Project Overview
Today, most international migrants settle in cities, leading to a condition known as “super-diversity.” This concept captures the complex and evolving layers of nationality, ethnicity, language, religion, and other traits that define urban populations. As new migrants arrive, they often settle in areas already shaped by earlier waves of migration, creating a dynamic and intricate social fabric.
The project involves developing a website that enables users to interact with sophisticated data about social complexity in Canada’s 6 largest metropolitan areas: Toronto, Montréal, Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton and Ottawa-Gatineau. Data are drawn from the administrative records of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada and the 2021 census. This is primarily a public communication effort.
Research Questions
- How do immigrants integrate into large Canadian cities?
- How can people be encouraged to ‘see’ social complexity?
Methods
- Geospatial Analysis
- Statistical Analysis
Collaborators
UBC Centre for Migration Studies
- Principal Investigator: Dan Hiebert (Emeritus, Geography)
Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity
- Steven Vertovec (Professor, Anthropology)
University of Alberta School of Urban and Regional Planning
- Sandeep Agrawal (Professor, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences)
Lethbridge University
- Bronwyn Bragg (Assistant Professor, Geography)
Centre Urbanisation, Culture et Société (INRS)
- Annick Germain (Professor, Sociology)
University of Ottawa
- Brian Ray (Associate Professor, Geography)
Outputs
Website
Access the Superdiversity website: www.superdiv-canada.mmg.mpg.de
Media Coverage
Hiebert, Daniel. 2024. “How diverse is your neighbourhood? A new website shows how immigration to Canada has transformed our cities.” The Toronto Star. December, 16. https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/how-diverse-is-your-neighbourhood-a-new-website-shows-how-immigration-to-canada-has-transformed/
Publications
Hiebert, Daniel. “Immigration and a Population Strategy for Canada (Part 1, The Regions),” 2024.
Hiebert, Daniel. “Immigration and a Population Strategy for Canada (Part 2, The Regions),” 2024.
Podcast
How to fix Canada’s immigration system? – It’s Political with Althia Raj
Presentations
“Visualizing Superdiversity in Canadian Cities” presented by Daniel Hiebert, November 23, 2023
“Visualizing Superdiversity in Canadian Cities” presented by Daniel Hiebert at the Institute for Studies of Canada, McGill University, May 7, 2024
“Visualizing Superdiversity in Ontario Cities” presented by Daniel Hiebert at IRCC, Ontario Division, May 18, 2024
“Visualizing Urban Superdiversity” presented by Daniel Hiebert at the Max Planck Institute, Germany, May 27, 2024
“Steven Vertovec in conversation with Dan Hiebert,” by The Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity, June 28, 2024
“Talking about migration: Words, data, images” presented by Daniel Hiebert at the Scholars of Excellence Workshop, Toronto, October 1, 2024
“Telling the Story of Canadian Immigration Through Data” presented by Daniel Hiebert at the La Maisonée, Montreal, November 4, 2024
“Toward more Productive Policy Research” presented by Daniel Hiebert at the Department of Anthropology, University of Montreal, November 5, 2024
“Developing Immigration Policy” presented by Daniel Hiebert at the Concordia University, Political Science, Montreal, November 5, 2024
“Visualizing Superdiversity in Canadian Cities” presented by Daniel Hiebert at the Canadian Urban Institute, Toronto, November 8, 2024
“Visualizing Superdiversity in Canadian Cities” presented by Daniel Hiebert at McGill University, Montreal, November 7, 2024
Project Status
This project is currently in the Knowledge Mobilization phase.
Featured News
This research was undertaken thanks in part to funding from the Canada First Research Excellence Fund.
