Research Library

The purpose of this qualitative arts-informed and play-based case study was to explore and better understand how young newcomer children use common childhood activities of play and personal art-making as tools or vehicles of communication, for exploration of their ideas and sharing perspectives, and to demonstrate what they considered personally significant about their everyday lives and experiences. The research study was guided by the following questions: 1) What are the personally significant experiences and influences in young newcomer children’s daily lives?; 2) How do young newcomer children use play and personal art-making to understand, negotiate, and make sense of experiences, and communicate the personally significant? and; 3) How do adults support young newcomer children’s play and personal art-making and their communication of the personally significant? The purpose of this qualitative arts-informed and play-based case study was to explore and better understand how young newcomer children use common childhood activities of play and personal art-making as tools or vehicles of communication, for exploration of their ideas and sharing perspectives, and to demonstrate what they considered personally significant about their everyday lives and experiences. The research study was guided by the following questions: 1) What are the personally significant experiences and influences in young newcomer children’s daily lives?; 2) How do young newcomer children use play and personal art-making to understand, negotiate, and make sense of experiences, and communicate the personally significant? and; 3) How do adults support young newcomer children’s play and personal art-making and their communication of the personally significant?
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Parenting is a socially and culturally constructed role and experience. Parenting practices vary across and within communities yet most of what we know about parenting in the literature stems from Western worldviews on what ideal parenting and child-rearing looks like in practice. Taking a postcolonial feminist approach, this study helps to diversify the literature by presenting the perspectives of 11 parents with traditional and postcolonial African worldviews who have migrated to Canada. With the purpose of examining gender-based parenting practices of African refugees in Alberta, Canada, this study drew upon existing interviews from a larger study focused on gender relations in African immigrant families. The study used interpretative phenomenological analysis informed by three theoretical frameworks (transnationalism, postcolonial feminism, and intersectionality) to generate three themes and nine subthemes. These findings reveal old, new, and bifocal ways African refugees practice parenting in a postmigration context as well as the impacts of structural forces on their practices. Key among the complicating factors described involve a lack of community-focused and culturally-informed social supports for adjusting to new gender roles and relations in cultural traditions, family life, and parenting challenges typical in their post-migration experiences. Implications for childcare, community, and workplace supports to help African refugees successfully manage the higher risk of facing a host of interpersonal, systemic, and structural barriers when they arrive in Western host countries like Canada are discussed. Studies on gender roles and relations in parenting practices for African refugee parents are rare and this study provides much-needed insights that can be further explored. Parenting is a socially and culturally constructed role and experience. Parenting practices vary across and within communities yet most of what we know about parenting in the literature stems from Western worldviews on what ideal parenting and child-rearing looks like in practice. Taking a postcolonial feminist approach, this study helps to diversify the literature by presenting the perspectives of 11 parents with traditional and postcolonial African worldviews who have migrated to Canada. With the purpose of examining gender-based parenting practices of African refugees in Alberta, Canada, this study drew upon existing interviews from a larger study focused on gender relations in African immigrant families. The study used interpretative phenomenological analysis informed by three theoretical frameworks (transnationalism, postcolonial feminism, and intersectionality) to generate three themes and nine subthemes. These findings reveal old, new, and bifocal ways African refugees practice parenting in a postmigration context as well as the impacts of structural forces on their practices. Key among the complicating factors described involve a lack of community-focused and culturally-informed social supports for adjusting to new gender roles and relations in cultural traditions, family life, and parenting challenges typical in their post-migration experiences. Implications for childcare, community, and workplace supports to help African refugees successfully manage the higher risk of facing a host of interpersonal, systemic, and structural barriers when they arrive in Western host countries like Canada are discussed. Studies on gender roles and relations in parenting practices for African refugee parents are rare and this study provides much-needed insights that can be further explored.
