Cities of Migration

At CoM we know that even the best stories can’t compete with with pictures!  Which is why the CoM newsletter has been asking you to share the photos and images that show integration in action.

Ulrich K. , from Gütersloh, Germany, shared one of his favourites with us, calling it ”one of the best photo to show how labour integration of migrants and their offspring succeed.”

The photo shows the U 21 soccer team of Germany, right after they recently won the European Championship in Sweden.  The team includes 12 players with migrant background (out of 22) - this means that one of their parents are not born in Germany.

At CoM we’re big fans of the role that professional and recreational sports has in helping to really make integration happen, if you haven’t yet, check out Hockey Night In Punjabi! from Calgary or Buntkickgut! from Munich.   And keep sending us your pictures and images!

Tags: Recreation, Sports

The Mentoring to Placement for Environmental Professional (M2P) program is the latest Good Idea that we are watching.   M2P is a bridge training program for Canadian newcomers who are internationally trained environment professionals.

The program is being led by the Toronto Regional Conservationa Authority (TRCA) and the Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration.

“Mentoring provides the participant with access to professional networks, helps improve their communication skills, provides them with labor market information and helps them make more informed choices about employment” saysTRCA’s Marisa Iorfida -Sdao, senior project manager, volunteerism and diveristy.

The program includes three components: a mentoring placement that pairs newcomers with professionals in their field for up to six months; technical and soft skills workshops specific to their profession and a three to 12 month paid work placement with a host organisation.

Since both mentoring and Good Ideas are a two way relationship, M2P also helps host organisations promote more inclusive work environments and attract talent that can give them a competitive edge in a diverse and global economy, Iorfida-Sdao notes, “Newcomers can help Canadian companies effectively compete in a global economy. (This program) also helps them fill labor gaps.”

CoM will be following the results of this promising program but to find out more or submit an application see: M2P APPLICATIONS.

Tags: environment, Mentoring

Cities of Migration has a special interest in promoting positive and meaningful stories about migration and its impact on the communities and cities we live in. We like to say we are ‘mainstreaming’ integration, or building public awareness of how integration happens all around us, all the time -at home, at work, in schools, in the media.

We pay attention to the positive (or negative) impact of the language, messages and images that are used to represent integration issues.

At last month’s International Metropolis conference, the subject of “undocumented” or “irregular or “illegal” immigrants was introduced by speakers in a variety of contexts –the economy, media, national policy, justice, marriage –to name only a few.

So when I saw this campaign slogan from the Swiss trade union UNIA, I was impressed with the simple way it re-directed our attention to the human dimension of illegal immigration: in English, “No One Can Be Illegal.”

Campaign materials are available in German, French, English, Serbian, Portuguese, Albanian, Turkish and Spanish. For more information, see the UNIA website.

Tags: campaign, illegal immigrants, Unions

The Inter-Ethnic City

This month Cities of Migration took a few key messages (along with a few of our best ideas) to UN HQ in New York: 

• In global cities, all actors are integration actors.
• Cities matter.

The reason?  The Permanent Missions of Italy and Canada, Alliance of Civilizations and International Organization of Migration were hosting, “‘The Inter-Ethnic City: Management and Policies for a Better Integration of Migrants.”  Check out the CoM presentation at the UN AoC website (and on UN Channel 3, Sept. 28), or download the presentations and speeches at the IOM.

The meeting looked at the challenges of rapid urbanization, globalization and the increasing importance of migration in urban context.

Cities of Migration talked about local practice and how the two-way integration dynamic means looking at everybody, the noisy, eclectic urban mosaic.

The city spaces where newcomers meet host communities are populated by more than the settlement worker, housing authority and employment officer. They also include unions, shopkeepers, business and professional associations, sports and arts groups, city planners, police and transportation authorities, politicians, media and ordinary citizens.

Their stories include how police officers can integrate newcomers and build trust in new institutions through language instruction; how building a local mosque can involve the whole community and resolve misunderstandings about cultural differences; how innovative zoning can create opportunities for immigrant entrepreneurs; how young people can be community leaders; how bicycling, street football or sports broadcasting, as well as education, can help level the playing field.

Have you got an integration story to tell us about?

For an event description, presentations, and archived video, see the IOM or the  UN AoC websites.

