In the Field

The Federal Government Temporary Foreign Workers Program exploded onto the front page of major newspapers, lit up social media boards and started conversations in the hallways of service organizations, on buses and in corner stores this past week. This was not anticipated.

For the last couple of years advocates for immigrants and refugees have been raising flags about the program and the potential for abuse.They have told the stories of workers that have been exploited by employers and unscrupulous recruiters.

Read more of Debbie's observations on change happening in the sector.

Scadding Court Community Centre

Scadding Court Community Centre (SCCC) has received $127,203 in funding from the Government of Canada.

Scadding Court Community Centre (SCCC) is a multi-service agency located in the heart of downtown west Toronto. SCCC offer a wide range of programs, services, and opportunities for people of all ages and from all walks of life. SCCC believes in supporting individuals and families, strengthening communities and building a better Toronto.

Forming Partnerships between Settlement Agencies and Professional Immigrant Networks (PINs)

With increased popularity of the #CdnImm hashtag on Twitter, a community has coalesced online to share and discuss timely and relevant topics and information about Canadian immigration. The #CdnImm event series helps to promote connections, encourage further sharing of information, and expand the community of collaborators in order to enhance our understanding of the sector and improve services.

OCASI e-Learning

OCASI offers self-directed and facilitated online courses on a range of topics designed to build on your existing knowledge. Last month two concurrent (6-week) facilitated sessions on Serving Youth in Newcomer Communities (SYNC) were held. The sessions were very successful, close to 30 participants completed the training. There were also two concurrent (8-week) facilitated sessions on Understanding and Responding to Woman Abuse (URWA), 20 participants completed the training late last year.

OCASI School of Social Justice

We are happy to report that the first OCASI School for Social Justice (SSJ) “semester” was successfully completed on March 11 and 12, 2013. The SSJ is an initiative to strengthen OCASI’s social justice advocacy by building the capacity of member agencies. The first session - with 18 enthusiastic participants from OCASI member agencies across Ontario - focused on building a shared understanding of social justice and becoming familiar with tools to build anti-oppression analysis. Watch the short video, which documents a portion of the 2-day session. The next session in the series takes place on April 22 and 23, 2013. For more information about initiative and upcoming session visit the SSJ section on the OCASI website.

Register for CCR Spring Consultation, 30 May - 1 June 2013, Vancouver

Refugees come to Canada seeking safety for themselves and their families. How do we make sure that refugees and other newcomers feel safe and secure? How do we offer a warm welcome to all? Participate in the Canadian Council for Refugees Spring Consultation on the theme of Promoting Security and a Warm Welcome to explore these questions and more. Register before 10 May to take advantage of the reduced fees! For more information view CCR Meetings.

Growing Social Enterprise in the North

The Rural Social Enterprise Constellation (RSEC) is a partnership among a growing network of supporters and doers of rural social enterprise in Ontario. In so doing the Ontario Nonprofit Network (ONN), a RSEC partner, presents “Making the Money, Getting the Tools, Creating the Linkages” event on May 1, 2013 in the Thunder Bay area. For more information about the initiative and to register for the event visit Rural Social Enterprise Constellation

New Start-Up Visa Coming Soon

Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) is accepting applications for the new Start-Up Visa program as of April 1, 2013. This is a pilot program which will run for up to 5 years. Candidates for the program are required to have the support of a Canadian angel investor group, venture capital fund or business incubator before they can apply. Applicants must also meet certain language requirements. More information about the visa can be found on the CIC website.

New Regulatory Colleges

Starting on April 1, 2013, the Ontario government opened 2 new regulatory colleges. The College of Kinesiologists of Ontario and the College of Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioners and Acupuncturists of Ontario will regulate and oversee the services of these practitioners in Ontario.

Detention Review Hearings Information

The Immigration Division recently updated its online Detention Review Hearings brochure. Written in plain language in a question and answer format, the brochure explains the detention review process. The pamphlet is available in Arabic, Cantonese, Farsi, Hungarian, Korean, Mandarin, Punjabi, Russian, Somali, Spanish, Tamil and Urdu. Read more

New Accessibility Standards for the Design of Public Spaces

On January 1, 2013, the Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulation (Ontario Regulation 191/11) was amended to include accessibility requirements for the Design of Public Spaces. Organizations are not required to make changes to their public spaces. The standard only applies when organizations build new or make major changes to existing elements of public spaces. The regulation can be found on the Ministry website.

A Fair Way to Go: Access to Ontario’s Regulated Professions and the Need to Embrace Newcomers in the Global Economy

In 2011, the Office of the Fairness Commissioner (OFC) embarked on an ambitious endeavour to conduct the first comprehensive assessment of professional registration practices in Canada. In 2011-2012, the OFC completed 37 assessments. While the process found regulators to be generally working in good faith to adhere to their fair-access duties, further improvement are needed. For more information read the 12 key recommendations and the full report. Office of the Fairness Commissioner

About three weeks ago, thirty ethno-racially and linguistically diverse women- concerned with issues of women’s equality, immigrant and racialized women’s inclusion, and with general issues of immigrant and refugee integration-gathered to talk about what they saw as the political, policy and program priorities in Ontario. The meeting, hosted by the Minister Responsible for Women’s Issues and the Ontario Women’s Directorate with support from OCASI, was a first of its kind. It was the inaugural meeting of a series planned across the province with various groups to mark the 30th anniversary of the Women’s Directorate.

