The Promise of Home project organized the Our Home is Here conference at Fredericton’s Cultural Centre from Oct. 20 to 21.
Gül Çalişkan, leader of the research project, said this event was the third phase of a research project based on the narrative of different groups of immigrants and refugees.
The first phase of the project, completed in 2019, had a focus on high school students who are immigrants and/or refugees. Later on, the second phase had a broader target audience focusing on people from all ages and all kinds of backgrounds.
This third phase had the purpose of engaging the community in the stories they have collected so far.
“We invited everyone to view the stories,” Çalişkan said. “Friday was opening up the interactive station … but Saturday we said we will focus on and have roundtable discussions.”
In the two-day event, which gathered more than 100 people from different parts of the world, attendees were able to share their stories and expand on the concept of home.
“In our project, we ask people, ‘What does [home] mean to you?’ … And the answers are varying, but generally, it is not at all a geographical place,” said Çalişkan. “It can be a memory, it can be a feeling, it can be a community, it can be family, it can be food, it can be a feeling of peace, finding peace, finding hope.”
The importance of home is the root of this project, the hope of finding a home is what every immigrant goes through when moving to a different culture.
“Whether we are refugees or international students or immigrants, we are arriving here, we are coming here with the hope of a better home,” said Çalişkan. “This project is about what kind of promises are made to a newcomer, or immigrant of any form, in terms of making belonging and home elsewhere, other than their birthplace.”
One of the stories that was shared on their website talks about Haydée Sainz Gimeno, a veterinarian from Cuba. Leaving behind her family, her country and her culture, she moved to Fredericton in 1995 after she was amazed by the city.
“These are all very universal stories, no matter who watches them, they find a little bit of themselves in them,” said Çalişkan.
Çalişkan said storytellers share their stories for the people who cannot and to make Fredericton more inclusive.
“Everyone’s story and speaking to more than one person felt right for them … they often talked about the importance of feeling part of something and forming trust-building relationships.”
After revealing the stories from the past two phases, Çalişkan said people have reached out to share their stories.
“In every event, whether immigrant background people or not, they express how powerful these stories were.”
This project is special for Çalişkan, since she moved from her home of Ankara, Turkey to Canada 24 years ago.
“It was something that was a yearning for me to support people who feel out of place or who feel their stories haven’t been heard.”
