Hearth2Heart

"I feel a sense of belonging when communities show care and compassion."

Children of immigrants often find themselves living in two worlds. In this episode, Landed co-author and second-generation Filipina-Canadian Jesiebelle Salcedo shares how giving voice to her mom's immigration story has helped her heal her relationship with her mom while honouring her family's roots.

Jesie is a teacher, reader, and writer based in Calgary, Alberta. She holds bachelor’s degrees in Canadian studies and elementary English as an additional language from the University of Calgary. To date, she has worked with many first-generation and immigrant youth in local non-profit settings and within the school system, fueling her passion for anti-racism education. In her spare time, Jesie enjoys baking up a storm, exploring new foods, creating pottery pieces, and spending time with her friends and family. Find her on Instagram: @jbreadsandwrites; @jbs_fooddiaries

campfirekinship.com

IG: @campfire_kinship

"When I became an independent, single, immigrant woman homeowner in Calgary...that was like a proud, proud moment...a fantastic feeling of belonging in Canada, and calling it a home."

In this episode, Landed co-author Dr. Swati Dhingra joins us to share her immigration journey from India to Canada. She offers tips about the hurdles she faced along the way, including overcoming criticism.

Dr. Dhingra is a research coordinator at the University of Calgary. With her unique background in dentistry and oral medicine from India, she brings an exceptional blend of knowledge and expertise in academic, clinical and community research. She has contributed to several multi-disciplinary research projects at U of C and has been a part of community research projects with Alberta Health Services. Dr. Dhingra is passionate about social work and always looks for meaningful ways to give back to the community. She is also a trained classical Indian dancer and has an extraordinary love for music and travel. Find her at: https://profiles.ucalgary.ca/swati-dhingra

campfirekinship.com

IG: @campfire_kinship

"I feel a sense of belonging when my heart feels at peace no matter where I am, and that is in beautiful Calgary with my family and friends, and I am at peace."

Our latest episode on Hearth 2 Heart is with Kelly Kaur who grew up in Singapore and lives in Calgary. Kelly teaches at Mount Royal University and Athabasca University. She has been published in Qatar, Italy, Malaysia, Zimbabwe, the United Kingdom, Singapore, Canada, Berlin, Prague, Australia, India, and the United States. Some works have appeared in New Asian Short Stories 2015, The Best Asian Stories 2020, and The Best Asian Poetry 2021. Her poems have been published in the International Human Rights Art Festival in New York. She has been published on UNESCO’s Cities of Literature website. Her novel, Letters to Singapore, released on May 1, 2022, by Stonehouse Publishing.

kellykaur.com

campfirekinship.com

IG: @campfire_kinship

"Until true systemic change takes place, and racist, discriminatory and unjust structures are dismantled in our society, I know I will not be able to rest."

Born in Montreal to a French-Canadian mother and a South Asian father, Anusha Kassan shares her experience of her writing her story in Landed.

Anusha is currently an associate professor with a high-impact position in the School and Applied Child Psychology Program at the University of British Columbia. Her scholarly interests are informed by her own bi-cultural identities and an overarching social justice framework. Anusha’s program of research presently includes two major foci: immigration experiences across different groups (i.e., newcomer youth, women, 2SLGBTQIA+ peoples), and cultural and social justice responsiveness in professional psychology. Connect with Anusha at anushakassan.com

campfirekinship.com

IG: @campfire_kinship

Change is never easy but it is possible when you set your mind to it and add a (not-so-secret) ingredient...

"I feel a sense of belonging when people believe in my strengths and skills and opportunity, and the other way when I give back to the community...when I help a new immigrant."

After having to move countries during a pandemic with a toddler in tow, Benazir Rahman joins us on this episode to share her tips for a successful transition, including the message from her story in Landed - "Be You, You Can". Born and raised in Bangladesh, and a researcher by profession, she now works at the University of Calgary as a Global Development Specialist. Her areas of interest include international trade, social work, and post-secondary education.

Having experienced generosity and kindness as a new immigrant in Calgary, Benazir believes in the power of giving back and is currently helping Afghan refugees find meaningful employment.

In addition, Benazir and Gayathri discuss the Landed book publication journey, and Gayathri peels back the curtains on her learnings in this episode.

Change is never easy but it is possible when you set your mind to it and add a (not-so-secret) ingredient...

