Programs & Services > Community and Neighbourhood Development > 10th Anniversary
Community and Neighbourhood Development 10th Anniversary
Family Service Association of Toronto Gives Communities a “10”
This year marks the 10th anniversary of Family Service Association of Toronto's Community and Neighbourhood Development (C&ND) program.
Community and Neighbourhood Development, originally called the Community Action Unit, was launched in 1997 to address the needs of specific ethno-racial newcomer communities. Often, members of these communities had experienced war in their native countries, increasing the challenges of integrating into their new adopted home, Toronto. With an original focus on the Somali, Serbian, Iranian and Tamil communities, the Community Action Unit worked with members to identify their collective needs, develop strategies to address them and build networks of support.
The team approaches its work using a capacity-building model that recognizes that everyone has assets to contribute to improving their lives and communities. Over the course of its 10 years, the nature of the work – facilitation, mobilization, outreach and fostering leadership and community – has changed little. However the focus has shifted away from specific ethno-cultural groups to neighbourhoods, recognizing that different cultures often share similar challenges that are made greater by poverty and its concentration in the inner suburbs where many new immigrants settle.
To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Community and Neighbourhood Development group, we sat down with staff members from across its programs and its history to gain their perspectives on the work of the team, its successes and its challenges. Read about their memories and highlights from their work with Toronto communities:
- Kim Hinton - CND Manager
- Michelle Lupa - former CND Manager
- Deborah Konecny - Family Are Important Resources Co-ordinator
- Naga Ramalingam - CND Community Development Worker
- Abdirahman Sabriye - Community Development Worker
- Salma Sarour - former Building Bridges Co-ordinator
- Shokofeh Dilmaghani - CND Community Development Worker
- Sophia Ali - GUHD Co-ordinator
Note: If your browser blocks pop-up windows, please press down the "CTRL" key, hold it and click on the "send this page" button.
