CERIS MANAGEMENT BOARD MEETING

 

SEPTEMBER 27, 2002   –    

2:00 - 4:00 P.M.

NOVEMBER 15, 2002  –         

2:00 - 4:00 P.M.

At the main CERIS (Toronto) office, 246 Bloor St. W., 5th Floor, Room 548

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CERIS PARTNERSHIP ADVISORY COUNCIL (PAC) MEETING

 

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2002  –        1:00 - 3:00 P.M.

 

At the main CERIS (Toronto) office, 246 Bloor St. W., 5th Floor, Rm. 548

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CERIS seminar will continue this fall.

 

http://ceris.metropolis.net

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VOLUNTEERING AND DIVERSITY

September 13, 2002: 9:30 am to 4:00 pm
The 'Diversify the Source, Enhance the Force' (DSEF) project at the Self-Help
Resource Centre invites you to attend a day of dialogue and learning around the
issues of diversity and volunteering. Concluding a year long pilot that
explored barriers and opportunities for New Canadians seeking volunteer
experience in this province, the day will include:
-expert panel discussions on 'diversity and volunteering: who benefits'? -
'stories from the field'; participant perspectives on volunteering in Ontario -
lessons learned from the DSEF pilot -the presentation of new models and tools
for 'doing diversity' in volunteer work.

Plan to join us for this groundbreaking day. To register, email us at:
enhance@selfhelp.on.ca or call us
at 1-888-283-8806 (toll free) (416) 487-4355 (in Toronto)
Funded by the Ontario Trillium Foundation

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PAN-ASIAN NETWORK ANTI-RACISM REGIONAL CONSULTATION

The Council of Agencies Serving South Asians (CASSA)and The Chinese Canadian
National Coalition-Toronto Chapter (CCNC-TO) will be hosting the Pan-Asian
Network Anti-Racism Regional Consultation on September 14th, 2002.  The network
consists of Asian Canadian grassroots organizations, agencies, scholars,
activists and artists interested in anti-racism work across Canada. Building
from the World Conference Against Racism (WCAR) which took place in Durban,
South Africa in August, 2001, the network held its first national conference in
June, in Vancouver where representatives across the country attended. These
Regional Consultations taking place in Vancouver, Calgary, Halifax, Montreal
and Toronto are intended to expand the network and reach groups and individuals
interested in addressing issues of the Asian diaspora experience.  For more
information, please contact Sheila Rao, at CASSA at 416-979-8611, or via email
at: panasianto@yahoo.com

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MULTICULTURALISM 2002 FORUM

The Canadian Multicultural Education Foundation (CMEF) is proud to announce a
national conference on multiculturalism, Canada: Global Model for a
Multicultural State, to be held in Edmonton, September 25-28, 2002.  This forum
will draw together over 600 academics, policy-makers, educators, members of
community organizations and young people from across Canada to examine the idea
of diversity, to look critically at multicultural policies in public and
private institutions, and to renew the commitment of Canadians to a harmonious
and just society.
An important dimension of this conference is the Multiculturalism 2002 Youth
Forum, a concurrent conference dedicated to airing the views of young Canadians
on issues such as multiculturalism, diversity, and public policy for youth.
Youth delegates will analyze and discuss access to justice and education,
equity in the provision of social services, the role of young people in shaping
Canadian public policy, and other matters on the minds of Canadian youth today.
For more information about the conference, please contact our office at
(780)488-8793, or visit our web site at:
www.cmef.ca  

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IMMIGRATION CHALLENGES FOR THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY

A conference will take place from September 26-27, 2002, in Palma de Malorca,
Spain. "Belears 2015: Immigration Challenges for the Twenty-First Century" will
deal with the different challenges posed by immigration in the 21st century,
and explore both the cultural and political contexts of these challenges. For
details, contact; Benona Arretxe Irigoyen; tel: (34) 93 319 47 50; fax: (34) 93
31958 13; email: barretxe@transit.es

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NEXT ACTEW MEETING – ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

September 27, 2002 - 9:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
401 Richmond Street West, Suite 372, Toronto, ON
Guest Speaker: Sandra Harder, Gender Based Analysis (GBA) Unit, Citizenship and
Immigration Canada. Ms. Harder will speak on the GBA her unit did on Bill C-11,
the new federal Immigration Act.

