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CUExpo is a conference about how community and university partnerships collaborate together to develop innovative solutions to strengthen communities.

CUExpo2011 will be held May 10-14, 2011 in Waterloo, Ontario Canada. It is expected to draw about 600 people from Canada and around the world who are passionate about the power of community-university partnerships as a vehicle for social change. Students, community leaders, researchers, educators, funders, policy makers and others invested in community-building will be in attendance.

The CU Expo movement began in Canada as a response to individuals involved in community-university partnerships needing a forum to share experiences, strategies and ideas. CUExpo2011 includes several sessions related to immigration, settlement, diversity, multiculturalism and integration (all links open as PDFs):

Wed May 11th ~ Community Voice and Relevance

It takes a village: Training community health workers in the Burundian refugee population using a community-based participatory service learning model.

Training immigrant peer researchers for CBPR on HIV/AIDS in Germany.

Tuberculosis amongst immigrants and refugees at an adult education centre: A community-based participatory research approach.

CBR within an immigrant community.

Cross-cultural lessons of engaging immigrant and refugee families in research and evaluation.

Growing community through urban agriculture: A community-university project involving senior immigrants.

Immigrant cultural values and language barriers as communication class lessons.

Settling, working, and belonging: An innovative and collaborative approach to integrating newcomers.

Churches responding to the immigrant reality in Canada: A national participatory action research project.

Thurs May 12th ~ Partnerships & Collaboration

Building multi-cultural and multi-health system partnership to conduct health research.

Recruiting low-income families into community programmes: Exploring differences in engagement strategies among ethnic groups.

Fri May 13th ~ Action and Change

Immigrant peer researchers and HIV prevention in Germany: The PaKoMi video.

Register now!

Ryerson’s upcoming conference – and launch pad for the Ryerson Institute on Immigration and Settlement, RIIS, has released the program for its inaugural conference: Migration and the Global City. immigrantchildren.ca is very pleased to see so many sessions devoted to immigrant child, youth and family issues. Excerpts below from the program:

Oct 29th, 5-7pm Poster Sessions ~ The Settlement Of refugee youth: A Literature review, Charity Davy, University of Western Ontario

Refugee youths are often perceived as unwell because of the trauma experienced in their home country yet many refugee youths successfully transition to their host country with astounding resilience, motivation and hope. This study aims to explore the knowledge base of the pre-arrival, arrival, and resettlement phases of youth refugees to gain an understanding of successful settlement processes.

Oct 30th, Morning sessions ~ Experiences of Asylum seekers in Montreal: Need for childcare services, Gillian Morantz

In-depth interviews about post-migratory experiences were conducted with 33 dyads of parent and child asylum seekers attending a pediatric hospital in Montreal. Their narratives reveal that the lack of access to affordable childcare services profoundly impacts on their ability to integrate into their host society. This lacuna in services, particularly in the case of single mothers, affects their employability, language acquisition and reconstruction of social networks. Although 7$ a day childcare services are available throughout Quebec, asylum seekers do not qualify for this program. A comparison of childcare policies and services for asylum seekers is made with other regions of Canada and other western countries, and policy implications are discussed.

Schools and borders: Frameworks for access to schooling for precarious status students, Francisco Villegas, OISE/UT

Although the Ontario Education Act ensures the ability of students with precarious immigration status to attend Ontario schools, many still find themselves excluded on the basis of their immigration status. School districts, including those in Toronto have largely ignored this policy and have effectively taken on the role of immigration enforcement  by asking for students’ immigration documentation prior to enrolling them. While there has been a long-standing movement attempting to ensure access to schooling for precarious status students, such students have been conceptualized under different frameworks of access, membership and citizenship. The purpose of this paper is to examine the ways in which discourses affect the ability of precarious status students to receive schooling, as well as the material consequences of immigration precarity on affected individuals.

Oct 30th ~ Asylum denied: Exploring the reasons why some refugee children are deported, Jacqueline Lapeyre-MacNeil, Ryerson University

This project will explore the factors that come into play in the assessment of a refugee claim put forth by unaccompanied children when arriving in Canada, and will focus particularly on children who are denied asylum. Designed as an exploratory research, the study will look into the procedure in place to screen those applications, in an attempt to determine the key criteria used to assess who stays and who gets deported.  Because little research has been done to date on this particular aspect of the process, the potential benefits of this project will be to identify the gaps in the existing protocol, especially in terms of addressing the best interests of the child, as determined by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC).

