At EFCL's Regular General Meeting, the Edmonton Federation of Community Leagues (EFCL) and the Edmonton Immigrant Services Association (EISA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding that will become the backbone for a long-term partnership between the two organizations.
The goal of the partnership is to help newcomers to our city overcome a variety of barriers and integrate into mainstream society by joining their local community league.
Unfortunately, most newcomers are not currently involved in community league activities.
This can be traced back to the lack information and effort to promote community leagues to immigrants. Linguistic and cultural obstacles also have a role in preventing newcomers from joining their local community League. Similarly, a lack of knowledge and understanding of cultural differences on the part of mainstream society makes it hard to introduce intercultural, interethnic activities that will encourage newcomers to be part of their community league.
Our Shared Objectives includes:
¨ Facilitate newcomers’ involvement in community leagues as a way to promote active participation, integration and community development.
¨ Provide tools and information that will enable agency settlement workers to introduce newcomers to community leagues
¨ Encourage community leagues to be more receptive and sensitive to newcomers’ needs through cultural awareness
¨ Promote the services and facilities available to newcomers through the community leagues
¨ Inform and encourage newcomers to take active roles in civil organizations.
¨ Coordinate volunteer efforts between community leagues and EISA to facilitate delivery of services to newcomers
Our roles and responsibilities include the translation of EFCL and community league brochures into various ethnic languages. This will help people from other cultures access updated information about community league operations, membership drives, programs, and the need for volunteers for various events.
Leagues volunteers are requested to send their brochures and pamphlets to the EFCL for translation into various ethnic languages.
EISA will facilitate delivery of settlement services closer to communities, promote community leagues to newcomers, and organize community orientation sessions for newcomers, in coordination with the EFCL and leagues through the use of community league buildings and other resources. Leagues are expected to make space available for such community meetings and coordinated information sessions.
As a not-for-profit agency, EISA always depends on community volunteers for its work. Leagues are encouraged to help EISA advertise its volunteer positions on league websites.