This presentation will be the first of a series of six workshops ACTEW is
organizing on topics related to working with immigrants and refugees. The
series is the result of our research "Challenges and Connections: Meeting the
Information Needs of Professionals Working with Immigrant Women." We received
funding from HRDC to organize six workshops on topics identified in the
research. This meeting will also be the ACTEW Annual General Meeting.

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UNITY AND DIVERSITY: EUROPEAN AND CANADIAN DEBATES

The Institute for European Studies, affiliated with McGill University and the
University of Montreal, will hold its annual colloquium from September 27-28,
2002 on "Unity and Diversity: European and Canadian Debates". This conference
will be a venue for international experts on European Union and Canadian
politics to discuss the challenges of managing diversity and fostering unity
and citizenship. The languages of the colloquium are English and French, and
translations will be provided for all presentations. For details, contact
Isabelle Petit, Institute for European Studies, University of Montreal; email:
isabelle.petit@UMontreal.CA ; tel: (514) 343-7009.

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CELEBRATE MAHATMA GANDHI'S
Birthday & Plan Action Against Inequality, Economic Apartheid and Poverty Faced
by the People of Colour
TOWN HALL MEETING, SATURDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2002 -  2:00-5:00 P.M.
OFL (Ontario Federation of Labour) Bldg. 15 Gervais Drive (Near Don Mills Road
& Eglinton Avenue East)
According to Ornstein's report (May, 2000) commissioned by the City of Toronto
and the United Way's report (March, 2002),the non-Europeans face huge
inequalities in income, employment and rates of poverty.
We all know that the non-recognition of immigrants' qualifications and
experience, cuts in public schools' funding, high rents and increased tuition
fees for colleges/universities are eliminating opportunities for decent well-
paid jobs. Let's act to stop this racialization of poverty.

Leaders/Volunteers needed in all municipal wards and provincial/federal ridings
in 416 & 905 area.
Please contact: Jeff Ram Brijvasi: 416-691-9444; Dr.Ranvir Sharda: 416-727-
9199; Dr. Maria Wallis: 416-766-2844; Amarjit Singh Rai: 416-418-8377; Gurnam
Kaur Gotra: 416-690-7406

(Sponsored by the Equity Committee, Toronto & York Region Labour Council; many
ethnic organizations and media)

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PLURALISM, RELIGION AND PUBLIC POLICY

A conference will be held at McGill University from October 9-11, 2002 on the
topic of "Pluralism, Religion and Public Policy". Keynote participants include
Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin, David Novak and William Galston. Details of
the conference agenda are available on the "Pluralism, Religion and Public
Policy" website at: http://www.mcgill.ca/prpp/
For further information, contact Prof. Douglas Farrow, Faculty of Religious
Studies, McGill University, 3520 University St., Montreal, Quebec; tel: 514-398-
8945; fax: 514-398-6665; email: douglas.farrow@mcgill.ca

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FROM PEACE AGREEMENT TO DEMOCRATIC GOVERNANCE

A conference called "From Peace Agreement to Democratic Governance: Post-
conflict Institutions in Ethnically Divided Societies" will take place at the
University of Western Ontario, from November 8-10, 2002. For more information,
contact Sid Noel, Co-Director, Nationalism and Ethnic Conflict Research Group,
University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada; email: noel@uwo.ca.