Access to services for unaccompanied minors seeking asylum in Canada, Chloe Dumouchel-Fournier, Ryerson University

Through semi-structures interviews with service providers in these two provinces, this research analyzes the service delivery to unaccompanied minors in Quebec and Ontario. In addition to being major receivers of asylum seekers, these two provinces were chosen in part because the implementation of the 1991 Canada-Quebec Accord led to major differences in service delivery to unaccompanied minors between Ontario and Quebec.

Separated children: Their status, experiences and unique needs in the Canadian context, Alaina Johnston, Ryerson University

This research focuses on children who arrived in Canada as separated children and who were placed in the care and custody of the Children’s Aid Society of Peel, the child welfare organization west of Toronto which includes Pearson International Airport.

Things Ontario could learn from other jurisdictions in assisting separated children, Francis Hare, Ryerson University

Previous research on services for separated children/unaccompanied minors in the care of the Ontario child welfare system highlighted areas in which the experience of other jurisdictions could offer guidance to Ontario on how to improve the services it offers.  Youth without status who wish to continue into post-secondary education pay “international student” fees, substantially higher than those paid by Canadian citizens or residents. In the US, “The DREAM Act” may provide a way to address this issue. Ontario staff often find themselves in need of training on issues related to immigration status issues for youth in care. SARIMM in Quebec regularly conducted such training sessions for others. Non-status youth in Ontario need social support as well as legal representation, another service found in Quebec. Finally, ideas for assisting Ontario youth make the transition to citizenship may be found in US legislation called the Special Immigrant Juvenile Status.

Oct 31st ~ The Settlement of young children: The future of the global city, Judith Colbert, Consultant

The distinctive settlement needs of young newcomer children have not been fully recognized, although cross-cultural psychologists tell us that acculturation begins in infancy (and before), and data, such as EDI scores, indicate that many kindergarten children who are second language learners are disadvantaged. The benefits of quality child care and early intervention have been well-researched, but much remains to be learned about their potential as vehicles for settlement support. Progress is slow in part because programs continue to focus on Western ideas of development and childrearing and strive to meet culturally inappropriate indicators of quality. Initiatives that lead to positive futures for both young newcomers and the global city are good public policy. More work by governments, academics and community-based organizations is needed to identify settlement issues and optimum practices, develop and implement new programs, and ensure that current programs address the settlement needs of young children more effectively.

Geography and mental health: Why region of resettlement affects the mental health risk of immigrant children in Canada, Morton Beiser, Ryerson University

Data from the New Canadian Children and Youth Study (NCCYS) show that immigrant children living in Toronto and Montreal have higher levels of emotional problems than their counterparts living in Winnipeg, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver.  This presentation demonstrates that cross-country differences in both immigrant personal attributes (language proficiency) and the welcome accorded immigrant families help explain differential mental health risk.

Parents’ educational expectations and child outcomes of Hong Kong Chinese, Mainland Chinese and Filipino children in Canada, Patrizia Albanese, Ryerson University

Using New Canadian Children and Youth Survey (NCCYS) data we compare the school performance of Hong Kong (HK) Chinese children, children from the People’s Republic of China (PRC), and Filipino children. We look at the relationship between parental human capital and children’s school performance. We … focus on whether high parental expectations and immigrant children’s ‘superior academic performance’ at school results in immigrant children “adapting well.” This paper will use NCCYS data to assess the mental health impact of parental educational expectations on immigrant boys and girls.

Ethnic identity and discrimination among children, Jane Friesen, Simon Fraser University

We engaged almost 400 Canadian children aged five through eight years in a series of activities that draw from both social psychology and experimental economics, and are designed to reveal patterns of ethnic stereotyping, self-identification and discrimination with respect to three ethnically phenotypic categories (white, East Asian, and South Asian).  We find that children from the dominant white group have the most favorable evaluations of and identify most strongly with the white ethnic category.  Minority East Asian children tend to associate themselves with the dominant white category as well as with East Asians. These social identities are reflected in children’s altruistic behaviour – white children show clear pro-white bias, but East Asian children do not discriminate.