In this episode, Gayathri chats with her own coach, Drew Soleyn, who supported her transition into entrepreneurship. Drew is a career coach at Queen's University and also the Founder of Connected Dads and Director at Dads Central Ontario. As a dad himself, he believes his children are the greatest gift he's ever received - and helping them find and live out their purpose is the most important "work" he will ever do in life.

Tune in to hear Drew share his journey and insights into living to your fullest potential.

Links mentioned in episode -

https://www.campfirekinship.com https://connecteddads.ca/ https://dadcentral.ca/ www.instagram.com/campfire_kinship

"I feel a sense of belonging when I feel respected....Respect is something that no matter where you are, who you are, where you are from - it is how you can have a sense of belonging, connect, build a trusting environment for one another, and build a safe environment for everybody.”

In this inspiring episode, Anam Kazim - author of the story "The Dusky Dawn" in Landed - provides a glimpse into the transformations of her life, moving from Pakistan to Canada, then east-west within Canada; and going from #engineering to becoming an MLA and then an #entrepreneur. She shares her wisdom in leveraging the power of a support network, seeing the beauty in a garden of differences, and owning your truth - as factors to help you transform.

Links mentioned in episode -

Anam Kazim - https://www.linkedin.com/in/anamkazim
Landed: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0B7PSHKMR
Book launch: https://campfirekinship.com/launch-event

"A sense of belonging comes when you can be your true authentic self.”

In this episode, we talk about the role of curiosity in creating community with Landed’s co-author, Inez Ashworth. Inez, founder of Inclusive Concepts, is a cultural innovator and a trusted advocate with her own unique style. Her life and career have been dedicated to working for equality and justice, bringing people together and creating inclusive environments where everyone can be their authentic selves. Much of Inez’s energy and inspiration comes from community work, volunteering, and mentoring minority students. Inez is one of the sponsors of the Landed Book Launch celebration on Sep 17; as well as the co-founder of Human Movement from Sep18-20 which is one-of-a-kind event to inspire a community of changemakers to gather, reflect, and learn together.

https://thehumanmovement.ca
https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/landed-book-launch-celebration-tickets-381683093407
https://campfirekinship.com

"No matter what others say who you're supposed to be, who you're not, or who you should be - just remember who you are and stick to the truth. Always have that hope that all together, we can make things better."

Anna Zakharova is an internally displaced person from Crimea, Ukraine who fled from Russia’s military invasion in 2014. She is a Fulbright alumna with a master’s in international studies from Old Dominion University and a master’s in community social work, from the University of Calgary. Anna has worked as an administrative assistant with the United Nations Development Programme in Ukraine, faculty of social work at the University of Calgary, at a homeless shelter and is presently family school liaison coordinator – Ukrainian.

Anna has authored a very moving story called “Two suitcases,” in our book Landed. Listen to this episode to hear her experience in the project and her favourite quotes from her story.

www.campfirekinship.com
https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0B7PSHKMR
https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/landed-book-launch-celebration-tickets-381683093407

"I feel a sense of belonging when I am with a group of people that are looking beyond the differences between us...and just embracing one another as a people of the same nation."

We're proud to host conversations with the authors of our latest anthology, Landed, Transformative Stories of Canadian Immigrant Women. To kick off, this episode features a conversation with Charlotte Anyango Ong'ang'a, whose story in the book is titled "Still I Feel."

Originally from Kenya, Charlotte Anyango Ong'ang'a is a linguist, career development specialist and storyteller. She holds a Ph.D. in linguistics, a master’s in teaching English to speakers of other languages and a bachelor’s in English language and literature. Her expert linguistic knowledge is applied in the areas of resume, cover letter writing, networking, interview preparation, job search strategies, and workplace communication. Charlotte has taught linguistics, and communication skills and provided career guidance at higher education institutions for over 12 years in different countries.

In this episode, Charlotte shares her inspiration for joining this anthology and provides a glimpse into the challenges of navigating life as a new immigrant and mom of a newborn. She also reads a favourite paragraph from her story and sums up the power of storytelling: "If you listen to people's stories, you will understand why people are the way they are."

Links mentioned in the episode:

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0B7PSHKMR
https://campfirekinship.com/book
https://linkedin.com/in/charlotteonganga