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The report presents research findings on the challenges faced by different communities, examines these findings in light of stakeholders’ experiences and insights, and explores the strengths and weaknesses of these communities. The report highlights key areas of concern for Black community leaders and organizations in Edmonton, AB and across Canada, including issues related to accessibility, professional integration, social and cultural isolation, minority statuses, and shifting identity. A systematic analysis is currently underway to expand on this preliminary report. The report presents research findings on the challenges faced by different communities, examines these findings in light of stakeholders’ experiences and insights, and explores the strengths and weaknesses of these communities. The report highlights key areas of concern for Black community leaders and organizations in Edmonton, AB and across Canada, including issues related to accessibility, professional integration, social and cultural isolation, minority statuses, and shifting identity. A systematic analysis is currently underway to expand on this preliminary report.
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The objective of this study is to identify locations of newcomers and jobs in Calgary and analyze transit-based job accessibility from the locations of newcomers to their prospective jobs. The cumulative opportunity measure is used to compute job accessibility, which counts the number of job opportunities that can be reached from each Dissemination Area in Calgary within a given travel time. In addition, this study examines transit-based job accessibility based on various commute times and jobs in different employment sectors. This study leads to the broad conclusion that newcomers in Calgary need more efficient transit services to deliver them to their potential job opportunities. Given that transit-based job accessibility varies considerably depending on the time of day and industry, time- and industry-specific approaches in transit planning will be helpful in efforts to improve newcomers’ transit- based job accessibility and, in turn, their chances for stable employment and settlement. The objective of this study is to identify locations of newcomers and jobs in Calgary and analyze transit-based job accessibility from the locations of newcomers to their prospective jobs. The cumulative opportunity measure is used to compute job accessibility, which counts the number of job opportunities that can be reached from each Dissemination Area in Calgary within a given travel time. In addition, this study examines transit-based job accessibility based on various commute times and jobs in different employment sectors. This study leads to the broad conclusion that newcomers in Calgary need more efficient transit services to deliver them to their potential job opportunities. Given that transit-based job accessibility varies considerably depending on the time of day and industry, time- and industry-specific approaches in transit planning will be helpful in efforts to improve newcomers’ transit- based job accessibility and, in turn, their chances for stable employment and settlement.
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The Alberta Advantage Immigration Strategy is a comprehensive guide issued by the Government of Alberta that outlines the province’s vision for immigration. It provides an overview of the guiding principles and the way forward for a successful immigration strategy. The report also addresses system issues related to immigration in Alberta and highlights the benefits of implementing this strategy for the province. This is a valuable resource for anyone interested in understanding the government’s approach to immigration in Alberta. The Alberta Advantage Immigration Strategy is a comprehensive guide issued by the Government of Alberta that outlines the province’s vision for immigration. It provides an overview of the guiding principles and the way forward for a successful immigration strategy. The report also addresses system issues related to immigration in Alberta and highlights the benefits of implementing this strategy for the province. This is a valuable resource for anyone interested in understanding the government’s approach to immigration in Alberta.
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This report explores the municipal approaches to settlement system development in small communities in Alberta. It provides insights into the factors that shape municipal approaches to settlement systems in small communities, including economic immigration, collaborative networks, and service systems. The report presents a typology of municipal roles and applies it to specific municipalities, highlighting the constraints, advantages, and emergent issues associated with each role. The report concludes with recommendations for municipalities seeking to develop effective settlement systems in small communities. This report explores the municipal approaches to settlement system development in small communities in Alberta. It provides insights into the factors that shape municipal approaches to settlement systems in small communities, including economic immigration, collaborative networks, and service systems. The report presents a typology of municipal roles and applies it to specific municipalities, highlighting the constraints, advantages, and emergent issues associated with each role. The report concludes with recommendations for municipalities seeking to develop effective settlement systems in small communities.
