Grey Bruce Newcomer and Immigrant Women’s Collective is for all women residing in Grey-Bruce who were not born in Canada, including: permanent residents, citizens, and those who are neither (e.g. international students, refugee claimants,
women on visitor or work visa etc.)
In 2019, Welcoming Communities Grey Bruce and United Way of Bruce Grey
received funding from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada for a
17-month pilot initiative, Rural Pathways for Newcomer Women in Grey Bruce. The
research and development project worked with visible minority newcomer and
immigrant women, employers, employment services and other service providers to
develop, implement and evaluate various pathways for visible minority newcomer
women from various cultural, education and economic backgrounds to overcome
employment barriers. As the project came to an end in December 2020, a group of
women had developed a strong desire to continue to empower each other, and
establish ways to support other newcomer and immigrant women in the region.
A moderate amount of seed money from the Welcoming Communities Grey Bruce
supported phase 1 (April to August 2021) of the group’s journey to form the Grey
Bruce Newcomer and Immigrant Women’s Collective. The women acquired
knowledge in: group dynamics, the indigenous history and current struggles in
the region, and concepts such as collective and social enterprise. A Working
Group Guidelines document was developed. It would serve as a guide when the
women worked together in phase 2 to create the Collective’s strategic plan.
Phase 2 began in October 2021 with the support of a Community Foundation Grey
Bruce grant which United Way of Bruce Grey and Welcoming Communities Grey
Bruce had applied for on behalf of the group. This Two-Year Strategic Plan was
completed in March 2022 by the following founding members of the Collective: KeeMay Ip, Lijie Cao, Lin Liu, Lucia Aditopo, Marina Angeli, Sharon Safra, Yuan Liu, and Yuko Ueno-Velaitis.
Core Values
Empowerment
we believe that connecting with others who shared similar
experiences helps newcomer and immigrant women to feel more supported and
belong, and empowers us to grow together and personally.
Equity
we value the skills, experience and knowledge that newcomer and
immigrant women in Grey-Bruce bring with them, and believe that we deserve
equal opportunity as other residents in the community have to develop our
potentials to the fullest in all aspects of our lives.
Education
we believe that for newcomer and immigrant women to feel welcomed
in Grey-Bruce, it is important to promote awareness and acceptance of cultural
diversity among the local people.
Long Term Goals
1
The Collective will be the go-to organization for newcomer and
immigrant women to connect with each other, and to get involved in the work of
supporting social, economic and civic integration of newcomer and immigrant
women in the region.
2
Local residents throughout the region will have a better understanding of the
challenges faced by newcomer and immigrant women, and a greater appreciation
of the contributions newcomer and immigrant women make to the community.
3
The Collective will have a business plan for a social enterprise, and the capacity
to solicit some funds to kick start the plan.
For more information please visit Grey Bruce Newcomer & Immigrant Women’s Collective facebook profile
2021
Women’s
Collective
Presentation