Tags: cities, integration

This month at Cities of Migration, we are highlighting integration practices that use mentoring and networking to help build connections into and between communities — as well as to jobs, education and opportunities for enrichment and friendship for both newcomers and longtime city residents.

It’s the focus of our October webinar, “It’s Not Just Getting a Job: It’s Building a Career” which brings Copenghagen’s KVINFO and New York’s Upwardly Global together to discuss mentoring and networking in the context and of good HR practice and career development.  Join us for a free 60-minute webinar on October 20!

It is is also an important theme in this month’s featured good idea: Making Their Mark: Unlocking Educational Opportunity for Young Refugees. 

Under the theme “ Connect! ” we invite you to travel to Birmingham, Bremen, Toronto, London and Montreal for more good ideas on mentoring.

Peer Networks with a Focus on Youth from:
Birmingham (UK):  Voices of Acton’s peer network helps develop youth leadership for conflict resolution and neighbourhood renewal.

Toronto (Canada):  Maytree’s Scholarship Program uses more than funding to help young refugees access higher education and the opportunity to build new lives. Mentoring, a peer network, and group service projects help connect students to their new communities and focus their goals for the future.

Good Neighbourn networks work both ways:
London (UK): The Time Together program in London (UK)  connects refugees to ordinary Londoners and helps bridge the cultural and practical distances that can make a journey to a new life sometimes seem even further from home.

Bremen (Germany): A family mentoring program creates new friends and intergenerational connection while helping newcomers get settled.

Getting to Work:
Finally, last month’s focus on labourforce integration also included a look at mentoring programs in Montreal, Auckland and Toronto.

Tags: Mentoring

A waterfront study tour at the Copenhagen Metropolis ( and it’s still day 1… ) led to the Centre for Information on Women and Gender (KVINFO) in Copenhagen’s stunning new national library, the Diamant.  KVINFO offers information and resources on women and society in Denmark, gender research, legislation, women’s history, notable women and much more. KVINFO has also created a unique Mentor Network that pairs up refugee and immigrant women with women who are firmly established members of the Danish society.

KVINFO’s sparkling director, Elisabeth Møller Jensen, started the mentoring program with a vision of Denmark as “one big workplace and network of working women” and a personal letter to 300 professional women across all sectors inviting their participation. Today, KVINFO’s Mentor Network involves more than 4.000 participants all over Denmark, and according to David Clutterbuck - one of Europe’s most respected thinkers in the field of mentoring and coaching - it is the largest of its kind.

Why so much success? The KVINFO model was well researched, based on a successful mentoring model for skilled immigrants from Toronto, tweaked by mentoring approach of US private sector business culture, but anchored in the feminist values of mutual recognition, flat interpersonal power structures and a rigorous commitment to openness and inclusion. As staff member Beatriz Hernández remarks “when the concept of “the other” is taken out of the equation, everybody wins.”

We are keeping our eye on the Good Idea! Look out for an announcement from KVINFO about their upcoming Mentoring Conference and work with Denmark’s immigrant entrepreneurs –men and women, too!

Tags: Copenhagen, Denmark, immigrant women, Mentoring

Day 1 September 14, 2009. Study tours are a special feature of Metropolis this annual conference and give visitors a window into local migration issues.

Yesterday I visited the Hotspot in the suburban Copenhagen neighbourhood of ‘Sjælør,’ where the immigrant population is 50% and 80% in several of the public housing complexes (compared to the city average of 25%). A two-year project funded by the City of Copenhagen to address rising crime levels among youth and to reduce a sense of insecurity and isolation felt by local residents, the Hotspot was modeled on a police-led initiative in Rotterdam. Although Copenhagen’s project has been positioned as a “security” project by local authorities (with an eye on the upcoming 2010 election) rather than an integration initiative, project leader Jørgen Eriksen and his staff focus on long term objectives that are include labour market affiliation and improved learning outcomes for the community’s youth.

This means coordinating a range of programmes -youth, education, employment, social services as well as policing-that will help make a beautiful, but overcrowded and resource-poor community feel more like home, free of fear and open to the institutions and advantages of a fully integrated urban neighbourhood. Better lighting at the train station in the plan, too!

