·
UBC Public Scholars Award recipient Bronwyn Bragg worked with immigrant and refugee communities as a community-based researcher in Calgary before returning to school to complete her PhD in human geography. Her current research findings may shed light on how immigration policy can affect the successful resettlement of Syrian refugees in the Lower Mainland. Through her…
Sina Yetbarek and her family arrived in Canada just over four years ago from Uganda. “World Refugee Day is a day to raise awareness of the aspects and challenges of what a refugee goes through before becoming a refugee, during, and when they arrive to the new country by starting a new life all over…
‘How does the number of immigrants in a country influence the identity of a nation?’ is the central question of the lecture, Where are the Nations of Immigrants, that Donna Gabaccia, Professor of History at the University of Toronto, will give at the University of British Columbia on Feb. 13. “It is very interesting that…
Migration, refugees and the movement of people crossing borders need to be better regulated in order to be safer and more orderly says Michael Doyle, director of Columbia Global Policy Initiative at Columbia University, New York, U.S.A. The professor of International Affairs, Law and Political Science will be giving a talk Dec. 2 at Green…
In an age of ever-growing mobility, migrants and tourists mingle in great numbers in most metropolis around the world. The Green College at the University of British Columbia (UBC) will be the host of a panel entitled Images of Movement: Migrants and Tourists on Nov. 14. Led by Professors Gaoheng Zhang and Anna Casas, the…
‘To the restless, the lonely, and those forever stuck in between,’ is the dedication of the new book Wherever I Find Myself, published by Caitlin Press Inc. and edited by Miriam Matejova, PhD student at the University of British Columbia (UBC). In the book, immigrant women describe their struggles of integrating into Canadian society in…
Gold Mountain is very much alive today, says a historian who specializes in Chinese history. The Chinese people who crossed the Pacific Ocean in hopes of finding wealth at Gold Mountain, contrary to popular belief, did not leave simply because of war-torn conditions. Henry Yu notes that people who were dislocated by war didn’t travel…
Taking the oath of citizenship is often a second step in immigrants and refugees’ settling process. The Institute for Canadian Citizenship (ICC), in partnership with Citizenship and Immigration Canada, operates a national program aiming to ease citizenship procedures for the 1500 plus applicants each year and help them connect to their new community. Their volunteer-run…
A Surrey-based organization, Genesis Family Empowerment Society, was formed out of a need for mental health services for newcomers. With several years of experience working for another large non-profit organization, founder and CEO, Ershad Fawcett, worked with children who were abused and adults who suffered from grief and trauma. While working, Fawcett found that counselling…
The mass migration of Syrians fleeing their war-torn country has forced the international community to act urgently in response to the crisis. A panel of five Vancouver scholars and writers will contribute their perspectives and research on the issue in the discussion Migration or Escape: Journeys to Sanctuary on Feb. 11 at 7 p.m. at…
Tiny numbers despite big expectations, at least until now. Since the Federal Government announced its plan to welcome 2,700 Syrian refugees in British Columbia, only 300 to 500 government-sponsored people have made it from the refugee camps to Western Canada. These are rough numbers that Rahim Othman, spokesperson of the Syrian Canadian Council, shared with…
A doctoral student is challenging the way Canadians perceive how Chinese immigrants in the Lower Mainland adjust to life in English-speaking countries, particularly in terms of psychological and behavioural changes. Yidan Zhu, a Ph.D student in the Department of Leadership, Higher and Adult Education at Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) at University of…
As times change, so does the experience of newcomers integrating into Canadian life. Farid Rohani, chair of the Laurier Institution, a foundation dedicated to understanding Canadian diversity, shares his point of view. “We were very much welcomed by those that appear to not be welcoming,” says Rohani about his neighbours in an upper-middle class area…