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CITIZENSHIP AND DISCRIMINATION IN EUROPE

The Centre for Research in Ethnic Relations (CRER) at the University of Warwick
is organizing an international conference on "Citizenship and Discrimination in
Europe" in Coventry, UK on December 5-8, 2002. Keynote speakers include Etienne
Balibar, Rainer Baubock, Stephen Castles and Jean Lambert. For more
information, check the CRER website at: http://www.warwick.ac.uk/CRER/

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LIFELONG CITIZENSHIP LEARNING, PARTICIPATORY DEMOCRACY AND SOCIAL CHANGE

An international conference called "Lifelong Citizenship Learning,
Participatory Democracy and Social Change: Local and Global Perspectives" will
be held at the University of Toronto from May 15-17, 2003. The conference is
organized by the Transformative Learning Centre (TLC) of the Ontario Institute
for Studies in Education (OISE) at the University of Toronto, in association
with the Instituto Paulo Freire (IPF), Brazil. Inquiries and proposals should
be sent to conference organizers at: tic@oise.utoronto.ca.
 The deadline for proposals is November 30, 2002.

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***** CALL FOR PAPERS AND PROPOSALS **********

NEGOTIATING BOUNDARIES IN A GLOBALIZING WORLD

A call for papers has been issued by the Canadian Review of Sociology and
Anthropology for a special issue entitled "Negotiating Boundaries in a
Globalizing World". The issue is dedicated to new theoretical orientations and
recent empirical studies attempting to examine the intersecting boundaries of
race, ethnicity, nationality, and gender/sexualities. Submissions should be
sent in four copies to the special issue co-editors by September 1, 2002.
The completed issue is scheduled to be published in mid-2003. The co-editors
are Ann Denis, Department of Sociology, University of Ottawa, Tabaret Pavilion,
Ottawa Ont., KIN 6N5; email: adenis@uottawa.ca and; Aysan Sever, Department of
Sociology, University of Toronto, 1265 Military Trail, Scarborough Ont., M1C
1A4; sever@utsc.utoronto.ca

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COORDINATION OF SETTLEMENT WORKERS IN SCHOOLS

Citizenship and Immigration Canada _ Ontario Administration of Settlement and
Integration Services has issued a call for proposals for the Coordination of
Settlement Workers in Schools.  The deadline for applications is September 20,
2002.
The full call for proposals is on the front page of the CERIS website:
ceris.metropolis.net

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NATIONALISM AND IDENTITY

The Association for the Study of Ethnicity and Nationalism and the journal
"Nations and Nationalism" have established a Prize to encourage currently
enrolled doctoral students to publish research in the fields of nationalism and
identity.  The prize will be awarded for the best article submitted to Nations
and Nationalism, and it will include a sum of £250.
The deadline for submissions is September 30, 2002. Send submissions and
enquires to the Managing Editor, Nations and Nationalism, European Institute,
LSE, Houghton St, London, WC2A 2AE; email: nations@lse.ac.uk

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PALESTINIAN REFUGEES

Guest Editor: Reem Bahdi, University of Windsor
Refuge invites original articles that focus on the question of Palestinian
refugees.  Submissions may explore issues including but not limited to:
Palestinian refugees and the right of return and/or compensation;  historical
truths and competing narratives concerning 1948; the status of women and/or
children; the impact and relevance of the events of September 11 for
Palestinian refugees; the nature of citizenship; the role of Palestinian
refugees in peace negotiations between the Palestinian National Authority and
successive Israeli governments; the nature of justice under international law
and whether justice can be secured for Palestinian refugees;  the role of the
international community in creating and/or solving the Palestinian refugee
problem; the efficacy of United Nations resolutions and institutions in serving
Palestinian refugees; the role of Arab nations in creating and/or solving the
Palestinian refugee problem; the Internet and Palestinian refugees; and, media
portrayals of Palestinian refugees.