Attributed causality among child abuse victims in the Tamil and Punjabi communities, Vappu Tyyskä, Ryerson University

The results presented in this paper come from a larger study of family violence in the Punjabi and Tamil communities in Toronto, conducted in 2007-2008, based on interviews with adults who were subjected to abuse as children.The participants were asked about their experiences of family violence; patterns of abuse before and after immigration; and about their attribution of the causes of abuse. The results will be outlined, with a focus on attributed causality by the victims, and with attention to gender.

Honour killings and intergenerational relations in South Asian families, Muzzammil Beelut, Ryerson University

Since 2002 there have been 13 reported honour killings in Canada. This presentation seeks to understand reasons behind honour killings.  Since an honour killing is an extreme form of violence, this presentation examines the roots of intergenerational conflict in South Asian families with the hope of ceasing the problem from the start. Also, a media analysis is conducted of the Toronto Star and the National Post to determine how the media dealt with killing of Aqsa Parvez, a 16-year-old Pakistani woman who was killed by her father in 2007. Finally, policy recommendations are offered as to how honour killings can be prevented from happening in Canada.

To review the complete program, visit the RISS website.

Sponsored by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Thistletown Regional Centre, a multi-service mental health treatment centre for children, youth and families, is hosting a conference Nov 17-18, 2010 in the McDonald Block, Ontario government building complex, downtown Toronto.

What’s the conference about?

As one of the first events of this nature, the conference aims to identify/address different aspects of a unique and complex component of children’s mental health service provision. It will bring together prominent speakers, and service providers and users to present, in an open dialogue, their thinking on an area of critical concern, and share their experience on how their current values, convictions, and/or expectations are implemented in the service provision/use. It is expected that the conference will facilitate a better understanding of the diverse shape of ethical dilemmas in the children’s mental health field. In addition to providing an opportunity to learn from each other, the conference will contribute towards strengthening our services, as well as provide a foundation for our further work in modeling ethical-decision making with immigrant children, youth, their families and communities” (Source: Conference description).

Who should attend?

Mental health professionals, social workers, speech and language pathologists, PTs and OTs, policy makers, academics and researchers, settlement workers,  ethno-racial community leaders, and anyone with an interest in mental health services for newcomer children, youth and their families are welcome to participate.

For more information on the conference, including speaker bios, see this page. To register, visit here.

I attended the 4th “On New Shores” conference at the University of Guelph, Ontario. Over two days (Sept 30-Oct 1, 2010), delegates were fortunate to hear and participate in presentations from a good range of academics and practitioners on the topic of resiliency in the immigrant population. Here are just a few highlights from the two days.

First, I love it when conference organizers start their conferences with clearly articulated goals: Susan Chuang, Associate Professor in the Family Relations and Applied Nutrition department, opened the conference with a list of 3 simple and do-able goals:

1. Communicating – bringing together practitioners, academics, researchers, policy makers, front-line settlement workers in one space to speak to and learn from each other.
2. Sharing ideas – issue and problem-solving ideas, suggestions, examples and experiences of delegates.
3. Promoting collaboration.

Also impressive was the Guelph Mayor in her opening welcome to delegates. Karen Farbridge is a progressive mayor and is proud of her city of Guelph, among the top five destinations to receive immigrants, citing about 20% of Guelph’s population as newcomers. Mayor Farbridge was delighted to share with us that among the recipients of the Ontario Newcomer Champion Awards, are Guelph area residents.

A special dedication was made for the late Dr. Tom Luster, known widely for his work on the “Lost Boys of Sudan”. Two colleagues and a grad student from Michigan State University paid a touching tribute to Tom. The student told us that during her work with Tom, she was asked how many other students he supervised. She said she was taken aback by the question, because, as she said: “I felt like I was Tom’s only student!” Such was his dedication, support and care for the people he worked with. I met Tom at the 2007 On New Shores conference and wish I spent more time talking to him.

Next, Dr. Michael Ungar spoke on the conference theme “The Social Ecology of Resilience: Culture, Context, Resources, and Meaning”. Ungar is a Dalhousie professor, social worker, and author of several books – popular and academic, including “We Generation: Raising Socially Responsible Kids”; “Too Safe for Their Own Good”; “Playing at Being Bad: The Hidden Resilience of Troubled Teens”.  His newest text (2011) is “Counseling in Challenging Contexts: Working with Individuals and Families Across Clinical and Cultural Settings”.

