This document was created to report on the beginning phase of the first project of the Canadian Community Economic Development Network's (CCEDNet) International Committee. It will be shared with respondents and membership and used to gather feedback about CCEDNet's potential international involvement at the 2007 National CED Conference.

Involvement and Interest in International Engagement Within the Canadian CED Network

This report is based upon both the accompanying literature review and the Youth and CED Profiles examining youth involvement in community economic development (CED). The profiles have been produced as part of The Canadian CED Network's efforts to encourage effective practices in youth leadership and engagement to enhance the social and economic conditions of Canada's communities.

This first major publication of the Pan-Canadian Community Development Learning Network project reviews literature on social inclusion and its related concepts, and examines the strengths of integrated, community-based responses such as community economic development to promote social inclusion.

This paper is a starting point for a discussion about the role the co-operative sector can play in assisting immigrants and refugees in Canada and the role that the immigrant and refugee community can itself play in revitalizing Canadian communities through the co-op model. The emphasis is on mutual learning and the sharing of new ideas and practices. We discuss the strengths that immigrants and refugees bring to Canada as well as the barriers they face in their goal to create new lives for themselves and their families.