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Canada’s next census will be held in May 2021. Statistics Canada is hiring approximately 32,000 people to count everyone in Canada. Everyone working for the 2021 Census will make a lasting contribution to Canada.

As a member of the collection team, you will help ensure that the 2021 Census is a success. These jobs involve communicating with residents in urban, rural and remote communities across Canada to ensure the completion of census questionnaires. In the current context of COVID-19, we are committed to ensuring the safety of our employees at all times.

Positions available for the 2021 Census

Supervisory and non-supervisory positions are available. Census jobs are short-term positions collecting census questionnaires from residents in your community. Job start and end dates vary by position and location, but are between March and July 2021.

Crew Leaders (supervisors): As a crew leader, you will train, supervise and motivate a team of enumerators.

The rate of pay for Crew Leaders is $21.77 per hour, plus authorized expenses.

Enumerators: As an enumerator, your primary responsibility will be to complete census questionnaires with residents.

The rate of pay for Enumerators is $17.83 per hour, plus authorized expenses.

Applicants must be

18 years of age or older
a Canadian citizen or otherwise eligible to work in Canada
available to work flexible hours, mainly evenings, and weekends.

The hiring process

initial review of application
interview (applies to Crew Leader positions only)
security clearance which requires a reference check, a criminal record check and a credit check.

Only those candidates who are successful at each step will be contacted, and will proceed to the next step in the hiring process.

Apply online

For more information about working for the 2021 Census, visit the Census jobs page of the census website.

In February, the Institute for Canadian Citizenship celebrated the impact and accomplishments of Black Canadians in a series of enhanced citizenship ceremonies held virtually in Toronto, Montreal, Calgary and the Atlantic Provinces. Arts leader Karen Carter joined us for our virtual ceremony on February 19.

Carter is the executive director of MacLaren Arts Centre in Barrie, Ont. She is the former executive director of Heritage Toronto, a City of Toronto agency responsible for the education and promotion of Toronto’s heritage. She is the founding executive director of Myseum of Toronto and co-founder and director of Black Artists’ Network and Dialogue (BAND), the organization dedicated to the promotion of Black arts and culture in Canada and abroad. She is also the founder and creative director of C-Art a Caribbean Art Fair launched in January 2020 in Mandeville, Jamaica.

Following the ceremony, we spoke with her about arts and culture, community, and what Black History Month means to her.

Why do you think arts and culture is so important to you, personally, and to society in general?
I firmly believe that arts and culture is one of the most effective ways to help make the world a better place through informal education. And I think from a very early age, I knew I wanted to work in some capacity in the arts. For me, it’s all about essentially the soft power impact of arts and culture in helping to create spaces for difficult conversations, helping to create moments of enlightenment and joy, and helping to create opportunities for people to gather.

I think one of the things I said that I love about this country [during the citizenship ceremony] is that it is this experiment on how to become better, and do better. I think the more diverse the moments that allow people to come to those difficult conversations in ways that are accessible, the better. And I think that our societies need that in order to be really sophisticated and whole. If you don’t have the arts, you are missing a part of the human condition. So, for me, the choice to be able to do this kind of work is a privilege because it is a way that you influence people’s lives both in the short term and long term if you do what you do well.

[icc_block_quote quote=”You gain a sense of belonging when you understand what you are belonging to.” author=”” border_colour=”#000000″]

What role do you think arts and culture can have in fostering belonging?
I think within the Canadian landscape, the belonging — and I think we have started to do this post-Canada 150 — is really making it a core part of arts and culture spaces to connect more with our Indigenous roots. I think you gain a sense of belonging when you understand what you are belonging to. I think more work has started been done, and obviously more work has to be done, to really understand who we are as a country and creating opportunities for Canadian artists to be a part of that. That understanding is partly about understanding the complex relationships we have with our Indigenous communities and then through that, we start to understand the complexities of the broader narrative around Canadian culture and identity. Even things like the land acknowledgment, you get up in the morning and this land that you stand on in this country that is still trying to find its way is stolen Indigenous land. You deal with that reality and it’s then how do we start to move forward in a way we pay homage and respect, but also pull in those communities in their authentic voices. That is almost a roadmap for how to then go further in that broader understanding of all of these people from all over the world that came here be it 400 years ago, 200 years ago, or last week and have made this country home and contributed to it in so many different ways. I think understanding the history helps us to understand the present and helps us to gain a true sense of what belonging to this country means.

