Naturalization Ceremonies

Naturalization Ceremonies

Project Overview

Naturalization ceremonies signal the integration of new citizens into the national community as they pledge allegiance to their adopted country. These ceremonies also serve as both formal and informal educational platforms, transmitting the narratives and values attached to national identity. However, national identity itself is dynamic—constantly contested and evolving. This project examines how naturalization ceremonies, including those incorporating Advanced Digital Technologies (ADT), influence new citizens’ perceptions of national identity. The study involves:

  • Analyzing discourse surrounding virtual ceremonies in Canadian news media and policy documents;
  • Administering a survey to naturalizing individuals, differentiating between ceremony types (in-person, remote, enhanced ceremonies, and those involving Indigenous elders);
  • Conducting elite interviews with citizenship judges and key actors responsible for ceremony development;
  • Exploring potential collaborations with organizations involved in naturalization ceremonies in Canada and comparator countries.

Research Questions

  • How do naturalization ceremonies shape new citizens’ understanding of citizenship and national identity?
  • What is the affective impact of naturalization ceremonies? Do they foster strong feelings of belonging among new citizens? Is there a differential impact based on the ceremony’s format (e.g., in-person, virtual, enriched)?
  • Does the inclusion of Indigenous elders influence the experience?

Methods

  • Discourse Analysis
  • In-Depth Interviews
  • Surveys
  • Media Analysis

Collaborators

UBC Centre for Migration Studies

University of Toronto

Concordia University

  • Mireille Paquet (Associate Professor, Political Science)

Research assistants

  • Carolina Reyes Marquez (Doctoral Student, Political Science, University of Toronto)
  • Nadezhda Zezyulina, (Master’s student, Political Science, Concordia University)
  • Taylor Jackson, (Doctoral Student, Political Science, University of Toronto)

Outputs

Work in progress

Project Status

This project is currently in the Data Collection and Data Analysis phases.

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This research was undertaken thanks in part to funding from the Canada First Research Excellence Fund.

Superdiversity in Canadian Cities

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

University of Alberta School of Urban and Regional Planning

Lethbridge University

Centre Urbanisation, Culture et Société (INRS)

University of Ottawa

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.

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Prof. Emer. Daniel Hiebert presents a new website showing how immigration to Canada has transformed our cities

 
Prof. Emeritus and CMS affiliate Daniel Hiebert presents the "Superdiversity" project, a website that transforms immigration and census data into interactive graphics, revealing demographic changes across generations of newcomers.
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This research was undertaken thanks in part to funding from the Canada First Research Excellence Fund.

Immigration, Social Infrastructure, and Relationship Formation

Project Overview

This project investigates how friendships and relationships form through participation in social infrastructure, which includes physical spaces like parks, markets, cafes, libraries, and churches where people interact. These spaces encourage shared activities, leading to the formation of lasting connections. Social infrastructure fosters mutual support and collaboration, with its roots in studies of public spaces, “third places,” and community organizations. Strong social infrastructure promotes cross-boundary integration, especially when it attracts diverse groups and fosters civility.

Research shows that community organizations act as hubs for boundary-crossing friendships by drawing in a variety of participants. Understanding how relationships form in these settings enhances our knowledge of social integration. A key focus is on “mediated social infrastructure,” which refers to the formal structuring of interactions, often seen in community organizations. This concept builds on the idea of organizational embeddedness in sociology.

Mediated social infrastructure can be exemplified by organized activities like a mothers’ group at a park or a quiz night at a bar. These structured, repeated interactions, guided by the goals of community organizations, help foster meaningful connections, similar to situational mechanisms for friendship formation in psychology. Studying these dynamics provides insights into segregation and integration in social spaces.

Research Questions

  • How do mediated processes within social infrastructures contribute to friendship formation and integration?
  • When do mediated processes contribute to friendships that cross boundaries of language, ethnicity, immigration status, religious differences, age and gender?

Methods

  • Case Studies
  • In-depth Interviews

Collaborators

UBC Centre for Migration Studies

  • Principal Investigator: Sean Lauer (Professor, Sociology)
  • Suzanne Huot (Assistant Professor, Occupational Science & Occupational Therapy)
  • Gabrielle Abando (Master’s Student, Sociology)
  • Frankie Cabahug (Master’s Student, Social Work)
  • Ka Po Kong (Master’s Student, Social Work)

Outputs

  • Work in progress

Project Status

This project is currently in the Planning and Data Collection phases.

Discover other Bridging Divides projects
Discover other UBC projects from the Bridging Divides research program.

This research was undertaken thanks in part to funding from the Canada First Research Excellence Fund.

