Local Immigration Partnership

Grey and Bruce counties are partnering to address newcomer integration and employment needs in the region through the formation of a Local Immigration Partnership (LIP), funded by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. This LIP will address the isolation of newcomers in a large geographic area by increasing our capacity for coordination, connection and collaboration to foster a welcoming community. The partnership will help create a more welcoming environment for newcomers by bringing together various settlement programs and institutions to share knowledge and develop resources.

LIPs were launched as a pilot project in Ontario in 2008 as a joint venture between Citizenship and Immigration Canada and the Ontario Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration, and has since expanded to eight other provinces and two territories.

LIPs do not provide direct services to newcomers. Rather, they seek to make host communities more welcoming by engaging a range of stakeholders and enhancing collaboration and strategic planning at the community-level to improve settlement and integration of newcomers. The LIP in Grey and Bruce will offer support to local employers, school boards, healthcare centres, boards of trades, professional associations, ethno-cultural and faith-based organizations, social services sectors and other service providers. Specifically, the initiative and funding will foster welcoming communities throughout Grey and Bruce counties by developing community-based partnerships and planning based on the needs of newcomers in the region and promoting the benefits of diverse and multi-cultural communities.

Our region has realized the important role that newcomers play in diversifying and enriching the social, economic and cultural vitality of our rural communities. “Newcomers to Grey and Bruce bring skills and knowledge to our communities and they are an important part of our future,” said Grey County Warden Paul McQueen. “As our population continues to age out of the workforce, it’s important that we have resources available to help our newcomers settle in our region and call Grey and Bruce Counties home.”

“Bruce County and Grey County have many of the same opportunities and challenges with newcomer attraction and retention,” said Bruce County Warden Mitch Twolan. “By working together, we can pool our resources and networks to develop a responsive and successful partnership.”

Organizing the project will be the role of the newly hired Local Immigration Partnership Coordinator, Melissa Avedesian. “I’m excited to work with Grey and Bruce counties on such an important initiative. I look forward to building on the current successes in the community, while also supporting new collaborations,” said Avedesian. “In these first few weeks in the role, I have already experienced the support and excitement that community partners have for this initiative to be kicking off. I look forward to working with partners through coordination, connection and collaboration in the fostering of an inclusive and welcoming community.”