CERI Network

Foundational Philosophy and Vision

The Community Engaged Research on Immigration Network (CERI Network) is dedicated to creating a collaborative, multi-partnered, and responsive forum for knowledge creation and mobilization on matters related to immigration and settlement in Manitoba, Canada, and elsewhere.  It will do so across disciplinary and sectoral boundaries through collaborative processes centred on research design, execution, and reporting.

Rooted in years of engagement with organizations serving newcomers to Manitoba and Canada, we have identified the need for a network to coordinate, augment, and advance the collaborative activities undertaken by community organizations who work with newcomers, academic researchers, and policy agents. Collectively, we are able to amplify one another’s expertise to better address emerging questions arising from ongoing multi-sectoral work on immigration and settlement in Manitoba, Canada, and internationally. 

Furthermore, at this time, there is a need to respectfully address challenges faced by newcomer communities in an era of the increased politicization of the presence, or acceptance, of immigrants and refugees, new forms of displacement and dispossession throughout the world, and religious-based exclusions.  Moreover, there are unprecedented opportunities for the advancement of newcomer-Indigenous relations in Canada. Activities and initiatives around such matters are already being undertaken at the community-level, but the results can be augmented by research initiatives. 

Finally, there is immense potential to bring the knowledge of the community into our university through sharing opportunities in classrooms and community-based avenues for student engagement.  The CERI Network will inform pedagogy and research practices at the University of Winnipeg through the development and strengthening of partnerships with people and organizations involved in newcomer settlement.