Children and youth (ages 0-25) with disabilities from migrant or refugee backgrounds face significant, intersecting disadvantages in Nordic societies. Systemic barriers hinder their access to essential support, healthcare, and education, challenges that were amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite their vulnerability, this specific group remains largely under-researched.
The HOPE (Holistic Opportunities for Post-pandemic Equity) project aims to address this knowledge gap. Its primary goal is to investigate the complex interplay of biological, cultural, and societal vulnerabilities and resilience factors that shape the well-being, educational pathways, and access to support for these young individuals in the post-pandemic Nordic region (focusing on Finland and Sweden, with comparative insights from Norway, Denmark, and Iceland).
To achieve a comprehensive understanding, HOPE integrates diverse data sources using a mixed-methods approach. It combines large-scale quantitative data on youth well-being and service use from the D-youth project (utilizing Finnish national surveys and EU-SILC data) with rich qualitative and quantitative data on early childhood education, family experiences, and resilience from the EXPECT project across Nordic countries. This allows analysis of experiences and trends before, during, and after the pandemic, viewed through an intersectionality lens that considers disability, migration status, age, gender, and socio-economic factors.
Expected outcomes include a nuanced understanding of the lived experiences and systemic challenges faced by this group, identification of specific barriers and facilitators influencing their inclusion and well-being, and quantifiable data on disparities in outcomes and service utilisation compared to other youth groups.
Ultimately, HOPE seeks to translate these findings into concrete, evidence-based policy adjustments and practice recommendations. The project aims to inform the development of more equitable, culturally sensitive, and effective support systems within Nordic welfare states, enhancing social sustainability and improving preparedness for future crises by ensuring the needs of this vulnerable intersectional group are better understood and addressed.