Tags: Copenhagen, Metropolis

How do cities do it? Answers on the Toronto - Auckland experience

Last month, Elizabeth McIsaac, Executive Director of the Toronto Region Immigrant Employment Council (TRIEC) and Justin Treagus, Program Director, OMEGA (Opportunities for Migrant Employment in Greater Auckland, NZ), joined us for the 60-minute webinar, Fulfilling the Promise: Integrating Immigrant Skills into the Urban Economy,  to discuss TRIEC’s multi-sector approach to labour market integration and how that approach was adapted in Auckland by OMEGA; the role of corporate leadership in the search for talent and the case for the competitive advantage of diversity to reach into new markets,  internationalize their customer base and benefit from skills and talent that fuel innovation and drive high performance.

Time ran out before the questions did so we’ve followed up with TRIEC and OMEGA staff to provide some answers here. For more context or background information, please have a look at the archived webinar.

Getting started… you asked

Q . How can we engage employers in our community so we can see some action?

TRIEC: Corporations are more likely to enter into strategic alliances where there is a good fit with their priorities and something to be gained.
- Make the business case effectively and in a well-thought out manner.
- Look into decision-making cycles for corporate community participation and financial support.
- Make it easy for them to be engaged.

Q. Are the OMEGA internships aimed at migrants with specific qualifications or industry sectors?

OMEGA: Yes, non regulated business professionals with a NZ degree equivalent and at least three years work experience.

Q. How do you deal with cultural diversity among immigrant employees? is that an issue?

OMEGA:The programmes go a long way to breaking down the barriers migrants face by linking them up with mentors who are able to share the culture of New Zealand. A bi-product is that the mentor learns about the mentee’s culture, and this cross-pollination breeds understanding and respect.

Q. How can we ensure that immigrants are protected from exploitation in the labour market?

OMEGA: This comes back to leadership. Leaders need to set the platform for recognizing talent, and not exploiting it. Lower salaries are often offered out of a fear of the unknown - will this person be able to perform to the level that their CV would suggest/promise - and so we need to get to a place where we can accurately assess the competence of individuals from abroad, such that we can make bolder hiring decisions.

Mentoring

Q. Does OMEGA try to match mentor/mentee occupations? or does OMEGA view mentoring as more of a generic skill?

OMEGA: Matching is really important and we believe that the strength of the match is a key determinant of success since strong skills alignment leads to better access in terms of professional networks as well as more industry relevant support regarding CV’s and industry knowledge. So far, we’ve matched over 150 mentors and mentees.

TRIEC: See our highly regraded program, The Mentoring Partnership.

Q. Is it difficult for OMEGA to find people interested in being mentors?

OMEGA: Yes and No! Yes, because unemployment and underemployment is real, and we receive many applications through our community agency partners and referral network. We are a young initiative, and there is still much to do. No, because we have some fantastic corporate partners and committed leadership and individuals. People like to help -and the results pay off. Good hires are good for business!

Q. What is the best way to appeal to and engage potential mentors in the community to take on an internationally-trained professional in a mentorship program?

OMEGA: Start at the top, and engage leadership. Our biggest contributor of mentors has been Auckland City Council where the CEO and exec team have been mentors and personally endorsed the relevance of our programmes.

Q. How long on average does it take to find mentors? particularly when first starting?

TRIEC: This is a very difficult question to answer. It depends of the level and extent of your engagement with the employers in your community. ALLIES has developed some good ideas that may help guide your mentor recruitment.

SMEs - small-to-medium sized entreprises

Q. What do you do to involve small business, those with 20 people or less? What’s been your experience with getting SMEs on board on board?

OMEGA: It’s true that a large number of businesses employ less than 20 people but, just under 50% of people work for companies that employ over 100 people, which makes large business stronger actors for change. So, at OMEGA, our first objective is to create a model of success with these larger companies using initiatives such as our internship programme.

TRIEC: In Canada, many communities are working on engaging SMEs in a way that meets the needs of both the employers and other stakeholders in the immigrant employment councils. ALLIES partner, Hire Immigrants Ottawa has developed a handbook to help small businesses recruit skilled immigrants.

Getting the word out

Q. What kind of outreach is being done in New Zealand to make immigrant groups aware of this new resource?

OMEGA: We work through our networks and business and government partners and would welcome any support and suggestions around how to help this group develop.

