Immigrants as active citizens: exploring the volunteering experience of Chinese immigrants in Vancouver

Abstract

Despite the fact that immigration has played an important role in transforming Canada into an ethno-culturally diverse and economically prosperous nation, immigrants themselves are often criticised as passive citizens. This study attempts to deconstruct this myth by investigating the volunteering experiences of Chinese immigrants in Vancouver. The study adopts a case study approach, drawing on questionnaires completed by 196 Chinese immigrants and additional personal interviews completed with 30 of these individuals in an immigrant service organisation in Vancouver. The findings show that volunteering is a powerful source of informal learning. Through volunteering, Chinese immigrants in this study learned language, skills and knowledge needed by new citizens for their integration into Canadian society. Volunteering also helped immigrants build a community and a sense of belonging. Furthermore, the study demonstrates that voluntary organisations can be important sites for immigrants to draw on in navigating complex paths to full citizenship and full participation in their new society. Findings of this study advance our extant knowledge of the participation of immigrants as active citizens, and how they fulfil their responsibilities as new citizens.

Keywords:

• immigration
• ethnic diversity
• social and civic participation
• volunteering
• informal learning