For a few years now I've been tracking interesting digital programs/projects in the Canadian immigrant and refugee-serving sector. Among those are smartphone apps. A growing number have emerged over the years and I wanted to share them here.

The OCASI ImmSectorRoundtables discussion series is an opportunity for settlement practitioners to get together virtually and examine issues as they relate to service delivery in the im/migrant and refugee serving sector. In this January 2022 event, three panelists looked at the state of innovation in the sector.

On January 18, 2022, Richard Edelman unveiled findings from the 2022 Edelman Trust Barometer. For 19 years of the Edelman Trust Barometer NGOs have been the most trusted institution. You're still second this year, but it's worth looking at the nuances of where NGO/community organizations are trusted. He delves into some of that of those nuances in his presentation, and they're interesting.

This paper argues that recent changes brought about by COVID-19 highlight that computational advances need to incorporate human rights throughout design and development stages, extending well beyond technical feasibility. This also extends beyond tech company references to inclusivity and transparency and requires analysis of systemic risks to migration and mobility regimes arising from advances in AI and related technologies.

Drawing on an extensive review of recent literature about resilience and integration, this paper evaluates a social resilience approach to the integration of newcomers in Canadian cities. The authors advocate a social resilience approach that acknowledges how institutions of all types play critical roles in newcomers’ efforts to establish their lives in new places, especially when faced with unanticipated events such as a global pandemic.

This paper presents the current knowledge of how newcomers and migrants are being impacted by the pandemic, the responses of rural communities, and what this means for our understanding of rural immigration moving forward.

This guide was developed by the Hamilton Immigration Partnership Council (HIPC). It is based on a report conducted in partnership with McMaster University Research Shop. This Good Idea complements and is related to Ethical Considerations in Research with People in Situations of Forced Migration.

Since the pandemic started, many organizations have pivoted possibilities and options to create digital specialist roles. These new positions were filled by admin staff or settlement practitioners whose roles changed to incorporate digital support and orientation for both clients and colleagues. Digital Navigators are emerging as an essential role in the Immigrant and Refugee-serving sector and in the future of a hybrid service delivery model.

The CIO Strategy Council, Tamarack Institute, and NTEN, alongside numerous collaborators, have been working on the possible creation of a Canadian Centre for Nonprofit Digital Resilience. The goal is to equip nonprofits with the talent, tools, and processes to thrive in a digital and data-driven world.