Can you talk a bit about the work that you have done with Heritage Toronto and now at MacLaren to make arts and culture more inclusive?
For me, the lessons learned and the work that I did at Heritage Toronto around heritage education and supporting advocacy in the community reinforced for me the importance of understanding history in how you then develop whatever you are doing with arts and culture. For instance, right now at the MacLaren, the first project I am working on is a public art projection project. Some of that is announcing my tenure in the institution as the new ED and also to take the preciousness out of art.

For me there is a juxtaposition between understanding the history, which gives you a sense of the community that you are in, and then starting to make choices around how you present, collaborate, and partner to do your work as an arts organization that is a balance of those communities. Not every community is going to come into their interest in culture in the same way, but your responsibility as a culture leader is to try and do as much as you can to serve all the audiences.

I am really excited at the opportunity to make it feel accessible, not precious or intimidating.

Given your focus on highlighting diverse voices throughout your career, what advice do you have for institutions who may be looking at doing this work for the first time?
I remember when we started Myseum of Toronto, the idea was that the museum belongs to you and the museum belongs to community, and if the community has a sense of ownership to it, it de facto pulls the organization back to the ground. I think what has been the Achilles heel for most institutions is this idea of ‘if you build it they will come’. So, we build this big edifice and do all this stuff in the building and we are seeing no one is coming and they weren’t coming before COVID, let’s be truthful. So, I think the core lesson for me both in things that I have done at BAND or the work at Myseum, even the playbook for how I am approaching life at the MacLaren, is to leave your institution, go out into your community, be open to what that meeting may lead you to because if you go out, they will come in.

I think we need to spend more time out in the community and it isn’t even about having a program that you have developed, it is just go meet with people and say ‘hey, here is what we are doing, I am curious about what you are doing.’ Listen more and talk less. Don’t go feeling like you have to have something to ask or some idea in mind, just be open to the initial introduction and then see where the relationship goes. It is kind of like dating, you meet people, you don’t start planning the wedding the minute you meet them.

[icc_block_quote quote=”Leave your institution, go out into your community…because if you go out, they will come in.” author=”” border_colour=”#000000″]

You created BAND (Black Artists’ Network and Dialogue) to promote Black arts and culture in Canada and overseas. Has the way the work of the organization is received changed over the years?
The goal with BAND was how do we create space for artists to be artists. It was how do you create something to support Black Canadian artists so that they can develop and then hopefully get more of a space on the international landscape. For a lot of us who live and work in the diaspora across the globe as Black folks and as people of African descent, and as even people on the continent, there is always this balancing, this pushing back against Americanness that Black identity is so inextricably linked to. Living adjacent to that machine and the way it presents culture, there is always a balance that you got to find to make space for your little voice.

I do think right now, with everything that has happened, what has occurred for BAND is it’s kind of heightened our ability to be a place to push and share information. I think after 10 years, the gallery as a space and the things that we do there and the partnerships locally and internationally are in a good rhythm and now it’s like how do we take that creative capital we’ve built and that credibility and see how we can help move the needle forward. Like how do we help others develop other spaces across Canada because we don’t want to be the only ones. It would be nice to have a bit of a circuit, so can we get a gallery space out west, can we make sure there is something in Montreal? How do we use that knowledge and that credibility that we have to help cultivate opportunities for a national Black cultural landscape to be developed?

What does Black History Month mean to you?
I am actually less interested in the month on its own and more how the month promotes a curiosity for citizens about other citizens. For me any history month is really about using that month to punctuate a particular moment and it hopefully influences a seed that might be planted. Something that you were introduced to may then lead you to say ‘what can I do as a co-conspirator or advocate to dismantle racism’. Or ‘what little thing am I going to do to make sure that my kids are not going to end up hearing about this for the first time as adults.’

