Mobilising knowledge on newcomers: Engaging key stakeholders to establish a research hub for Alberta

Abstract

As immigration to Canada increases, so, too, do the complexities associated with serving various groups of newcomers, including immigrants, refugees, temporary foreign workers and international students. A range of stakeholder groups, such as grassroots community organisations, immigrant service provider organisations and academic researchers, have developed knowledge about how to best serve newcomers as they integrate into life in Canada. To date, there have been few opportunities for members of these and other stakeholder groups to work together to ensure that the needs of newcomers are being efficiently met. In this article, we describe a multi-step process of reciprocal knowledge engagement involving diverse stakeholders and led by the Newcomer Research Network at the University of Calgary. This engagement has the ultimate goal of developing a knowledge mobilisation hub focused on building capacity in community-engaged research with newcomers. In order to understand how we will reach this goal, this article outlines the efforts, priorities, challenges and important lessons learned that occurred as part of the multi-step process undertaken to establish a knowledge exchange with newcomer communities at its core.

Partnering with organisations beyond academia through strategic collaboration for research and mobilisation in immigrant/ethnic-minority communities

“…Research partnerships between researchers and diverse stakeholders for research and knowledge mobilisation activities are becoming widely accepted and sometimes are being mandated by funding authorities 26 27. There needs to be a paradigm shift in the way community-level research is done from one in which the researcher is the sole authority to one in which researchers and stakeholders co-lead research activities by collectively applying their knowledge, expertise and skills.…”

A stakeholder engagement strategy for an ongoing research program in rural dementia care: Stakeholder and researcher perspectives

“…Stakeholder engagement involves an iterative process of actively seeking the knowledge and experience of a broad range of individuals with a direct interest in an issue, to create a shared understanding and make decisions [ 2 ]. Evidence supporting the value of stakeholder engagement for stakeholders, researchers, and the research process is growing and includes improved relevance of the research, quality of the research process, interpretation of findings, and stakeholder outcomes such as increased confidence and sense of personal achievement [ 3 – 10 ]. Active and meaningful engagement of patients and other stakeholders as partners in health research is increasingly required by funding agencies in many countries as a key strategy to close the research-practice gap.…”