Since 2008, the ICC’s Cultural Access Pass (CAP) program has allowed new Canadian citizens to explore, discover, and travel Canada with free access to cultural destinations during their first year of citizenship. The program, which now has over 1,300 participating cultural attractions, aims to give new Canadian citizens a sense of belonging to their new home through free access to its cultural spaces and places.

As a founding partner of the Cultural Access Pass, the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) was one of the first cultural organizations to support CAP’s work in accelerating inclusion for new citizens. The Museum offers free access to CAP members all year round, as well as a free guided tour on the first weekend of every month. With a mandate to make its collections accessible to all Ontarians, the ROM has worked to engage and include new citizens since 2008. The Museum’s Community Access Network initiative partners with 57 non-profit community organizations — including the ICC — to offer free Museum tickets or direct access to communities who might not otherwise be able to visit. The program works to remove the social, cultural, and financial barriers that might stand between communities and the Museum. Beyond offering free admission, the ROM also collaborates closely with community partners to provide meaningful experiences and specialized learning opportunities for over 100,000 visitors every year.

Late last year, New Canadians, a web and TV show for newcomers to Canada, accompanied a group of CAP members on a tour of the Royal Ontario Museum. The segment, now available online, explains how new citizens can register for and use the Cultural Access Pass, and offers a sneak peek of the ROM’s magnificent collections — free for CAP members.

“We partnered with the Institute for Canadian Citizenship for the Cultural Access Pass program because we live in a very diverse city, in a very diverse province,” says Cheryl Blackman, Assistant Vice-President, Audience Development at the ROM. “And we needed to make sure that everyone feels welcome to the ROM.”

Watch the full video below:

Want to learn more about the Cultural Access Pass? Click here.
Learn more about the ROM’s Community Access Network initiative here.

New Canadians airs on OMNI TV.  Watch the full story here.