For me, the month itself has become really important and powerful because it influences what someone might learn that impacts how they then walk through life throughout the whole year. The understanding around the Black cultural community issues just helps you be more empathetic around any racialized community’s issues. It helps you think “oh, this is how I am approaching Black issues, I might be more comfortable and curious about Indigenous issues or issues to do with the Jewish community’.

I also think Black History Month in Canada is important to just root it here. The good thing about what Jean Augustine did in making it a Canadian thing is it started to push the conversation around not just American references, but about Canadian references. Like who is the Canadian Rosa Parks, and then you have the conversation about Viola Desmond.

Meet Canoo member Ife Thomas!

Ife and her husband chose to move to Canada because for them, it meant a chance for more opportunities. What she loves most about Canada is the freedom and the diversity, which she specifies includes not only the people and cultures but also the geography of the country.

Since Ife and her family received their citizenship, they have used Canoo as a tool to help them discover what’s around them, and even have a new favourite place – Banff! After exploring the town, enjoying a picnic at Lake Minnewanka, and cooling down by the lake while taking in the beauty of the mountains, Ife was pleased to see how much her sons enjoyed their time together. Her eldest son especially, who declares that Banff is his favorite place to go and asks everyday, “Are we going to Banff today?”

Ife says that Canoo has helped her and her family explore all things Canadian, and she really appreciates the suggestions about the places close by and far to visit, especially for parks for the kids. “Canoo has been like a map to tell me all the places that I need to visit without a whole lot of research.”

For Ife, raising her family in Canada, inclusion is very important. It means “feeling accepted, and accepting everyone no matter their race, religion, gender, or background.” Ife explains that “you feel a sense of pride about how so many different people live here and belong here and those differences unify the country and make Canada such a great place to live.”

Ife strives to be an active citizen, by not only voting in local and national elections, but also by “learning and experiencing as much Canadian culture as possible whether by travelling around the country or visiting all the local parks, museums and historical sites.” Ife hopes to continue using Canoo to explore and find more places that her and her family can enjoy together.

Canoo gives new Canadian citizens and their families access to more than 1400 arts and culture spaces and parks across Canada. While Canoo is free to use, it’s not free to operate. As a charity, we rely on donations to help keep Canoo available and free for new citizens. With your generous support, we can help thousands of new Canadians and their families feel like they belong. Give the gift of Canoo! Become a monthly donor today.

Meet Canoo member Harish Kashyap!

Harish chose to come to Canada because “Canada is one of the most outstanding countries in the world where dreams come true.” He says that he could see himself and his family growing together, and living and sharing happy moments for the rest of their lives here in Canada.

“The most important thing I love about Canada is the diversity of people, where I can exchange cultural interests, grow in my career, and also provide a healthy and safe life to my family.”

Harish typically visits venues with his family; he says that sharing these trips means sharing happiness and making their family bond stronger. His favourite places that he has visited with Canoo are Banff National Park and Jasper National Park over the summer. “I went with my family and friends and their family,” Harish says, “ We experienced the breathtaking moments of Banff National Park, and we were so close to the wildlife. Being so close to the wildlife and sharing the same road while driving was the best part. It’s great to see wildlife in their real habitat! Canoo is a great app which provides hands-on information to visit the places no matter whichever part of Canada you are in. ”

Harish believes that cultural venues, including natural spaces like national parks, are important parts of building inclusion and belonging in Canada. “These are places where we learn about other people and culture closely,” he says. “Making cultural places available to everyone brings respect to other cultures while learning something new everyday.

“I can feel proud that I am representing one of the most respectful countries in the world. Inclusion to me means the feeling of being an important part of cultural diversity.”

*Some quotes have been edited for length and clarity.

Canoo gives new Canadian families access to 1400+ arts, culture spaces and parks across Canada. While Canoo is free to use, it’s not free to operate. As a charity, we rely on donations to help keep Canoo available and free for new Canadian citizens. With your generous support, we can help thousands of new Canadians and their family belong. Give the gift of Canoo! Become a monthly donor today.