Q. I recently read a story in a Human Rights Commission bulletin about an OMEGA client that found skilled work. Where can I find others?

OMEGA: Tracking success is important-and rewarding. Approximately 80% of those that complete the program find skilled employment. You’re right, the individual stories are exciting and there are many others to tell - like the story of a cleaner becoming an IT professional or the engineer who recently found employment through her mentor’s family network. Or the applicant who was encouraged to get feedback after an unsuccessful interview and wound up be put up for and offered a job elsewhere in the same company! Some of these stories are being written up and will appear on the Omega website soon!

TRIEC: Recognizing success and telling these stories helps everyone. TRIEC hosts the Immigrant Success Awards and The Mentoring Partnership Awards annually, and makes sure the leadership seen here is shared with the larger community.

Q. The TRIEC model has been successfully adapted by Omega in Auckland. Are there any plans to expand TRIEC’s reach in Canada? beyond the GTA [Greater Toronto Area]?

TRIEC: Yes, the model has been very successful and there is strong interest in seeing it replicated in other cities -but led by those cities, with some guidance from us on the Toronto experience. ALLIES (Assisting Local Leaders with Immigrant Employment Strategies) is the vehicle that is being used to takes some of the ideas and programs generated by TRIEC and others to communities and organizations across Canada. Launched in 2008, ALLIES provides funding, technical support and other related supports to other immigrant employment councils and networks working in partnership with 11 cities across Canada. For more details see the ALLIES - Communities listing.

Labour market challenges

Q. How do you help skilled immigrants respond to changing labour market technologies? What is the approach for upgrading/updating skilled immigrants to meet changing industry standards?

TRIEC: Like any good HR manager, TRIEC understands that integrating skilled immigrants into the Canadian workforce means being responsive to changing labour market needs. TRIEC created HireImmigrants.ca to help businesses find the online tools and resources they need to recruit, retain and promote skilled immigrants. The content on the website is designed to improve the capacity of employers (large and small) to be able to utilize the skills and talents of immigrants best. 

Q. How does the program help qualified immigrants seeking employment in industries that are suffering a downturn, such as IT?

OMEGA: At OMEGA, we keep the same course. We look for mentors with the time, experience and commitment who can work with suitably qualified and experienced immigrants to help them understand the employment landscape in this City. The state of the industry will change in time, and the skills needs of businesses will grow once again, and we will likely return to a position where demand outweighs supply. At that point, companies and individuals need to be ready. The mentoring programme helps that readiness.

Q. How are you combating the current recession where there could be a preference to employ native born candidates rather than skilled migrants?

OMEGA:We believe that it is imperative through this recession that NZ does not undo the good work to date in attracting people to the country. Right now, talent is displaced all over the globe and the smarter countries will be strategizing on how they can best work with this talent over the next decade rather than continue to compete for it.

The urban agenda

“Cities that are able to harness the competitive advantage of diversity are able to reach into new markets,  So how do successful cities do it?”

Q.  Why should cities be open to the TRIEC-OMEGA ideas regarding immigrant integration?

TRIEC:  It makes business sense. It’s about economic integration –matching business needs to talent in a competitive, globalized market. Have alook at the Conference Board of Canada report on the economic benefits of utilizing the skills of immigrants…. They estimate the  economy loses $3.4 billion to $5 billion every year in lost opportunity costs. Cities have a direct interest in meeting the needs of employers and one of the key concerns of employers is finding talent. Factor in the modern realities of an aging population and declining birth rates. It’s a simple conclusion. Cities have an invested interest in local employers gaining a competitive advantage in the marketplace. Skilled immigrants help give these companies that competitive edge and ennable them to do better business with the world.

Tags: labour market integration, Mentoring, skilled immigrants

On June 16 – 18sec, Cities of Migration participated in a series of meetings hosted by the Bertelsmann Stiftung in Berlin. On June 17, members of the Cities of Migration team from Toronto, London, Gutersloh and Auckland attended an extraordinary meeting of the Transatlantic Council on Migration, on the topic of “Integration at the Local Level - Diversity, Social Cohesion & the Descendants of Immigrants.”