Read more of Debbie’s observations on change happening in the sector.

Council of Agencies Serving South Asians – CASSA

The Council of Agencies Serving South Asians (CASSA) is an umbrella organization of agencies, groups, and individuals that provide services to the South Asian Community. CASSA’s 2nd Annual Racism Free Ontario Initiative began on International Human Rights Day - December 10, 2012 - and will run for 100 days, ending on March 21st, 2013 - the International Day for Elimination of Racial Discrimination.

OCASI Organizes Youth Presentation to UNCRC Representative

OCASI worked with several young people, supporting them to prepare and deliver a presentation on issues of child and youth rights, to Ms. Marta Maurás, the Country Representative from the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC).

This was one of many presentations made at an event organized by the Canadian Council of Child and Youth Advocates (CCCYA), on the occasion of the UNCRC representative’s visit to Canada. The presentation gave participating youth the unique opportunity to directly address the UNCRC, and to connect with other youth at the event.

Correction

In last month’s edition of OCASI In the Field an error was made regarding the Board of Director election process. Correction; the Regional Directors are elected prior to the AGM by their region. The Provincial Directors are also elected at the AGM. The Executive committee members are elected at the first board meeting of the year.

Announcing Settlement.Org Survey

OCASI’s mission for Settlement.Org is to provide useful, comprehensive, up-to-date, and authoritative information to newcomers. The Settlement.Org survey is a check-in with our users to ensure we are delivering information newcomers can trust. It allows us to gather meaningful information about how users interact with the site and what they think should be done to improve it. Survey runs from January 30 to March 8, 2013.

#CdnImm Event #12 - Language Services Delivery & Coordination

Join us on February 21, 2013 for the latest event which aims to discuss, gaining knowledge and sharing best practices in referrals to and service coordination of language services for newcomers; identifying and exploring hot topics in newcomer language services, including the launch of the Coordinated Language Assessment and Referral System (CLARS); and gathering information from presenters that attendees can apply to their work.

With the growth in popularity of the "#CdnImm" hashtag on Twitter, a community has coalesced online to share and discuss timely and relevant topics and information about Canadian immigration. Event #12 is the latest of informal events that have been taking place regularly to help form this community of online collaborators, affording the opportunities to make connections, further the sharing of information, and expand the community of collaborators. To learn more and to register visit eventbrite.com

Canadian Council for Refugees’ (CCR) Working Group meetings

Do you want to be part of efforts to promote rights for refugees? Want to participate in in-depth discussions on pressing issues affecting refugees and immigrants in Canada? Looking for an opportunity to share information and strategies with others from across Canada?

Come to the CCR Winter Working Group meetings, which will be held in Toronto on 22 and 23 February 2013. The meetings are open to all, except media, and government employees.

The Learning Network Forum on Human Trafficking

Human trafficking is a serious human rights violation and a clandestine crime. It is perpetrated primarily against women and children, and involves the recruitment, transportation or harboring of persons for the purpose of exploitation.

To learn more and to register visit Human Trafficking Forum

City of Toronto Take Action on Human Trafficking

This report responds to the Executive Committee request for information pertaining to the problem of human trafficking in Toronto, including recommendations to strengthen protection of vulnerable women and children, improve services available to victims of human trafficking and to reduce human trafficking. It also responds to the request to report on the formulation of a policy that would prohibit City advertising in publications that allow advertising that could contribute to human trafficking.

Public Consultation on Accessibility Enhancements to the Ontario’s Building Code

The Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing (MMAH) is developing enhancements to current accessibility requirements in buildings and public consultation is now underway. A consultation paper and details of the potential technical changes are available online.

Stakeholders and the public have until March 1, 2013 to submit comments to MMAH.

To review the public consultation document for the Ontario’s Building Code visit Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing

Workshop on Leadership in Civil Society

Ryerson University’s G. Raymond Chang School of Continuing Education is launching a series of free workshops on Contemporary Global Challenges and Opportunities for Change. The first workshop in the series is Leadership in Civil Society, which will take place on Tuesday, February 26, from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. Led by an expert instructor with a wealth of experience in the nonprofit field, this workshop will feature guest speakers on contemporary social issues. Themes for the evening include the role of civil society in our world; how and why people get involved in creating change, whether local or global; and the challenges and opportunities facing Canadians. Advanced registration is required as space is limited. Visit www.ryerson.ca to learn more and to RSVP.

Ontario Sport and Recreation Communities Fund (OSRCF)

The Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport has launched the Ontario Sport and Recreation Communities Fund. The OSRCF is a grant program that supports a vision of getting and keeping Ontarians active in community sport, recreation and physical activity. Application deadline for both Provincial and Local/Regional projects is March 19, 2013 by 12:00 noon EST