Individual and Structural Barriers to Citizenship Acquisition

Project Overview

This project investigates the decline in Canadian citizenship acquisition, especially among disadvantaged newcomers such as low-income individuals, those with limited language proficiency, and those with lower education levels. Despite Canada’s traditionally high naturalization rate, recent decades have seen a significant drop, raising concerns since citizenship is key to immigrants’ civic participation, social belonging, and economic integration.

We focus on understanding the administrative burdens that newcomers face when navigating the citizenship process, including learning, psychological, and compliance costs. These burdens can deter eligible immigrants from applying for citizenship, thereby limiting their access to the benefits associated with naturalization, such as better employment opportunities and higher earnings.

Through a mixed-methods approach, including interviews, survey experiments, and analysis of administrative records, this project aims to identify the barriers to citizenship and propose policy solutions to make the naturalization process more accessible and equitable. The findings will inform recommendations to reduce these barriers, especially for economic immigrants transitioning from temporary status to permanent residency. Ultimately, this research seeks to support the design of more inclusive and low-burden pathways to Canadian citizenship.

Research Questions

  • Why are Canada’s naturalization rates declining?
  • To what extent do administrative burdens weaken access to citizenship in Canada?
  • How can administrative support promote inclusive, low-burden pathways to citizenship?

Methods

  • Econometric Modeling
  • In-depth Interviews
  • Statistical Analysis
  • Survey Experiments

Collaborators

University of British Columbia Centre for Migration Studies

University of Toronto

Concordia University

Outputs

Presentation

“The journey to citizenship: Trends and current research,” presented by Sandra Schinnerl as part of the panel “Impact of changing identities and public perceptions on newcomer experiences,” AMSSA Leadership Forum, September 25, 2024.

“The journey to citizenship: Trends and current research,” presented by Sandra Schinnerl at the Metropolis Identities conference, Vancouver, Canada, October 30-31, 2024.

Project Status

This project is currently in the Planning and Data Collection phase.

Discover other Bridging Divides projects
Discover other UBC projects from the Bridging Divides research program.

This research was undertaken thanks in part to funding from the Canada First Research Excellence Fund.

Immigration Health and Well Being: Population-Based Analysis to Inform Policy and Practice

Project Overview

To address immigrant health disparities, timely evidence-informed, equity-based, and community-engaged policy solutions are urgently needed. In the current project, we will be using population-based analyses and mixed methods contextual analyses to explicate preventable health inequities experienced by immigrant communities in Canada. Our consultation with migrant community partners, the national CIHR Youth Health Advisory, and other groups have identified two main priority areas: mental health (all ages) and sexual health (youth), along with food insecurity, discrimination, and other social determinants of health that can influence these priority health issues. We will use large-scale health surveys in Canada to track trends in health disparities among migrant populations.

Research Questions

  • What are 20-year trends in sexual and mental health outcomes among migrant youth in Western Canada compared to their Canadian-born peers?
  • Are any disparities in sexual and mental health improving or worsening?
  • Is there evidence previous policy changes have reduced risks and improved health for homestay students compared to earlier homestay students, and relative to their migrant peers who accompany their parents?
  • What correlates and social determinants help explain health inequities in sexual and mental health for migrant youth populations, especially for LGBTQ+ migrant youth, racialized migrant youth, and refugee youth in particular?

Methods

  • Statistical Analysis
  • Surveys

Collaborators

UBC School of Nursing & Stigma and Resilience Among Vulnerable Youth Centre (SARAVYC)

McCreary Centre Society

Toronto Metropolitan University

Outputs

  • Work in progress

Project Status

This project is currently in the Data Analysis and Writing phases.

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This research was undertaken thanks in part to funding from the Canada First Research Excellence Fund.

Building Relations through Stories

Project Overview

“Building Relations through Stories” is an Indigenous-led project focused on non-extractive, land-based work rooted in Indigenous epistemologies. The research honours territorial protocols and prioritizes giving back to the community by facilitating the gathering of traditional knowledge to be passed on to future generations. The project is led by Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) Hereditary Chief Chepximiya Siyam’ Janice George.

The Sḵwx̱wú7mesh are one of the Original Peoples of the lands now occupied by the city of Vancouver. Chief Janice George will invite all 16 hereditary chiefs of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Nation to participate in talking circles, where they will share origin stories and reflections on land stewardship. By reclaiming familial chieftainship stories from the land and educating non-Indigenous community members on the importance of being a respectful guest—rather than a settler who perpetuates colonial dynamics—this project supports Sḵwx̱wú7mesh self-determination and aims to foster stronger relationships between newcomers, Canadian-born settlers, and the Squamish Nation.

