to the question of whether immigrants should or not disown their ethnicity/otherness to "integrate" their host country/city. Indeed, this would make easier and possible what many authors (for example Gordon, 1960; Park, 1925) call "assimilation", which would avoid structural and social exclusion.

Thus, my question (If I may) is: did Giulio observe any shift of immigrants' attitude to accommodate local institutions requirements and eventually make solidarity practices take place?

Many thanks!

Ralph

@ Faranack: Thanks for those paths, which I will closely look at in the operationalization of the cultural distance !

@ Maciej: Thanks for the suggestion of this extremely interesting book!

I can't comment from experience on modern day studies of the question of cultural distance and immigrants and the receiving societies but I can comment on its importance in one particular case in an earlier historical period that I studied that of Irish Catholic immigrants in 17th Spain who came from a society that was profoundly different from Spanish society in many aspects. In this case the question of cultural distance dictated to a large degree the attitude of the host society towards them, and explain why the Irish were treated in one particular manner whereas when Irish immigrants set up communities in France (esp in Brittany) they had less problems of integration than they did in Spain, which I would put down to the question of shorter cultural distance. Also in the Spanish case, institutions played a fundamental moulding role on the behaviour of the Irish immigrants. Immigrants also abandoned elements of their identity in order to integrate but this also varied according as to whether they were short term or long term immigrants i.e those with vested interests to integrate and those who had not vested interests.

                      Moving it forward to the modern day, I agree that it needs to be approached from the point of view of a solid case study and then expanded from that. Elements such as gender and religion may help define differences between the in situ population and the immigrants but I would look more at the question of language and more particularly the linguistic interaction between your entrepeneurs, the institutions, and their representatives could be very revealing as one needs to consider also to what extent Canadian society / the public actors is/ has been  willing to integrate these entrepeneurs or any foreigners for that matter. Obviously, you are working with totally different sources to what I worked with, and although your study and my study are very different I would expect the dynamics to be very similar.

Dear Oleg,

Just to let you know that I founded the English version of the website you sent me! In this way, I can follow up the project you mentioned and , why not, share thoughts on how it'll be managed!

Again thanks for sharing!

Ralph

Hi Claran,

Thanks for sharing your interesting thought!

I would be very interested in reading your research. Could you share it somehow? 

Thanks and best,

Ralph

Hi Ralph,

                My work formed part of a doctoral thesis at the European University Institute in Florence, Italy in 2007 (In Search of Honour and  a Catholic Monarch: The assimilation and integration of an Irish minority in early modern Castile, 1601-1638'. The thesis does not contain a lot on the question of cultural distance. The amplified book of the thesis, which contains more on the question of acculturation and cultural distance (esp ch. 9) is coming out in this July - Surviving Kinsale: Irish emigration and identity formation in early modern Spain, 1601-40 (Manchester, Manchester University Press). I have not published any articles on the area of cultural distance / acculturation. It's all in the book. Like I said it's very far removed from the present day but it might give you ideas on how to apply it to your own work. I have always found that reading in other disiplines and areas beyond my own work has always been very fruitful as one picks up angles and ideas not so apparent in one's own work.

All the best

Ciaran