Dr. Ungar’s talk was an introduction to theories of resilience. Ungar set the stage for the conference, and also for his closing keynote on day two where he spoke on the application of such theories, – with great insight, a snazzy ppt and a quick wit. It was a pleasure to be present for his talks. In this first session, on theories, Ungar spoke on the history of the study of resiliency and what was previously called “the invulnerable child”. But, for Ungar, “nurture trumps nature” (attributed to Rutter) and he spoke about adaptive behaviours to adverse conditions and/or events. Ungar’s definition of resiliency:

“In the context of exposure to significant adversity, resiliency is both the capacity of individuals to navigate their way to the psychological, social and cultural and physical resources that sustain their wellbeing, and their capacity individually and collectively to negotiate for these resources to be provided and experienced in culturally meaningful ways”.

Ungar asked delegates to consider the three key pieces of this definition: navigation, negotiation and culturally meaningful. These three themes resonated throughout the conference sessions.

I was intrigued by a comment in one of the sessions I attended by Reza Shahbazi of the New Canadians’ Centre of Excellence Inc., Windsor, Ontario. Shahbazi spoke about what it means to be a Canadian and that the definition of “Canadian” is “a moving marker”. Newcomers seem to be perpetually chasing the definition. I wonder too how immigration and multiculturalism policy keep that marker moving.

In her session, independent Consultant, Dr. Judith Colbert (principal author of the LINC Childminding guidelines) shared news of her upcoming book “Welcoming Newcomer Children: The Settlement Needs of Young Immigrants and Refugees”. Colbert asked delegates to consider the specific needs of the very young newcomer child. While much attention, research, policy responses and discussion can be found on immigrant youth, children from birth to age six garner less attention. immigrantchildren.ca looks forward to the book and to the launch of an accompanying website, TBA.

At the end of a long day one, delegates were treated to a warm and information rich presentation by Sarah Liddell of Aisling Discoveries Child and Family Centre. Liddell’s presentation was on the Ready, Set, Go! school readiness program, targeted to newcomer children and families. Particularly interesting and impressive was that the program not only works with newcomer children to understand what to expect in school, Ready, Set, Go! welcomes parents and extended family members to participate in a parallel program, providing families with important information and strategies for navigation and negotiation.

Day two brought back Dr. Michael Ungar who generously shared stories (and videos) about the families and youth he has worked with, clearly demonstrating the applicability of his theory of resiliency.

Thanks to Dr. Susan Chuang for organizing the conference (and for the best conference swag ever!) and a special thanks to her undergraduate and graduate students who were always available to cheerfully assist delegates. Applause.

Hold the date – the 5th On New Shores will be held September 27-28, 2012.

The Family Support Institute Ontario will be hosting a conference and pre-conference session (on parent engagement) from Nov 17-20, 2010 in Toronto. Two sessions are focused on newcomer children and families:

Anti Bias Literacy Environments

In this workshop we will look at creating anti bias literacy environments that promote the concept of empathy. Supporting a child’s transition from home language over to English language learning will also be a focus of this workshop. Ideas for creating anti bias literacy activities will also be included through early authoring, book nook transformations and parent involvement. Small group brainstorming will identify challenges that we face and the successes that we share. A portion of the workshop will also be devoted to common myths around English language learners, and some mainstream ideas around home language preservation and the best practices in promoting bilingualism. Presenter: Alka Burman, Early Literacy Specialist, Region of Peel.

Listening to Families: Reframing Services

This interactive workshop will give participants an overview of the Listening to Families: Reframing Services project, which is premised on our belief that if service providers knew the rich and complex stories of the families they serve, they could reach out to more families who are not benefiting from their services, and increase the effectiveness of their work for families they already serve. Examples of family narratives will be shared with participants and a comprehensive bibliography will also be provided. Presenters: Mehru Ali, Patricia Corson and Elaine Frankel, Ryerson University. (Source: conference program).

For more info, visit the conference webpage or email conference2010@fsio.ca.

Details have been finalized for the 4th annual On New Shores conference. The theme this year is Resilience of immigrants: Coping with stress in various cultural contexts.

The conference, organized by Dr. Susan Chuang will be held Sept 30-Oct 1, 2010 at the University of Guelph, Ontario. The line-up:

Day One: Thursday, September 30

8:00 -9:00 Registration.

