Integration Trajectories of Immigrant Families

The workshop "Integration Trajectories of Immigrant Families" reported on the results of a community-academic partnership project that explores the complex roles families play in the integration of immigrants, and discussed implications for policy making, program development, and future research.

The workshop was organized by Dr. Harald Bauder on March 18th and included the following presentations:

• Dr. Mehrunnisa Ahmad Ali, Toronto Metropolitan University, Who are Immigrants’ Families and How do they Shape their Migration and Settlement Decisions?
• Dr. John Shields, Toronto Metropolitan University, Settling on Services: Understanding the Place of Services in Immigrant Family Integration in Toronto
• Dr. Sepali Guruge, Toronto Metropolitan University, The Contextual Influence on the Migration and Settlement Related Decision-Making: Why, Where, When, What and How
• Marc Yvan Valade, Toronto Metropolitan University, PhD Candidate, Immigrant Youth and Parental Dialectics in the Resettled Family
• Dr. Vappu Tyyskä, Toronto Metropolitan University, Immigrant Youth and Parental Dialectics in the Resettled Family

Marc Yvan Valade, research assistant for the family project, participated to the Guanajuato University International Colloquium "Movilidad humana, territorio y políticas migratorias: Los múltiples impactos del desarreglo migratoria de Barack Obama en México y sus fronteras," held on November 10-11, 2016. [Title translation: "Human Mobility, Territory and Migration Politics: The Multiple Effects of Barack Obama’s Migration Mess in Mexico and its frontiers"].

One of 20 presenters, mostly from Mexico and Guatemala, Marc delivered results from the "Integration Trajectories of Immigrant Families" project under the title: "Impacto de la familia en el éxito del proyecto migratorio en Toronto, Canadá" [Transl.: "Positive impacts of the family on migration trajectories in Toronto, Canada"].

His presentation started off with an historical recount of Canadian immigration policy, so to contextualize the research in a polity where dependents and family members of principal applicants are generally discounted as assets for the receiving country.

In terms of findings, Marc stressed on the multiple cultural, social and economic pressures and changes lived by the immigrant families during their landing and adaptation phase. Against these, the presence of close family members and friends, extending emotional support and alternating in terms of household breadwinners, stands out as a strong factor of resilience, such as facilitating professional and educational transitional phases.

Many of the participants expressed their interest in meeting again next year, this time to elaborate a joint international research network on the migration trends and south-north trajectories of Latin Americans.

Photo credit: Marc Valade.

Preliminary results of the project were shared at the "Integration Trajectories of Canadian Immigrant Families" workshop session during the 18th National Metropolis Conference in Toronto, ON.

The workshop was organized by John Shields on March 4th and included the following presentations:

• Diane Dyson, WoodGreen Community Services, The Utility of an Egological Model to Analyze the Relations Between Immigrants, Their Families and Their Labour Market Activity
• Mehrunnisa Ali, Toronto Metropolitan University, The Case Based Approach to Family Support: Learning from Immigrant Families
• Karline Wilson-Mitchell, Toronto Metropolitan University, The Intersections of Structural Violence and Intergenerational Violence Post Migration
• Marc Yvan Valade, Toronto Metropolitan University, PhD Candidate, Maria Gintova, Toronto Metropolitan University, PhD Candidate and Sun Zhonggen, Toronto Metropolitan University, China Scholarship Council Postdoctoral Fellow, Teamed Up for the Greater Good: How Do Immigrant Families Facilitate Integration?
• John Shields, Toronto Metropolitan University, Policy Matters: Policy Change and the Downgrading of the Immigrant Family