Contributions must be received by November 30, 2002.  Papers, not exceeding 30
pages or 7500 words, should be typed, double-spaced and referenced according to
the Chicago Manual of Style (see style sheet at: http://www.yorku.ca/crs for
details.)  Shorter papers on issues related to forced migration, book reviews
and case comments are also welcome.  A brief abstract (100-150 words) and a two
sentence institutional identification of the author must be provided.
All submissions must be word processed and sent on disk or by email attachment.
On accepte aussi des articles en français.  Le style doit conformer aux normes
exiges pour les articles rediges en anglais.
Deadline: November 30th, 2002.
For further information, please contact: Lene Madsen, Managing Editor, Centre
for Refugee Studies, York Lanes, Suite 322, York University, 4700 Keele Street,
North York, Ontario M3J 1P3  Email: refuge@yorku.ca

---

 

Dr. John Shields has replaced Dr. Kenise Murphy Kilbride as the CERIS Associate
Director for Ryerson University.  Thanks to Kenise for her tremendous
contributions during all the first six-year cycle of CERIS.  Thanks also to
John for his six years of service as a member of our Management Board, and
welcome to John in his new role as Associate Director.

---

Dr. Valerie Preston (Geography, York University) has begun her one-year term as
the Chair of our Management Board.  Welcome to Valerie, and thanks to our
previous Chair Dr. Harold Troper (History, OISE University of Toronto) for his
contributions during a challenging year of transition.

---

A number of colleagues have completed their work at CERIS associated with the
Virtual Library and MetaDatabase Expansion Project, funded by Canadian
Heritage.  Thanks to Andre Lyn, Sandra Bertok, Cristina Todiela (staff) and
Isabel Weibe (visiting student intern) for their contributions, and best of
luck to them in their future endeavours.  Thanks as well to the members of the
CERIS Data Committee, chaired by Dr. Shuguang Wang (Geography, Ryerson) for
supervising the immigration atlas portion of this project.

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INFORMATION SESSIONS FOR THOSE WORKING WITH NEWCOMERS

Starting this fall the Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants (OCASI)
will introduce the first in a series of Settlement.Org Information Sessions
(Info Sessions) for agency and resource centre staff.
These sessions will also include presenters who will share information about
immigrant and settlement related programs, services and resources offered by
their agencies and organizations. Get more information and register online.  
http://www.settlement.org/work/anno/home.asp

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SETTLEMENT.ORG. CONTENT PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM

Settlement.Org would like to invite you to participate in our content
partnership program. We're looking for information, resources, articles, fact
sheets, newsletters, publications and any other content that you have that is
relevant for newcomers.
Find out more at:  
http://www.settlement.org/site/OUTREACH/Content_Partnership.asp

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NEW PIONEERS AWARDS

Celebrating those who have gone first and so prepared the way for others.
Skills for Change presents the New Pioneers Awards to honour the achievement of
immigrants and refugees in six award categories. All nominees have to:
1. Be residents of , or work in , the Greater Toronto Area
2. Be over 18 years of age (with the exception of the youth award)
3. Be born outside of Canada
4. Have overcome barriers in starting a new life in Canada
5. Have demonstrated commitment to fellow immigrants, refugees and the
community
6. Have made outstanding achievements in Canada
 The selected award recipients will be honoured at a Gala celebratory dinner on
Thursday, March 20, 2003. All winners must agree to be publicly recognized and
be available to attend the awards evening.  Information about the past New
Pioneers Awards is available on our website: www.skillsforchange.org/npa

Nominations must reach Skills for Change by Tuesday, October 1, 2002
You can submit an on-line nomination via our web site:
www.skillsforchange.org/npa
 Mail or  fax the completed form to: Skills for Change, 791 St. Clair Ave West,
Toronto, ON, M6C 1B8, Fax: 416-658-6292

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CONSULTATIONS ON THE REGULATION OF CHARITIES

The Voluntary Sector Initiative's Joint Regulatory Table released an interim
report last week on the regulation of Canadian charities.  Improving the
Regulatory Environment for the Charitable Sector examines how charities are
regulated federally and looks at options for change in four key areas:
accessibility and transparency of the federal regulator; compliance reforms,
such as the possibility of introducing new sanctions to ensure charities meet
their legal obligations; appeals to provide resource for organizations that
disagree with decisions made by the regulator and reform of the institutional
framework for regulating charities.  Consultations on the report will take
place from September 3 to October 31, 2002 in 26 cities across Canada and based
on these consultations, the Table will make its final recommendations in March
2003, To view the report visit:
vsi-isbc.ca/eng/joint_tables/regulatory/reports.cfm.