9:00-9:15 Welcome and introductions: Serge Desmarais, Associate Vice President and Susan Chuang, Organizer.

9:15-9:30 Dedication: Tom Luster. Strangers in a Strange Land: The ‘Lost Boys of Sudan’, Michigan State University.

9:45-10:35 Michael Ungar, The Social Ecology of Resilience: Culture, Context, Resources, and Meaning, Dalhousie University.

Morning concurrent sessions:

Beyond Stress: Immigrant women facing domestic violence, with Effat Ghassemi and Reza Shahbazi, Newcomer Centre of Peel and New Canadians’ Centre of Excellence, Inc.

Compassion fatigue: Warning signs and practical tools for prevention and resilience, with Jane Bradley, certified Compassion Fatigue Specialist.

Strategy for building resilience in immigrant youth Youth: A Two-tiered mentorship program, with Petra Okeke and Nashila Dharsh, The Calgary Bridge Foundation for Youth.

Achors Away, Anchors to Stay, with Rita Francis and Fadia Ismail, YMCA.

Parental exposure to life stress: Mechanisms of resilience in immigrant children, with Kelly Fife and Katholiki Georgiades, McMaster University.

Protection from the storm: Resilience and life satisfaction in US immigrant populations, with Vanessa Alleyne and Claire Wooloff, Montclair State University.

Early afternoon concurrent sessions:

Channels of mother-infant communication across task, development, and culture, with Catherine Tamis-LeMonda, New York University.

Mothers’ reports of fathers’ involvement with children in Mexican immigrant families in the US, with Ziarat Hossain, University of New Mexico.

Stress and resilience among Latino immigrant families, with Jo Ann Farver, University of Southern California.

The Promotion of resilience in the face of challenge among Chinese Canadian youth, with Catherine Costigan, University of Victoria.

Hostile hallways: Chinese American youth experience of peer discrimination in schools, with Erika Niwa, Niobe Way, and Desiree Qin, New York University and Michigan State University.

Ethnic composition of peer groups: Effects on Chinese Canadian and Euro-Canadian children’s adjustment, with Xinyin Chen, University of Pennsylvania.

More than a haircut: Building on strengths and mutual support at the barbershop, with Sarah Marsh, Lorraine Kirlew and Chevy King, Centre for Community Based Research, Macauley Child Development Centre, and York University.

Resilience in Sudanese Refugee Families in Canada, with David Este, Laura Simich and Hayley Hamilton, University of Calgary, and Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.

Immigrants raising citizens: Undocumented parents of the second generation, with Hiro Yoshikawa, Harvard University.

Later afternoon concurrent sessions:

Settlement in the early years: The Distinctive needs of young newcomer children, with Judith Colbert.

Paradoxical patterns in early academic trajectories of newcomer children in Miami, with Jessica deFeyter, Adam Winsler and Yoon  Kim, George Mason University.

Ready, Set, Go: A School readiness program supporting a successful start to kindergarten, with Sarah Liddell, Aisling Discoveries Child and Family Centre.

A Qualitative Investigation of Chinese Youth ‘Growing up in NYC’, with Uwe Gielen, Jonathan Palumbo, and Ting Lei, St. Francis College and Borough of Manhattan College.

Internal migration in Mongolia: The Meaning of being a proper Chinese citizen, with William Jankowiak, University of Nevada.

Dragon seed: A Visual tour of  NYC Chinatown, with Uwe Gielen, St. Francis College.

Fitting in: The Roles of social acceptance and discrimination among Latino youth, with Krista Perreira, Stephanie Potochick and Andrew Fuligni, University of North Carolina and UCLA.

School influences on levels of emotional-behavioural problems among immigrant and ethnic-minority youth, with Katholiki Georgiades, Michael Boyle, and Kelly Fife, McMaster University.

Day Two: Friday, October 1

9:00-11:40 Michael Ungar Workshop: Clinical interventions to nurture resilience among culturally diverse youth and their families.

Poster presentations:

Sudanese Families ~ In Honour of Dr. Tom Luster, Michigan State University.

The Influence of racialized experiences on the identities of Sudanese refugee youth, by Deborah Johnson, Andrew Saltarelli and Desiree Qin.

“My culture helps me make good decisions”: Cultural appropriation and adaptation of Sudanese refugee youth, by Desiree Qin, Andrew Saltarelli, Laura Bates et al.