This study will result in the creation of a docuseries and a children’s book. These resources will empower the Squamish Nation’s hereditary chiefs to share previously less accessible knowledge with current and future generations. The docuseries will be made available not only to the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Nation but also to settlement and community organizations for use in their programming for newcomers and settlers to support reconciliation. The children’s book is designed for use in the classrooms of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh elementary school and for children and family audiences more broadly.

Research Questions

Sḵwx̱wú7mesh hereditary chiefs will be invited to reflect on the following questions:

  • What are the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Squamish Nation families’ traditional leadership stories?
  • If there was something you wanted children to know in seven generations, what would it be?
  • How can uninvited guests best show respect and care for the land?

Methods

  • Art-Based Methods (Weaving Workshops)
  • Autoethnography
  • Oral History
  • Talking Circles

Collaborators

  • Principal Investigator: Chepximiya Siyam Chief Janice George, Hereditary Chief, Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) Nation
  • Sussan Yáñez, Cultural Facilitator (Co-Investigator)
  • Antje Ellermann, Co-Director, UBC Centre for Migration Studies (Co-Investigator)


L’hen Awtxw Weaving House

Outputs

Weaving Workshops

Skwetsimeltxw Willard ‘Buddy’ Joseph and Chepximiya Siyam’ Chief Janice George

On April 20, April 27, and May 4, CMS hosted a series of weaving workshops led by Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) master weavers and community leaders, Chepximiya Siyam’ Chief Janice George and Skwetsimeltxw Willard ‘Buddy’ Joseph. Held over three consecutive Saturdays in April and May, the workshops provided nine hours of immersive, hands-on instruction in Coast Salish wool weaving. Participants learned foundational techniques while crafting their own wool wall hangings, guided by the expertise of the weavers.

The event aimed to foster cultural awareness and understanding of Indigenous practices on unceded territories. Alongside the technical aspects of weaving, Chief Janice George and Elder Buddy Joseph shared insights into the cultural and ceremonial importance of woven robes within Sḵwx̱wú7mesh traditions, enriching participants’ appreciation of the art and its connection to the land.

Project Status

This project is currently in the Planning phase.

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Weaving Workshop Series: Facilitating Cultural Awareness with Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Master Weavers

 
On April and May 2024, CMS hosted a series of workshops led by master weavers and community leaders from the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) Nation to foster cultural awareness through the ancestral art of Coast Salish wool weaving.
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Discover other Bridging Divides projects
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This research was undertaken thanks in part to funding from the Canada First Research Excellence Fund.

Narratives of Citizenship

Project Overview

Citizenship is more than legal status; it represents a collective identity that is imagined through, and reproduced by, state-sponsored narratives of nationhood and belonging. Narratives of citizenship are instilled by various institutions throughout one’s life. For newcomers, cultural orientation, language classes, and citizenship study guides/tests play a key role in conveying these narratives.

Government-sponsored narratives of citizenship often differ from lived experience. They can obscure inequities in access and belonging and foster a selective form of patriotism that overlooks historical realities like colonialism.

This project explores the meaning of Canadian citizenship by examining its narratives and how people think about those narratives, with a focus on its relationship to Truth and Reconciliation. We are drawing on three key data sources:

  • Partnerships with two Vancouver-based service organizations (MOSAIC and YMCA BC) and one Toronto-based service organization (COSTI) to gather insights from staff and clients,
  • Perspectives of policymakers and government employees,
  • Content analysis of Canadian citizenship guides.

A Toronto-based community partner is also in the process of being added. The project includes a more limited analysis of German narratives of citizenship as a shadow case.

Research Questions

  • How have state-sponsored narratives of Canadian citizenship directed at newcomers evolved over time?
  • To what extent is citizenship constructed as an inclusive or exclusive category?  How are the historical experiences of different groups—particularly those impacted by settler colonialism, systemic marginalization, and other historic injustices—represented in these constructions?
  • How do newcomers learn, interpret, and engage with these narratives of citizenship?

Methods

  • Art-Based Methods (Photovoice)
  • Focus Groups
  • In-depth Interviews
  • Qualitative Content Analysis
  • Surveys

Collaborators

UBC Centre for Migration Studies

Research Assistants:

  • Anjana Donakonda (Master’s Student, Public Policy and Global Affairs)
  • Cindy Robin (Doctoral Student, Political Science)
  • Elizabeth Semowo (Master’s Student, Public Policy and Global Affairs)
  • Claudia Serrano (Doctoral Student, Political Science)

University of Toronto

MOSAIC

YMCA BC


COSTI

Outputs

Media Coverage

Semowo, Elizabeth. 2024. “It’s Black History Month. Let’s Move Inclusion Beyond Visibility.” The Tyee, February 6. https://thetyee.ca/Opinion/2025/02/06/Black-History-Month-Inclusion-Beyond-Visibility/

Presentations

“Truth, reconciliation, and an evolving national identity,” presented by Lisa Brunner and Antje Ellermann as part of the panel “Impact of changing identities and public perceptions on newcomer experiences,” AMSSA Leadership Forum, September 25, 2024.