The Institute for Canadian Citizenship and 6 Degrees partnered with the Cultural Service at the Consulate of France in Toronto to present the France-Canada Dialogue: Democratic Spaces, discussing the contemporary relationship between public spaces and democracy. 6 Degrees is also grateful for the support of Knowledge Partners Canadian Urban Institute and 8 80 Cities.

The built environment is where we live. It impacts our everyday lives: how we interact, work, travel, shop, and more. It represents the public square in which we gather, debate, and join forces and voices as members of a community.

From an increasing privatization of space to the realities of COVID-19, we discussed how our ability to gather is changing, and how our shared spaces need to change for our communities to remain strong.

We examined how racist, classist, and inequitable infrastructure and planning affect our day-to-day lives, and our ability to participate fully in civic life. Our collective needs are changing. So what kind of built environment do we need to facilitate the best of our democracy in this new era?

Featuring:

– Remarks by the Ambassador of France to Canada, Kareen Rispal

– Moderator: Amanda O’Rourke, executive director of 8 80 Cities (Canada)

Speakers:

– Habon Ali, global health student and community builder (Somalia/Canada)

– Michael Redhead Champagne, an award-winning community organizer and public speaker (Shamattawa First Nation/Winnipeg/Canada)

– Angèle De Lamberterie, geographer and urban planner; development manager, Plateau Urbain (France)

– Yoann Sportouch, urban planner; editor-in-chief of the online magazine Lumières de la Ville; founder of the urban planning agency LDV Studio Urbain (France)

Key Takeaways

Public spaces are essential to the democratic process. Public spaces act as an intermediary between the public and the state. They are where we gather to voice our views, raise our complaints, and work collectively towards solutions. It is in those spaces that society can come together, but only if they are accessible to all. While these spaces can and do exist digitally, they must be complemented by physical spaces that are embedded in our communities.

The design of public spaces must be informed by community needs. Too often, community needs are ignored, incorrectly assumed, or overshadowed by private interests in the development of public spaces. For a public space to strengthen society, it must be designed in thorough and honest consultation with the community it serves, and with a genuine effort to realize the vision that the community demands. To be truly public, these consultations must also accommodate the participation of those who are most often marginalized.

Community needs are not static. As the disruption from COVID-19 demonstrates, we cannot predict all of the different ways in which public space may be needed in the future. Our spaces, therefore, need to be flexible, accommodating, and abundant, to meet the dynamic needs of communities as they arise.

To support democracy, we must have public spaces that facilitate dialogue and collaboration among diverse people. Mere access to a physical public space is not enough. Many publicly accessible spaces are designed around consumption, transportation, or recreation, but not dialogue. The design and management of a democratic space must support the building of networks, and the exchange of ideas. Often, the most marginalized people are also those who feel the least supported by our democracies, while also facing the greatest barriers to participation. We have a responsibility to ensure that their voices are heard. We must be proactive in creating structures, both physical and philosophical, to meaningfully include those that are most marginalized in our public conversations. We must foster belonging in these spaces, not just access.

Successes in public spaces can be replicated and shared. While the demands on public space differ across geographies, successes can be replicated, iterated, and scaled. Communities are watching. Urban planners are watching. We all have the opportunity to set an example by creating inclusive, democratic, and community-informed public spaces.

To sign up for our monthly newsletter, and receive updates on projects we’re working on, and information on events we are hosting, including 6 Degrees forums, please click here.

Meet Canoo member Gauri Suri! She moved to Canada from India nearly 10 years ago and obtained her Canadain citizenship (virtually) in May of this year.

“What I love most about Canada is the kindness of the people,” says Gauri. “Canada is truly a land of opportunities and a diverse nation where I feel that I can achieve anything I set my mind to. I moved to Canada 10 years ago and I feel like I have always been able to achieve all my goals with the hard work and no doubt the kindness that has been bestowed to me from random people whom I call now friends and family.”

Gauri has already used her Canoo app to visit museums in both Vancouver and Calgary, as well as national parks such as Banff and Lake Louise.