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CHARITIES: A NEEDED VOICE FOR A TRUER DEMOCRACY

In a modern democracy, the work of charities should not only treat symptoms but
also address problems that create the need for charity in the first place.
Under current Canadian law, charities are restricted to using just 10 percent
of their resources to advocate to advance their charitable purposes. Charities
that want to participate in the public policy debate on the issues they serve
often cannot do so without fearing punishment.
This fall, IMPACS charities and advocacy project will give charitable groups a
chance to add to the evidence that this sector makes a difference to quality of
life in Canada. In workshops across the country, we will seek case examples of
charities constructive contribution to policy making. We especially want to
engage ethnic communities in this campaign. The project will present to the
AMSSA (Affiliation of Multicultural Societies & Service Agencies - BC)
conference in Vancouver on Sept. 27th, and the OCASI (Ontario Council of
Agencies Serving Immigrants) conference on Oct. 16th. Read three policy papers
on how this issue affects ethnocultural, refugee, and immigrant serving
communities are available at:
http://www.impacs.org/action/downloads.html.

Visit IMPACS website www.impacs.org and click on ‘Policy' for more general
information, and email <outreach@impacs.org> to find out when an event is
taking place near you. Stories generated this fall showing charities'
contribution to policy debates will go into an IMPACS report for early 2003.
Get involved and help prove that lifting the limits on charities to contribute
to public dialogue is a small achievable step towards a more representative,
revitalized Canadian democracy

---

THE FACTS ARE IN

The study "The facts are in" prepared by the Access to Professions and Trades
unit of the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities, summarizes the
results of a research study about the characteristics and experiences of
immigrants seeking employment in regulated professions in Ontario.
The full study of The Facts are In as well as this background summary can be
downloaded from the equal opportunity website:
http://equalopportunity.on.ca/eng_g/apt/factsarein.html
<<factsareinbg.pdf>>
For further information regarding the initiatives of the Access to Professions
and Trades Unit, contact Shamira Madhany at 416-326-6216

---

MULTI-LINGUAL EDITIONS OF ALONE IN CANADA

Multi-lingual Editions of Alone in Canada: 21 Ways to Make it Better. A guide
to single newcomers to Ontario.
In this guide newcomers share tips on learning to live in a new culture.
Chapters include: making new friends, learning Canadian-English, managing your
money and building a new identity. It is a very easy-to-read booklet that was
originally published in English and French.  It is now available in Arabic,
Farsi, Chinese, Somali, Spanish, Tamil and Urdu.
You can download from the internet, the English and French versions of the book
at:  http://www.settlement.org
You can order a copy (free for Ontarians) from Marketing and Sales Services at
the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.  Tel: 416-595-6111 or 1-800-463-6273

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GENDER, MIGRATION AND CITIZENSHIP RESOURCES PROJECT

By Vijay Agnew.  In association with Jennifer Barth, Kimberly Eastmana and
Annis Karpenko.
The Gender, Migration and Citizenship Resources Project is an initiative of the
Centre for Feminist Research at York University.  The long-term objective of
this project is to set up an accessible, easy -to-use collection of
electronically available research material on gender, migration, and
citizenship in Canada.  We aim to produce a series of bibliographies on
specialized subjects and to make them available through our website:
www.yorku.cfr/gmcr
The resources available on this website will be of interest to researchers
(faculty and graduate and undergraduate students), government personnel, and
activist immigrant and refugee communities in Canada and elsewhere.