Topics ranged from the reform of public school systems to the transition of the second generation into the labour market, with new research being reported by the comparative European TIES research project (The Integration of the European Second Generation), Canada’s Institute for Research in Public Policy and think tanks such as the Migration Policy Institute (US) and the Institute for Migration and Ethnic Studies (The Netherlands). The group also learned about prize-winning US work in education recently recognized by the E Pluribus Unum awards, announced by the Migration Policy Institute in May 2009.

Discussions continued the next day, June 18 with a conference hosted by Bertelsmann and the German Federal Ministry of the Interior on “Shaping Diversity: Global and Local Action.”

Highlights included the results of a nationwide survey of immigrant attitudes to life in Germany. Most feel at home, but over 50% also feel excluded from full participation in German society and its institutions. Read more (in German).

For a panel discussion on ‘Diversity as a Global and Local Challenge,’ Maytree Foundation President Ratna Omidvar (Cities of Migration) joined Prof. Dr. Giuliano Amato, former Prime Minister of Italy, Prof. Dr. Ruud Koopmans, Director of Research, Social Science Research Centre (Berlin) and Trevor Phillips, Chair, UK Equality and Human Rights Commission, for a lively exchange on the relative importance of practice (local) and policy (national) in the integration debate.

For more about the “Shaping Diversity” meeting, visit the Bertelsmann website (in German). 

Tags: Berlin, Diversity, Germany, Second generation

In our first webinar, “Routes to Belonging: The Role of Cities in the Civic and Political Integration of Immigrants” the presentation by Kica Matos, on the City of New Haven’s brave and innovative Elm City ID Card (the first of its kind in the US) raised so many follow up questions by participants wanting to learn more that the time ran out before she could respond to them all.

As a follow up, Kica has kindly rejoined Cities of Migration to provide further insight into the program. Have another question or want to know more? See http://citiesofmigration.ca/inclusive-immigration-id/ or Contact us at: citiesofmigration@maytree.com

Question: How many non-immigrants have the ID card? What is the benefit for non-immigrants to get the ID card? - from, The Migration Policy Institute, Washington, USA

Kica: “The City of New Haven does not keep track of ID card holders on the basis of status. In addition to being an ID card per se, the card also serves as a library card, a debit card, is a coinless alternative to parking meters and garages and gives residential access to the public beach, golf course and recycling center.

Question: How did you deal with concerns that people might have had that the US national immigration authorities would want to access the names in the database? from, The Maytree Foundation, Toronto, Canada

Kica: The information in the database does not reveal anyone’s immigration status. Moreover, in 2008, the Connecticut Freedom of Information Commission, after a series of hearings, held that information contained in our database falls under one of the Freedom of Information exemptions and thus, cannot be released. Procedurally, to quality for this exemption, the city received a letter confirming this from the Connecticut Department of Emergency Management and Homeland Security.

Question: Do you have security information on your card that can accessed by the police? from, The Intercultural Work Group, Dublin North West, Inner City Network, Dublin Ireland.

Kica: Our records are private and we kept at City Hall. The information cannot be accessed by the police.

Tags: identity cards, New Haven, undocumented residents

One of the most impressive and interesting angles of the New Haven Elm City ID story was the way that the Mayor’s Office there was able to successfully get much of the city on board with the program - yes there was dissention, protests and even death threats but the law was passed and the ID’s were issued. Last Sunday’s New York Times “Remade in America” series showcased just how unique the New Haven and subsequent San Francisco experience has been.

The article looked at the political dilemma of Mayor Herbert A. Gears, from Irving Texas. Described as an “immigrant friendly Democrat with deep political ties to Hispanic leaders” Mayor Gears nevertheless passed a law that required an immigration check be done on everyone booked into the local jail. The resulting deportations have “made [me] the hero of every redneck in America.”

So why’d he do it? Anti-immigration pressure was building in his town, his opponent in the last election was campaigning on even harder line actions and looked like he might win and the town next door to Irving had recently taken even more energized and aggressive measures towards illegal immigration. The hope was that a middle of the road path like this would help.

But the result so far, has been the Mexican Consul in Dallas issuing warnings to stay away from Irving and the local Walmart has been complaining that Irving is driving away their Hispanic customers.

The lesson? That until the US decides on a national policy around the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants, it will be up to cities and city politicians to find a way to make their local situation work as best they can….

Tags: identity cards, New Haven, political participation, undocumented residents