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The Community Newcomer Needs Assessment is an opportunity for municipalities to learn about the strengths, weaknesses, and gaps of local services and supports for newcomers, and challenges the communities to develop a plan to address gaps and weaknesses; help municipalities assess challenges for newcomers provide information about the immigration process. Key strengths, weaknesses, and gaps in services and various challenges and opportunities for newcomers are identified in this report through the lens of the newcomer journey and the newcomer developing a sense of belonging. The Community Newcomer Needs Assessment is an opportunity for municipalities to learn about the strengths, weaknesses, and gaps of local services and supports for newcomers, and challenges the communities to develop a plan to address gaps and weaknesses; help municipalities assess challenges for newcomers provide information about the immigration process. Key strengths, weaknesses, and gaps in services and various challenges and opportunities for newcomers are identified in this report through the lens of the newcomer journey and the newcomer developing a sense of belonging.
This publication has no Abstract to dispaly

The Community Newcomer Needs Assessment is an opportunity for municipalities to learn about the strengths, weaknesses, and gaps of local services and supports for newcomers, and challenges the communities to develop a plan to address gaps and weaknesses; help municipalities assess challenges for newcomers provide information about the immigration process. Key strengths, weaknesses, and gaps in services and various challenges and opportunities for newcomers are identified in this report through the lens of the newcomer journey and the newcomer developing a sense of belonging. The Community Newcomer Needs Assessment is an opportunity for municipalities to learn about the strengths, weaknesses, and gaps of local services and supports for newcomers, and challenges the communities to develop a plan to address gaps and weaknesses; help municipalities assess challenges for newcomers provide information about the immigration process. Key strengths, weaknesses, and gaps in services and various challenges and opportunities for newcomers are identified in this report through the lens of the newcomer journey and the newcomer developing a sense of belonging.
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The objective of the Health of the Sector (HOTS) survey is to identify challenges, strengths, and opportunities through a quantitative survey. Akin to other employee surveys, the primary objective of the HOTS survey is to evaluate and accordingly improve staff workplace-related experience in order to deliver quality settlement and integration services across the PNT region. By improving the satisfaction of front-line employees, settlement agencies will retain their competent and experienced employees and promote and encourage their long-term commitment to the organization. The objective of the Health of the Sector (HOTS) survey is to identify challenges, strengths, and opportunities through a quantitative survey. Akin to other employee surveys, the primary objective of the HOTS survey is to evaluate and accordingly improve staff workplace-related experience in order to deliver quality settlement and integration services across the PNT region. By improving the satisfaction of front-line employees, settlement agencies will retain their competent and experienced employees and promote and encourage their long-term commitment to the organization.
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Children with disabilities are among the most at-risk groups for marginalization due to compounded disadvantages from the intersection of risk factors such as refugee status and disability status. Despite this high risk, there is no systematic data collected on this group and scant literature on the topic contributing to a feeling of invisibility. We conducted a narrative inquiry on the experiences of two Syrian refugee families with children living with disabilities. Narrative inquiry is a way to understand experience as a storied phenomenon. In order to understand the complexities of the experience as a refugee with a child living with disabilities, attending to the lived and told stories is essential. In hearing the narration of these experiences across time, place, and social contexts various narrative threads emerged. The narrative threads that resonated across the experiences of two families included waiting and a struggle for agency, as well as disruption and continuity. Children with disabilities are among the most at-risk groups for marginalization due to compounded disadvantages from the intersection of risk factors such as refugee status and disability status. Despite this high risk, there is no systematic data collected on this group and scant literature on the topic contributing to a feeling of invisibility. We conducted a narrative inquiry on the experiences of two Syrian refugee families with children living with disabilities. Narrative inquiry is a way to understand experience as a storied phenomenon. In order to understand the complexities of the experience as a refugee with a child living with disabilities, attending to the lived and told stories is essential. In hearing the narration of these experiences across time, place, and social contexts various narrative threads emerged. The narrative threads that resonated across the experiences of two families included waiting and a struggle for agency, as well as disruption and continuity.
This publication has no Abstract to dispaly