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CANADIAN IDENTITIES DATABASE (CID):  

An Interdisciplinary Reference Database of Canadian Research on Identity

Joanna Anneke Rummens
Culture, Community and Health Studies
Dept. of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health - Toronto
anneke.rummens@utoronto.ca

The Canadian Identities Database (CID) is an interdisciplinary electronic
reference database of English-language Canadian research on identity and
designated University of Toronto Invention.  It focuses on the major socio-
cultural identities deemed relevant in the Canadian context, and includes
aboriginal, ethnic, national, linguistic, regional, racial and religious
identifications.
The database contains complete references and abstracts for journal articles,
books, reports, theses, videos, governmental documents, web-site materials,
unpublished manuscripts, recent graduate work and research project reports from
a wide array of disciplines and fields of study including anthropology,
education, geography, history, literature, psychology, sociology, political
science, as well as ethnic, native and women studies.  It currently contains
860 abstracted, analysed and coded reference items.
The CID was developed to facilitate access to a highly specialized research
literature to guide policy decisions and support future research initiatives.  
Detailed analytic coding within each of five fields - Types of Identity,
Specific Identities, Identity Processes, Group Dynamics, Role of the State -
provides maximum search flexibility and rapid retrieval of research references
and findings dealing with even the most specialized identity topics. The
database is updated three times a year in January, May and September.  
Since April 2001 the CID has been made available in electronic format to the
Department of Canadian Heritage where it is used by policy makers and analysts.
 As funder of this initiative Canadian Heritage will be making the CID directly
accessible to researchers, students, media and the general public by posting
the entire database on the  www.metropolis.net website with a link from  
www.pch.gc.ca.  
Relevant publications to-date include:  

Rummens, Joanna Anneke.  Canadian Identities:  An Interdisciplinary Overview of
Canadian Research on Identity.  Ottawa:  Department of Canadian Heritage
(Multiculturalism), September 2000, 64 pages. www.metropolis.net;
www.ceris.metropolis.net

Rummens, Joanna Anneke.  Canadian Identities:  An Analytic Research Guide.  
Ottawa:  Department of Canadian Heritage (Multiculturalism), October 2001, 170
pages. www.ceris.metropolis.net; hard copy available at CERIS' Documentation
Centre.
 
For further information please contact anneke.rummens@utoronto.ca.

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METROPOLIS LIST-SERVE ON REGIONAL IMMIGRATION

At present about 75% of all immigrants - and some 80% of those admitted in the
skilled worker class settle in the greater Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver
areas. These centres also receive immigrants who migrate from other parts of
Canada.
Metropolis' new regionalization list-serve is a forum for discussing immigrant
attraction, settlement and retention in small and medium-sized cities, and
rural areas.  It seeks to provide a space for policy makers, researchers, NGOs,
and immigration practitioners to share experiences and research findings. This
was identified as an important gap by participants at workshops on regional
immigration policy at the 2001 National Metropolis Conference.

Issues relevant to the list-serve include:
* Skill shortages and immigration
* Provincial immigration planning,
* Municipal immigration strategies
* Regional impacts of federal and provincial immigration policies
* Provincial and Territorial Nominee Programs.
* The geography of refugee sponsorship
* Conversion from temporary to permanent resident status in smaller centres

To join the list-serve, or for more information, please contact Dr. Liisa
Cormode at lcormode@sk.sympatico.ca.

---

 INTERSECTIONS OF DIVERSITY

The Multiculturalism Program at the Department of Canadian Heritage continues
to work with the Metropolis Project Team and other partners to develop a
seminar on the intersections of diversity.  In preparation for this seminar
nine literature reviews have been commissioned examining the intersections of
race, religion, ethnicity and heritage languages (non-English, non-French) with
each of the following identity markers: Aboriginal status, age, disability,
gender, immigration, official languages, region, sexual orientation and socio-
economic status.  If you would like to receive copies of these papers or
further information on the seminar please contact Becky Mosher at
becky_mosher@pch.gc.ca

---

RESEARCH  FROM THE ATLANTIC CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE 