“I love the Canoo app!” says Gauri, “What a great idea of providing all new citizens with a great opportunity to know more about the country, its culture and traditions.

“I have had amazing experiences with Canoo. During the summer of 2020, there was not much I could do due to the pandemic. However, being so close to the rocky mountains and being a hiking person, I was able to experience the most beautiful aquamarine lakes, waterfalls and rocky mountains of Banff and Lake Louise. All these places kept me sane and, of course, nature amazes me everytime with its magical moments — I was able to capture the views that are beyond words. Along with that I was able to motivate some of my friends to experience the sunrise hikes that became every weekend’s memories for all of us!”

Gauri believes that nature and culture are important factors to inclusion. “Culture plays an important role as it teaches all of us to learn the good things from diverse ethnicities. Being a land of immigrants, we all are free to celebrate with each other and call this country a diverse nation.”

Meet Canoo member Anique Ellis. Anique Ellis first came to Canada in October of 2007 as an exchange student at Northern Lights College in Fort St. John’s, BC, as part of a cultural exchange program for student-teachers from Jamaica. “That was where I fell in love with Canada,” says Anique Ellis. “The culture [and the people made my decision to migrate to Canada an easy one. When I returned to Jamaica and completed teacher’s college, I wasted no time in starting the process.”

Anique Ellis is excited and proud to be a Canadian citizen. “ I take responsibility for my role as a citizen and ensure that I contribute value to society in whatever capacity I’m able to.”

“Canada is an amazing place to live,” she says.“It isn’t just physically attractive but inclusive, and I appreciate how everyone is treated equally and how all cultures are celebrated and appreciated. To be included is Canadian; to be Canadian is to be included.”

Anique Ellis has visited many provinces and can’t choose a favourite place. “Canada is absolutely breathtaking,” she says, “I have been to Manitoba, Ontario, British Columbia, and Alberta, and I’m yet to decide on which is my favourite place! Each province is unique, culturally rich, and has a great deal of things and places to offer, experience, explore and enjoy.”

Typically, Anique Ellis visits venues with her son, and her favourite venue she has visited is the Royal Alberta Museum. “I had an amazing experience at the Royal Alberta Museum,” she says, “I started going in December of 2019 when I took my son. I enjoyed the little areas set up for children to learn and explore, and the different areas to play in the museum. The staff were very kind and welcoming.

“Cultural places such as the Royal Alberta Museum give each Canadian the opportunity to experience each other’s culture, which helps to remove barriers and prejudices, as well as allow for dialogue and acceptance of our differences. That is what makes us unique as Canadians.

“Thanks to Canoo I have gained a deeper appreciation for Canada’s rich history and heritage. Canoo connects history, culture, and entertainment; it has been an amazing experience.”

For the last six months, many Canadians have struggled through the effects of widespread shutdowns and isolation at home. Our most marginalized citizens — including BIPOC, new immigrants, and low-income Canadians — have been especially hard hit.

We spoke with the 26th governor-general of Canada and ICC co-founder, The Rt. Hon. Adrienne Clarkson, to discuss the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on Canadians, as well as the rise of discrimination and misinformation in the wake of the pandemic.

As a former refugee, Madame Clarkson offers her perspective on why Canada needs to reaffirm its commitment to immigration and refugee needs even during the pandemic.

Sejla Rizvic: Since the pandemic began, many long-standing social issues have come to the fore. What is your perspective on some of the discrimination that’s arisen since the pandemic, particularly against Asian Canadians and the recent Black Lives Matter protests?
Adrienne Clarkson: I think what the Black Lives Matter protests are telling us is that we can’t keep saying, “Okay, let’s try to make things nice, little by little.” We really have to buckle down and say there is systemic racism — not that every single police person or every single person in authority in a certain place is a racist, but that the system, which they represent, was based on a racist model: that white people are better than anybody else. That’s systemic racism, the colonial system in which we all live in, and that has to end now.

I was a young person at the time of the civil rights movement in the 1960s. It’s now about 60 years later and it has not unfolded as it should have. We have to take some really drastic action. And that’s where my point of view has perhaps changed in that I now feel that we must take very direct action to get a quota of Black people onto boards of organizations and into structural management. We can’t wait anymore. The inequality is too great and human suffering is too great.

