Media + Reports - CultureLink

Annual Reports + Publications

Annual Reports

Since 1988, we have been supporting newcomers to Canada with free programs to help them find employment, navigate the school system, develop essential skills and make new connections in their local community. Our most recent and past annual reports document our progress, successes and future direction as an organization.

Publications

As well as working directly with clients to help them succeed in their new home, we conduct research into the sector, our programs and other issues that may affect our work and those we support. This enables us to innovate and continuously improve our services. For insights from us and resources created by us and our partners, take a look at our publications and resources.

Below are recent reports and resources created by and for CultureLink and our partners.

Resilience 2022, Kicking It With The Homies by CultureLink and Toronto Community Housing, 2022

In September 2022, CultureLink’s E3 (Educate, Empower, Elevate) Youth program hosted a photography workshop for youth from the East Mall/West Mall communities. The theme was “Resilience: Healing Through Photography”. Participants used photography, music and songs to translate and explore their feelings.

“I Can Bike!” How CultureLink’s Bike to School Project brought bicycles to students with complex barriers by Paul Young, Public Space Workshop, 2021

This report describes the delivery and impact of CultureLink’s pilot program at a secondary school serving students with complex barriers, including Mild Intellectual Disability, Autism and Learning Disability. With this project we also produced a Cycling Educator’s Guide specific to working with students with complex barriers. The project was funded by a Ontario Trillium Foundation “Seed” grant.

Engaging School Communities in Cycling Infrastructure Projects – a Guide for Families, Educators, City Staff and Cycling Advocates by Sam Perry and Kristin Schwartz, 2020

School communities are full of voices that are important in our conversations about safe streets, including parents, teachers, administrators, school board staff and trustees, and most crucially the students themselves. The Families and Educators for Safe Cycling project, supported by the Metcalf Foundation, piloted different approaches and strategies for engaging school communities with cycling infrastructure projects in Toronto, over two years (August 2018-July 2020). This report distills the experiences and learning to a four-step process.

Ride On! Report on the Bike to School Project, 2019

From April 2016 – March 2019, the Bike to School Project was supported by the Ontario Trillium Foundation. Our evaluation strategy was based on student and teacher surveys, focus groups, key informant interviews, and physical bike counts at some participating schools. This report describes our program model, accomplishments and plans for future.

Positive enough A content analysis of settlement service organizations inclusivity of LGBTQ immigrants by Sulaimon Giwa & Ferzana Chaze, 2018

Board member Ferzana Chaze and her colleague, Sulaimon Giwa, conduct a two-stage content analysis of the inclusion of LGBTQ immigrants in 34 settlement organizations in Ontario and Newfoundland and Labrador, and on the delivery of services by nine settlement organizations that self-described as LGBTQ-positive spaces. Their analysis shows poor inclusion and support for LGBTQ immigrants and examines four service priority areas: health/well-being, community connections, advocacy/education, and disability. Recommendations for best practices are discussed. For information on how to access a copy of this article please contact the authors at ferzana.chaze@sheridancollege.ca or sgiwa@mun.ca.

Bike Host 2017 Report by the Toronto Cycling Think and Do Tank, 2017

Bike Host 2016 Report by Trudy Ledsham and Emma Heffernan, 2017

Bike Host is a free cycling mentorship program for Convention refugees and permanent residents, created by CultureLink. This program involves the loan of a bicycle, helmet and lock along with participation in basic training and bike rides led by a matched mentor who is an experienced cyclist. These papers, by researchers at the University of Toronto’s Toronto Cycling Think & Do Tank, present an overview of 2016 and 2017 Bike Host results based on data collected from participants in Entry and Exit surveys.

Bikes and Belonging by Yvonne Verlinden, 2017

In 2016, a number of Bike Host participants captured how they were using their bicycles through photography and reflected on the connections between travel, place-learning, and belonging. This research report, produced with the support of the RBC Immigrant, Diversity and Inclusion Project at Ryerson University, shares their experiences.

Guide for International Students in Toronto Secondary Schools by the Toronto South Local Immigration Partnership, 2016

This handbook covers transportation, leisure activities, health care, post-secondary education and other useful topics. It was developed by the International Student Task Group of the Toronto South Local Immigration Partnership. The Task Group members are CultureLink Settlement and Community Services, Woodgreen Community Services and ACCES Employment. For more information, please visit International Student Connect.

An Opportunity to Shine Again – Newcomer Seniors Taking Action by Sophia J Lowe, 2016

The Newcomer Seniors Taking Action (NSTA) pilot project was developed by CultureLink and piloted from July 2015 to January 2016. Its goal was to train newcomer seniors as leaders and facilitators, and to have them organize and deliver workshops and events to their peers.

Growing Green Settlement by Pallavi Roy, 2015

Since 2008, CultureLink has committed to what we call Green Settlement(TM): promoting and fostering healthy and sustainable lifestyles for all new Canadians. With this research project, supported by the Metcalf Foundation and the RBC Immigrant, Diversity and Inclusion Project at Ryerson University, we sought to identify sustainable practices and environmental interests among CultureLink’s newcomer clients, in order to support ongoing development of our Green Settlement initiatives.

Feeling the Beauty of Winter – CultureLink’s Wintegration Club by Sophia J Lowe, 2014

The Wintegration Club was a pilot program developed and run by CultureLink from November 2013 to March 2014 to support newcomer engagement in pro-social, outdoor winter activities. As part of a commitment to sharing knowledge with the settlement sector and the community sport and recreation sector, this report highlights the successes, challenges and lessons learned in implementing the program. It is intended to help agencies to understand the value and impact of physical activities for newcomers, and to support them in successfully planning and developing similar programs.

Newsletters

For our latest news and a roundup of our recent events, our newsletter is a great resource. We also advertise future activities and opportunities here, so it’s an easy way to keep up-to-date with what’s going on and find out how you can get involved. Sign up to get our newsletter in your inbox.

2023

November 2023
October 2023
September 2023
August 2023
July 2023
June 2023
May 2023
April 2023
March 2023
February 2023
January 2023

2022

2021

November 2021 online | November 2021 PDF
August 2021 online | August 2021 PDF
June 2021 online | June 2021 PDF

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

December 2015 online | December 2015 PDF
November 2015 online | November 2015 PDF
October 2015 online | October 2015 PDF
September 2015 (Inaugural) online | September 2015 PDF

Annual Reports + Publications

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