“The negotiation of Canadian citizenship narratives in the settlement sector,” presented by Adrienne Bale, Marcela Fuller, and Lisa Brunner, Metropolis Identities conference, Vancouver, Canada, October 30-31, 2024.

“Representations of equity-denied groups in Canadian citizenship guides,” presented by Anjana Donakonda, Metropolis Identities conference, Vancouver, Canada, October 30-31, 2024.

“Narratives of Indigeneity and settler identity in citizenship study guides,” presented by Lisa Brunner and Antje Ellermann, Canadian Ethnic Studies Association conference, November 16, 2024.

“Representations of Black, Forced Migrant, and Refugee Experiences in Citizenship Guides,” presented by Elizabeth Semowo, Pathways to Prosperity conference, Vancouver, Canada, November 25-26, 2024.

Project Status

This project is currently in the Data Collection and Data Analysis phases.

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Elizabeth Semowo on How Canadian Citizenship Guides Shape Perceptions of Blackness

 
Canada’s citizenship guides have long shaped national identity, often overlooking Black history. Elizabeth Semowo examines their impact on perceptions of Blackness.
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This research was undertaken thanks in part to funding from the Canada First Research Excellence Fund.

Factors that Influence the Educational Aspirations of Young Adult Women from Refugee Backgrounds

Sonja Aicha van der Putten

WPS 2024/1

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Abstract

Many young adult women aged 19-30 years old from refugee backgrounds have missed out on formative years of education because of war and displacement. The factors that influence the ability of young adult women from refugee backgrounds to access higher education in Canada are impacted by three key factors: time and expectations, resource availability, and community. This study used a constructivist lens to analyze data collected from interviews and focus groups. The findings suggest that the time available to pursue higher education is directly related to the resources young adult women from refugee backgrounds have available to them upon resettlement. Further, the experiences these women have getting involved in their new communities and the social networks they are able to build for themselves are significant factors in determining their ability to pursue higher education in Canada.

KEYWORDS: refugees; women; education; aspirations

 

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Immigration and the Public

Keith Banting, Michael Donnelly, Marc Helbling, Andrea Lawlor, Rahsaan Maxwell, Angela X. Ocampo, Mireille Paquet, Margaret Peters, Richard Traunmüller, Paul Vierus and Conrad Ziller

This publication is based on the proceedings of the workshop, “Public Views of Immigration and Diversity: Causes and Consequences for Policy,” held at the Centre for Migration Studies, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, May 17-18, 2022.

WPS 2023/5

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At a glance

Questions about immigration – how many should be allowed to come, who should be allowed to come, and on what terms – cut to the core of what political communities are about. In democratic societies, political elites mobilize public sentiment to gain office, and they depend on public support to stay there and, ultimately, make policy. In what follows, we present, in condensed form, the findings of a May 2022 workshop generously supported by the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung. For this workshop, titled, “Public Views of Immigration and Diversity: Causes and Consequences for Policy,” we assembled a group of leading scholars of public opinion to present cutting-edge work describing what people in modern, immigrant-receiving countries think about immigrants and immigration, why they think it, and how knowing the answers to these questions shapes the policy-making process. In addition, we asked these scholars to reflect on how their work, considered holistically, informs broader relationships between researchers, media, the punditocracy, and the political class.

 

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Mapping African Migration Literature Across the Atlantic

Andisheh Ghaderi and Antje Ziethen

WPS 2023/4

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Abstract

The working paper presents the methodology as well as preliminary results and visualizations of a digital humanities project that explores transatlantic migration in African literature through a computing and cartographic approach. At its current stage, the study encompasses 26 texts (out of 70) – written in English, French, Portuguese, and Arabic – from across the African continent that deal with migration to Brazil, Canada, and the US. Mapping geographic and socioeconomic data collected from a larger corpus is a powerful tool to reveal both the multi-sited nature of African writing produced by flows and circulations and the multidimensional experience of migration represented in the novels – voluntary or involuntary, indirect or direct. Moreover, it allows to draw conclusions in terms of migration corridors, clusters, flows, transit routes, and gender ratio. The results are showcased using the digital storytelling tool ArcGIS StoryMaps in order to promote open and inclusive forms of scholarly production. This mapping project is the first of its kind and aims to reinvigorate the field of comparative African Literature. Ultimately, the objective is to contribute to the decolonization of the Digital Humanities (DH) by applying its tools to African Studies.

 

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Explore the working papers from all CMS-affiliated faculty, research associates, students, visiting scholars and community members.