Successful adjustment among Sudanese unaccompanied minors: Perspectives of youth and their foster parents, by Tom Luster, Desiree Qin, Laura Bates et al.

Fostering Sudanese refugee youth: Parent perspectives, by Laura Bates, Deborah Johnson, Meenal Rana et al.

Immigrant parents and adolescents negotiating time and space
Lynda Ashbourne, University of Guelph.

Newcomer youth from five provinces: Exploration of challenges and coping strategies, by Susan Chuang, Sarah Rasmi, Maria Garces et al., University of Guelph.

Understanding Violence and Healing: Voices of Racialized Young People in Vancouver and Toronto, by Neringa Kubiliene, Miu-Chung Yan, Sarah Maiter et al., University of British Columbia and York University.

A Model of alcohol use among Latino adolescents: Exploring the influence of generational status, by Miriam Martinez, University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

The Settlement sector: The Profession, by Jacqueline McAdam and Caroline Lai, Global Trek.

Inquiry in English with different proficiency: A Youth leadership program at Toronto’s Chinatown, by Yamin Qian, University of Toronto.

Acculturation and family relationships: Uncovering the narratives of Chinese-Canadian immigrant youth, by Christine Tardif-Williams,
Brock University.

Afternoon Concurrent sessions:

Promoting resilience in war-affected youth, with Chandi Fernando, University of Toronto.

Stress and resilience among Liberian and Burundian refugee adolescents and their families, with Madeleine Currie, Hiro Yoshikawa, and Steven Weine, Harvard University.

Impact of war on teaching and relations among teachers of Buduburam refugee camps in Ghana, with Salome Priase Otami, Christiane Noi-Akwei1 and Benjamin Aflakpui, Central University College, Cape Town, South Africa.

Conceptualizations of resilience in refugee mental health, with Laura Simich and Wade Pickre, Ryerson University and Central for Addiction and Mental Health.

Conceptual and methodological issues for studying immigrant child mental health and school achievement, with Katholiki Georgiades, Michael Boyle, and Kelly Fife, McMaster University.

Diversity in action: Adapting mental health services in Canada, with Anne Dupré, Psychology Foundation of Canada.

El Vaivén: Return migration and education in Puerto Rico and Mexico, with Sandra Soto-Santiago and Luis Moll, University of Arizona.

Transnational entrepreneurship: Immigrant family perspective, with Benson Honig, McMaster University.

4:00-4:30 Future directions & Concluding remarks

To register, or if you have questions, contact: Dr. Susan Chuang, schuang@uoguelph.ca | 519-824-4120, ext. 58389.

Mapping the Landscapes of Childhood will be held May 5-7, 2011 at the University of Lethbridge in Alberta.

Conference Themes and Questions (from the call)

Definitions of Childhood: invented or discovered: Who gets to define childhood? What counts as a good childhood? A “normal” childhood? How have been childhoods defined in various media (art, literature, social science, science)? By what measures? And at what historical junctures?

Indigenous theories of childhood: What alternate models of childhood and development exist? How can they be found? Interpreted? Shared? What is therole of the child and childhood in other societies? What rights, and responsibilities do they have?

Gender: How do the categories of gender and child overlap, extend, elaborate or contradict one another? How do sex, gender and sexuality shape the experience of childhood? What are the policy effects of concerns about boys at risk or girls at play?

Globalization: How do global models of childhood interact with local conceptions? Do global educational standards contradict or support local sovereignty? What are the effects of migration, diaspora, refugee status on childhood? How does globalization affect the commoditization of childhood?

Empowerment: What are the social and policy implications for a child-centred approach to human rights? How can we understand child agency in terms of violence and the law? What can empowerment mean for the very young child?

Keynote Speakers

Patrizia Albanese (Centre for Children, Youth and Families, Ryerson University)

Mona Gleason (University of British Columbia)

Allison James (Interdisciplinary Centre of the Social Sciences, University of Sheffield)

Perry Nodelman (Professor Emeritus, University of Winnipeg)

Mavis Reimer (Canada Research Chair in the Culture of Childhood and Director of the

Centre for Research in Young People’s Texts and Cultures, University of Winnipeg)

Richard Tremblay (Research Unit on Children’s Psychosocial Maladjustment, University of Montreal).

