The UN reckons that more than 200 million people – approximately 3% of the world’s population – live outside of the country in which they were born. Given the complexity and magnitude of international migration, the issue has become a highly charged one for just about every single nation in the world.

There are differing reasons why this is the case. On the one hand, developed nations are worried about the burden on their welfare systems, while many citizens of these countries are concerned that migrants will end up taking all of their jobs, as immigrants will generally accept a lower wage. For poorer countries meanwhile, the big worry is the so-called ‘brain drain’ – these nations spend thousands of dollars educating their most talented young people, only to see this investment disappear when all of their newly-qualified doctors and engineers head off to seek their fortunes in foreign climes.

See the entire Strange Big Data Series on Pinterest and Springpad!

.

You’re probably wondering, what does big data have to do with all of this? Well, admittedly, no amount of data is going to throw up a definitive answer to what is one of the world’s most hotly debated, and hugely complicated issues, but it can certainly shed some light on its true scale.

International migration

To start with, big data gives us an idea of just how many people are moving, and where they’re all headed too.  The 200 million figure quoted by the UN is difficult for most people to picture, but with the help of this wonderful visualization by peoplemovin, we can easily see which countries are most affected by migration, in terms of sheer numbers leaving and arriving, where these people are going to and coming from, and their top destination/origin nations.

Not only this, but peoplemovin also sheds light on which countries have the most immigrants to deal with, as well as those suffering from the biggest brain drain. Unsurprisingly, the United States is by far and away the favorite choice of immigrants, with more than 42 million of them. But the fact that Russia, with 12.2 million migrants, ranks as the second most popular destination will surely raise a few eyebrows – all the more so given that Russia ranks third in terms of number of emigrants, with just over 11 million of its citizens upping and leaving to take their chances elsewhere.

Internal migration

International migration garners the most attention, but the same dynamics that lure people into crossing borders also come into play within them. In fact, the number of people relocating inside their home nation’s borders often far exceeds that of those passing through them. As the following videographic demonstrates, China has seen more than 160 million people migrating within its border over the last 30 years or so, from the country’s interior to its coastal cities, mainly for economic reasons. This huge population shift in just one country helps to put into perspective somewhat the actual scale of international migration.

The United States is no different in this respect. Data for the last available tax year, visualized in this infographic, shows that almost 40 million Americans up sticks and move to another part of the country every single year. And once again, as the average income data for incoming and outgoing migrants shows, it seems that it’s primarily economic factors driving this movement.

Knowing all of this, we can’t really draw any conclusions about whether immigration is good or bad for a country. But in order to take a position on migration and make sure your arguments are given the time of day, it’s important to fully understand the issue first, and that’s precisley why big data like this can be so helpful.