A unique two day summit will be held in May in Moncton, to raise awareness of immigration and inclusion.
It will be the first of four to be held in the Atlantic provinces.
It has been developed by the Atlantic Ballet, and will feature a performance called “Alien”which is based on the experiences of Igor Dobrovolskiy who immigrated to Canada from the Ukraine 17 years ago.
“I left my home in Ukraine with hope and opportunity in my heart. I found myself in the small city of Moncton. I did not speak any English or French when I arrived,” said Dobrovolskiy. “Immigration is not a simple change in territorial living – you leave a part of yourself in your home country. I am at a time now, as my family grows and as I watch from a distance as Ukraine faces deep challenges and human suffering, where I am looking back at this whole idea of immigration, escape, assimilation and living between two worlds. Immigration – these feelings, emotions – this process – is something that you carry with you for life; sometimes it is deeply sad and at times it is joyous.”
He says there are many internal and external challenges that immigrants face, when they come to a new country. One of the barriers he faced, was language.
Igor Dolbrovolskiy, developer of latest production by #Atlanticballet #Alien #moncton #nb #nbnews pic.twitter.com/cPmSoetNcX
— 91.9The Bend News (@919TheBendNews) January 23, 2018
“How they feel, when they come to a different country and try to express themselves, even without language knowledge. Other people need to try and understand and not judge.”
On the first day of the summit, the ballet will help attendees to understand the struggles experienced by newcomers to Canada.
During the second day, there will be an open discussion on immigration, and how important it is to our community. It will also focus on labour shortages, and solutions to this problem.
The federal government is providing $261, 000 to support this production.
Moncton will be the first city for the summit, which will be held on May 23rd and 24th. The other performances will be scheduled in the other provinces in the fall. For more information click HERE.
#NB Immigration Summit will be held May 23rd And 24th in Moncton #Atlanticballet #moncton#nb#nbnews Remaining summits in three other provinces will be held in the fall pic.twitter.com/dmdGHWbBy0
— 91.9The Bend News (@919TheBendNews) January 23, 2018
