NewToBC Community Demographic Presentations 2023
In Summer / Fall 2023, NewToBC hosted a series of Community Dialogues that brought together newcomers and representatives from public libraries, settlement service provider organizations, and broader communities to learn about community-specific demographic information based on Census 2021 data. The Community Dialogues showcased the lived experiences of newcomers and provided a forum to discuss barriers, gaps, opportunities, and promising practices in settlement service delivery in BC communities.
“It was fun, a comfortable space for questions, and an engaging way to show data.”
In total, over 800 people registered to attend thirteen dialogues that were hosted by public libraries in the Mainland / Southwest region of British Columbia and in the Central Okanagan. In evaluations, 96% of attendees indicated that the dialogues helped them gain a better understanding of current newcomer demographics and 91% indicated that they had an increased understanding of the current settlement issues facing newcomers in their communities.
“Super interesting, useful and relevant to my work as a librarian in charge of multilingual material. Was moved by the words of the 3 Library Champions who spoke about their experiences as immigrants coming to Burnaby. Jody is probably the best presenter and facilitator I’ve ever had the pleasure of learning from – she is clearly very knowledgeable and experienced, is engaging, is enthusiastic, a natural speaker, easy to understand. Great presentation, well done to everyone.”
The Community Immigrant Demographic Profiles that were showcased at the dialogues can be found in downloadable PDF form here: Immigrant Demographics by Community.
“So thankful for the session. It was incredibly informative and the delivery was excellent.”
A 2021 Summary of All Communities can be found in the dropdown menu on the Immigrant Demographics by Community page.
“It was my first time attending an event like this and I left feeling very uplifted and eager to put what I learned to good use helping newcomers in my community.”
NewToBC will plan and deliver Community Dialogues in 2026 and in 2028. Please watch this page for information on upcoming dialogues.
NewToBC Community Dialogues 2022
In February and March 2022, NewToBC organized and led nine community dialogues entitled: Emergence, Adaptation and Resilience. These were attended by nearly 400 newcomers, library representatives and community service providers. Attendees gathered to network and provide input to current immigrant settlement and integration issues, and to share and discuss service delivery innovations resulting from the COVID 19 pandemic.
Below you will find a summary of the observations, ideas, and perspectives shared by participants at each of the dialogues. The input collected at all of the dialogues has also been compiled, summarized and themed into a summary report.