Esther Njuguna, former Outreach Worker with Build ON

As mentioned in part 1 of this series, Canada is a country well-known for accepting high numbers of immigrants. However, the government of Canada noted that the immigration systems were set up in such a way that
vast majority of new immigrants were choosing to live in major cities. As a result, small cities and rural areas were not benefiting from the economic immigration programs. Since 2019, when the government of Canada launched The Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot designed to bring immigrants to smaller communities, we have seen more small cities and rural towns in Canada come up with new ways to attract and retain new immigrants. Some of these were outlined in our first part of this 2-part blog and included the Provincial Nomination Programs, offering settlement Services for newcomers, and Creating an environment where residents are open to new ideas, customs and embrace diversity within the community. Let’s pick up where we left off in which we find out how some small cities and towns are creating a welcoming and diverse environment.
 
3). Creating an environment where residents are open to new ideas, customs and embrace diversity within the community.
The City of Saskatoon launched I Am the Bridge in 2016, a public education campaign to increase awareness of racism in Saskatoon and develop a better understanding of how to authentically work towards the elimination of racial discrimination. The goal is to spark a dialogue by hearing community members’ experiences of racism and inspiring citizens to be the bridge to change the racism landscape in Saskatoon. Citizens were invited to share their experiences of racism and ways to eliminate it by submitting videos to OneStory, a locally-owned online video platform. These videos are now showcased on the City’s website as well as their social media and YouTube channels
 
The City of St. Albert launched the It Starts with Me campaign in 2015 to promote a welcoming and inclusive community for newcomers. The campaign focuses on dispelling cultural myths and stereotypes and creating welcoming work environments. It includes a webpage, paid advertisements, positive social media messages, and training for municipal staff.
 
The City of Burnaby and the Burnaby Intercultural Planning Table Team connected with newcomers and longer-term residents through focus groups and print and on-line surveys. “100 Ways to Welcome” newcomer ideas were collected from 200+ individuals, which resulted in our list of 102 actions that almost anyone can take on.
 
4). Acknowledging and appreciating newcomers’ contributions.
 
The United Counties of Leeds and Grenville, commonly known as Leeds and Grenville, is a county in Ontario, Canada, in the Eastern Ontario subregion of Southern Ontario. The county runs an Immigrant Entrepreneur Award every year that helps promote the achievements of newcomers.
Leeds Grenville is also the home of the famous community-driven campaign ‘We Are Neighbours’. In the fall of 2016, an engaged group of immigrants, local residents, service providers, students, local elected officials, and business owners living in Leeds Grenville, attended the St. Lawrence-Rideau Immigrant Partnership community event to discuss the current and future state of welcoming and inclusive communities in Leeds Grenville.  A common theme emerged from these discussions — that to enhance the sense of belonging for residents of all backgrounds, local communities should be doing more to recognize and celebrate the diversity of individuals living in Leeds Grenville. This suggestion was the foundation of the ‘We Are Neighbours’ launched in July 5, 2017, long-time residents, new and established immigrants, business owners and students have contributed their stories to this initiative.  Immigration Partnership staff led interviews that provided participants with the opportunity to share their stories and experiences of living in Leeds Grenville, in addition to providing friendly advice to people new to the area.  Participants who arrived to Leeds Grenville from elsewhere in Canada, or elsewhere around the globe, were encouraged to share their settlement story or what brought them to their current destination. 

The campaign extended its reach into Leeds Grenville communities in the fall of 2017, when a community engagement display filled with stories and photos gathered during initial campaign stages was hosted at public spaces across the region.  Local residents had the chance to read the stories and were prompted with the question, ‘what makes a good neighbour’? It is hoped that by showcasing stories of different people across Leeds Grenville that residents will find pride and excitement in the diversity of people, experiences, skills and lifestyles that exist locally.  Diversity has long been a Canadian strength—culturally, socially, politically and economically.
 
5). Welcoming newcomers in policy decision making.
What better way to make newcomers feel heard, included and valued than to allow them the opportunity to contribute to policies that govern the communities they live in.
The City of Sherbrooke is one place that has realised the importance of newcomer participation in policy making and has launched a Committee of Diversity and Intercultural Relations made up of newcomers from different backgrounds to advise the City Council on issues related to the city’s Policy on Welcoming and Integrating Immigrants as well as the implementation of its associated Action Plan, which aims at making Sherbrooke a more inclusive and welcoming intercultural city.
In 2004, the City of Saskatoon instituted a Cultural Diversity and Race Relations Advisory Committee, establishing employment equity targets to match the changing diversity of its population, and strategies to make the workplace more welcoming and inclusive. The City hired a Cultural Diversity and Race Relations Coordinator to monitor and provide advice to City Council on issues relating to the policy. The Coordinator oversees various events and activities with the goal of achieving the following outcomes:  community representation in the workforce and community decision-making bodies, a zero-tolerance policy for racism and discrimination, increased awareness and understanding in Saskatoon regarding the issues facing newcomers, and acceptance of the various cultures that make up Saskatoon.
 
There are so many more initiatives being undertaken by communities to attract and retain newcomers, some more tailor made to fit different communities. The success of these initiatives is not only being reflected in population and economic growth but in cultural, social and diversity growth of small communities in Canada.
 
We love to see this and encourage more communities to follow suit!
Thank you for reading our two-part series on how small cities and rural towns are wooing new immigrants.