FOR WOMAN'S HEALTH

The following research bulletin is available free of charge from the Atlantic
Centre of Excellence for Women's Health by sending an e-mail message to:
mary.martell@dal  with your mailing address or it can be downloaded from:
http://www.cewh-cesf.ca/en/index.html
Centres of Excellence for Women's Health Research Bulletin
 Vol 3, No 1 Who Cares?
Contents:
-Costs and Benefits of Caregiving
-Caregiving and Health Care Reform
-Creating Better Conditions for Care

Mary Ann Martell, Atlantic Centre of Excellence for Women's Health PO Box 3070,
Halifax, NS  B3J 3G9
902-470-6739 (tel)  902-470-6752 (fax) www.medicine.dal.ca/acewh

---

The Atlantic Centre of Excellence for Women's Health also has  recently
published 2 additional books in its series on  women's health in Canada.
The cost for each publication is $10 (including shipping and taxes).  If you
would like to purchase a copy, please send an e-mail to  mary.martell@dal.ca
with your mailing address, and I will send an invoice along with the book(s).

Book 1:  Race, Ethnicity and Women's Health, edited by Carol Amaratunga (206
pages)

Book 2:  Striking to the Heart of the Matter: Selected Readings on Gender and
HIV. Edited by Carol Amaratunga and Jacqueline Gahagan (106 pages)

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THE MAYTREE FOUNDATION AND METRO CREDIT UNION IMMIGRANT EMPLOYMENT
 
The mission of the Maytree Refugee and Immigrant Program is to reduce barriers
and improve conditions for refugees and immigrants through the support of
programs and policies that are effective, just and compassionate. A primary
objective of the Refugee and Immigrant Program of the Maytree Foundation is to
assist newcomers in accessing suitable employment, and to promote fair
recognition of the skills, education and experience they bring with them. High
tuition fees and inability to access loans creates a barrier to short-term
training and upgrading for many immigrants and Convention refugees. In order to
address this barrier, a loan program is being run between the Maytree
Foundation and Metro Credit Union. For more information and application forms
visit:
 
http://www.maytree.com/RefugeeImmigrantProgram/ImmigrantEmploymentLoanProgram/Im
migrantEmploymentLoanProgram.htm

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FREE MULTILINGUAL INFORMATION LINE

Introducing 211: Free Multilingual Information Line The United Way of Greater
Toronto, in partnership with Community Information Toronto, has officially
launched Canada's first 211 service. 211 is a free, multilingual information
line, connecting people to community, social, health and government services in
Toronto.
http://action.web.ca/home/actew/alerts.shtml?sh_itm=519ded1c
c094e8825c463c0f f3d92ac2

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CAREER EXPLORATION MENTORSHIP PROJECT OFFERED BY WORKING WOMEN COMMUNITY CENTRE,

This six-month program for young women consists of self-development workshops,
a 4-5 month mentorship placement and a long-term career action plan:
http://action.web.ca/home/actew/alerts.shtml?sh_itm=576ba143
ad7408e5521ce9f8 a367a22c

---

STATUS PROJECT
 
OCASI is one of the founding members of STATUS, a broad coalition of community-
based agencies, labour organizations, faith-based groups and individuals
demanding the regularization of status for all non-status immigrants.  In the
past, the overhauled of immigration legislation went sometimes hand-in-hand
with an amnesty granted to a selected group of non-status immigrants, such as
the Chinese or the Portuguese workers. Since the government embarked on the
latest change of our immigration law in the form of Bill C-11, STATUS has been
demanding that all non-status immigrants are allowed to apply for Permanent
Resident Status under current criteria. Estimates of non-status immigrants
living and working in Canada vary from 20,000 to 200,000. Although they pay
taxes and contribute to the growth of Canada's economy they have no rights and
in many cases their children have no access to education or proper medical
care.
To find out more about STATUS go to:  www.ocasi.org/status

 

POSSIBILITIES PROJECT E-ZINE SUBSCRIPTIONS