Deadline for submissions: Oct 1, 2010. See conference website for more information.

First International Cities of Migration Conference, The Hague (Netherlands), October 3 – 4, 2010. Program to include:

Networking reception and dinner hosted by the Municipality of The Hague
Opening keynote speaker: At home in the city
Plenary speaker: Why cities matter
International city leaders panel: Strategies for city success
Marketplace of good Ideas: Integration in practice
Debate: Migration and the media: friend or foe?
Integration town hall: Understanding the opportunity agenda
Closing keynote: The City of tomorrow

Cities of Migration is led by the Maytree Foundation in Canada, with international partners in Germany (Bertelsmann Stiftung), the United Kingdom (Barrow Cadbury Trust), New Zealand (Tindall Foundation) and Spain (Fundacion Bertelsmann).

Detailed program (to date). For more information, visit the conference website and/or contact citiesofmigration2010@maytree.com.

It looks like Ryerson University is working to launch a research institute devoted to immigration and settlement issues. Good luck to them. As part of this initiative, they are calling for proposals for a conference entitled “Migration and the Global City”. The conference, a launch to the proposed research centre, tentatively called the Ryerson Institute on Immigration and Settlement (RISS), will be held on the Ryerson campus from October 29-31, 2010.

A call for papers has been released here. Of particular interest to immigrantchildren.ca, conference themes include; Children and Youth; Citizenship, Migration and Identity; Precarious and Temporary Status; and Settlement Services.

The conference will feature a range of activities, including day-trips to local immigrant/settlement locations, a film-documentary screening and art-show, and a possible “CIHR-funded pre-conference on immigrant and refugee children and youth” (Source: Ryerson website). Ryerson – do let us know at immigrantchildren.ca how we can support this important inclusion!

Deadline for abstract submission is June 15, 2010.

The Association for Canadian Studies (ACS) and the Canadian Ethnic Studies Association (CESA) announces a call for papers for their joint annual conference to be held Nov 5-6, 2010  in Toronto (Airport Holiday Inn). The theme of the 2010 conference is “Ethnicity, Governance and Social Justice: Linking Canada to the World”.

From the call: “Conference organizers welcome proposals for papers, sessions, panels, roundtables, and poster presentations that address the topics of ethnicity, immigration, diversity, and multiculturalism in Canada, particularly in relation to social justice and governance. Organizers invite submissions from a variety of perspectives, academic disciplines, and areas of study, including the humanities and the social sciences”.

Selected papers from the 2010 conference will be published in a special issue of the Canadian Ethnic Studies Journal.

Abstracts should be 250 words or less. Deadline for submissions is Sept 15, 2010. For more information, contact James Ondrick, ACS at: james.ondrick@acs-aec.ca and visit both the ACS and CESA websites.

IPSCAN - the International Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect, sponsors the upcoming conference One World, One Family, Many Cultures: Strengthening Children and Families Affected by Personal, Intra-Familial and Global Conflict Sept 26-29/10 in Hawaii. From the conference description:

“Our theme, One World, One Family, Many Cultures, recognizes that in spite of our differences we live in one world that is a global family made up of many cultures that can work together towards a common goal of strengthening families, and preventing abuse and neglect of our children. The world faces many challenges with unfortunate conflicts among nations and tragic effects of armed conflict on our families, children and communities. The increase in violence among family members and its painful effects on our children have also challenged us to find ways to strengthen families and prevent family violence. Knowing the value of diversity in our efforts to prevent harm to our children, we invite the nations of the world to share their cultural experiences, values, and traditions to empower the youth of our nations to work together”.

Conference sub-themes:
1. Cultural Perspectives in Strengthening Families and Protecting Children
2. Identifying, Treating and Preventing Family and Sexual Violence
3. Impact of Armed Conflict on Families and Children
4. Family Strengthening: A Key to the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect
5. Youth Empowerment in the Prevention of Generational Child Abuse and Neglect.

For more information, visit the conference website.

Metropolis Canada held a national forum in January asking presenters to answer the question “How could communities be more welcoming” to immigrants. Several presentations are now available on their website.

Interesting note: One of the presentations by CIC defines “integration” as “the ability to contribute, free of barriers, to every dimension of Canadian life – economic, social, cultural and political”. (Source: Metropolis Canada Welcoming Communities presentation by CIC staff member Deborah Tunis).