Program History and Current Results

Since 2013, the Library Champions Project has been changing the lives of newcomers in Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley. Thanks to our partners, including numerous libraries and community agencies,, we’ve consistently exceeded our goals. Even when COVID-19 hit, we were able to adapt and move to deliver online and continued to exceed our targets.

By winter 2021, we had expanded our reach across British Columbia, delivering our services to newcomers, libraries, and service providers in more than 22 communities, including smaller centres and rural areas. Annually, dozens of newcomers are trained as Library Champions. In total, we’ve trained more than 2,600 new immigrants. Collectively, they’ve reached out to nearly 130,000 fellow newcomers through one-to-one meetings, group sessions, and emails, and have generated nearly 2.7 million impressions via social media.

But our impact goes beyond numbers. Our Library Champions undergo transformative experiences, gaining skills, understanding different cultures, and forming lasting connections. They have become a vital component of the settlement continuum, guiding other newcomers to resources and services. Our program is more than just a service—it’s an essential part of the integration of thousands of newcomers to BC.

To download a PDF version of these highlights, click here: Library Champions Project Highlights.

Program Numbers per Year

Over the years, participation and program demand has remained high, but social media impressions have increased markedly.

Community	Groups	Attendees of Info Session	LCs Enrolled	LCs Trained	LCs Completed Project	Newcommers Reached	Reps of Orgs Reached	Social Media Impressions
2024-25	23	612	338	305	295	12,772	1,842	213,536
2023-24	23	577	301	258	241	8,340	1,126	194,904
2022-23	20	377	247	208	198	6,051	982	989,816
2021-22	16	296	201	185	177	11,572	484	1,244,017
2020-21	16	263	195	184	175	6,079	406	14,135
2019-20	15	250	181	165	155	5,978	347	2,310
2018-19	15	197	184	175	170	8,303	510	3,617
2017-18	15	179	176	168	166	8,232	699	1,532
2016-17	15	230	195	189	178	9,683	684	7,993
2015-16	16	307	237	219	203	13,675	970	0
2014-15	15	334	207	204	193	13,062	843	0
2013-14	30	664	363	357	345	25,513	2,114	0
Grand Total	219	4,286	2,825	2,617	2,496	129,260	11,097	2,671,860

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Numbers by Community Since Inception

Program participation continues to expand, reaching newcomers across the province.

Community	Groups	Attendees of Info Session	LCs Enrolled	LCs Trained	LCs Completed Project	Newcommers Reached	Reps of Orgs Reached	Social Media Impressions
Vancouver	43	993	589	547	518	32,043	2,435	1,513,400
Surrey	34	778	529	490	471	24,968	2,964	156,325
Burnaby & New Westminster	28	485	357	326	319	13,598	965	151,897
Coquitlam & Port Coquitlam & Port Moody (Tri-Cities)	26	511	349	327	317	16,915	994	109,003
Richmond	25	436	300	283	262	14,273	1,012	307,241
North Shore	23	345	265	250	232	13,983	861	110,966
Regional Groups	11	272	113	94	94	2,967	722	102,568
Langley	10	193	146	140	129	4,716	808	190,937
Maple Ridge & Port Coquitlam	7	110	83	76	73	2,332	94	4,713
Abbotsford & Mission	5	61	52	46	44	1,887	143	1,491
Greater Victoria	4	62	27	23	23	760	46	9,883
Central Okanagan (Kelowna)	1	17	6	6	6	200	11	3,795
Delta	1	15	6	6	6	517	41	0
Kootenay	1	8	3	3	3	1	1	638
Grand Total	219	4,268	2,825	2,617	2,496	129,260	11,097	2,671,860

2024 – 2025 Program Highlights

In 2024 – 2025, NewToBC offered 23 cycles of the program, recruiting 338 Library Champions (305 completed training, 295 completed the program). Champions originated from 92 countries, reflective of the diverse demographics of new immigrants to British Columbia.

These Champions reached out to 12,772 other newcomers and delivered 1,842 presentations to groups at a range of community agencies. They made more than hundreds of posts on various social media platforms, including ethnic social media platforms, promoting the project and library and community resources. These posts generated nearly 215,000 impressions across platforms.

Community	Groups	Attendees of Info Session	LCs Enrolled	LCs Trained	LCs Completed Project	Newcommers Reached	Reps of Orgs Reached	Social Media Impressions
Burnaby & New Westminster	3	81	46	45	45	1,237	144	18,469
Coquitlam & Port Coquitlam & Port Moody (Tri-Cities)	2	45	31	28	28	966	34	7,240
Greater Victoria	1	37	9	7	7	284	4	4,443
Kootenay	1	8	3	3	3	101	1	638
Langley	2	48	35	34	31	939	501	43,311
Maple Ridge & Port Coquitlam	1	30	24	21	21	489	8	2,670
North Shore	1	13	9	7	7	274	87	17,609
Regional Groups	4	93	37	32	32	1,228	166	79,873
Richmond	2	54	23	19	17	915	26	780
Surrey	3	106	64	56	54	4,100	679	12,360
Vancouver	3	97	57	53	50	2,240	192	26,143
Grand Total	23	612	338	305	295	12,772	1,842	213,536