In terms of anti-Asian sentiment, I think it’s most unfortunate that people think that Chinese people are to blame for COVID-19. Of course, it’s a result of total ignorance, bigotry, and hatred — especially seen south of the border, spewed from the highest office in the land. And that is disgusting, reprehensible, and totally unjustified. I read the stories about people of Chinese descent in Vancouver, where there is a very sizable and visible community, who are Canadian and who are being discriminated against. Asian Canadians are actually being attacked or spat upon. It’s absolutely dreadful.

As a former CBC journalist, what’s your take on the alarming trend of misinformation we’ve seen surrounding COVID-19? Is it comparable to anything that you saw during your time as a journalist?
No, and I’d say that is because of social media. Now anybody can get online and say whatever they want. And when you have the leader of the nation next to you spreading the misinformation himself — saying nonsensical and frightening things, even lying that COVID-19 is just going to go away — then it’s not hard to understand why the misinformation spreads so fast. Misinformation has just multiplied: it goes on social media and people end up listening to things that have no basis in facts.

Another issue that we’ve talked about in our series is the impact that the pandemic has had on refugees and new immigrants to Canada. I know that you’re a refugee yourself, and actually, so am I — my family came here from Bosnia in 1995. Global refugee resettlement was paused during COVID-19, but there is still an ongoing refugee crisis. What responsibility do you think governments have to not forget about refugees during this time?
I think this is the time to really be thinking about refugees and about taking in more people. I’m very, very adamant about that. I read recently that immigration will be down by at least 30 percent this year because of COVID-19. That’s terrifying because we need immigrants, we need refugees.

We know from all the statistics that after 2030 we will have no growth in our population except by immigration. We are not having enough children in order to do the things we need to do to keep up our pensions, to keep our universal health care, and so we need immigrants. We need people who came here, like you 25 years ago, probably little, with your parents. Right?

I’m self interested, perhaps, because I was a refugee and I was taken in. It’s not without difficulties — nothing was gold-paved for us in any way, shape, or form. But Canada is a country where if you wanted to live your life, bring up your children, and you had lost everything somewhere else, you can do that. And if we can’t do that because there’s a pandemic, this is a real problem. I think we have to then make up for it as soon as possible after we come out of lockdown.

Obviously, this is a very strange and difficult time to be arriving in the country. What kind of message do you have to give new immigrants?
Well, if you’re just arriving now, this is not the way we always are [laughs]. We would be welcoming you with smiles — you can’t see a smile through a mask — we would be trying to help you.

Some people who arrive are sponsored by a social group, a church group, or a synagogue group or whatever, and my own parish church has always adopted a family. It takes about six or seven families to look after one family that comes because they have a lot of needs when they first arrive because they have to set up an apartment, the children have to go to school. We can do little things, too, like getting them skates to go to the skate rink. All of these are personal citizen touches which we have always done so well in Canada.

The world is a terrifying place and people are thrown out of their homes for no reason, but Canada gives people another chance. I always say that immigration, even without very much, is a chance to be transformed; you’re not going to be the same person that you were even if you had stayed in your own country. Canada is a place for second chances and I think that’s what all of us who have been refugees or immigrants feel about Canada, even if we don’t say it in so many words, that this is a place that gave us the ability to become something else and even more than what we could have been had we stayed in the country where we were born.

I’m interested in looking to the future now and asking what the world might look like in 20 if we’ve handled this crisis in the right way. What lessons should we be implementing now to make that possible in 20 years?
I wish I had that foresight. I’ve always been wrong in anything I predicted would happen [laughs]. What I want to do is to continue to defend refugees and to take in as many as we possibly can, welcoming immigrants and refugees throughout the country, not just in large centers.

We must welcome the people who are coming now, the way we did or the way our grandparents came — starting with nothing but only their hopes — coming to a country that has a great parliamentary structure, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom to move anywhere, anti-hate laws. We need people from all over the world because we can transform them into Canadians.

This interview has been edited for clarity and length.