Bridging Classroom and Community: Languages and Cultures in Action

Items

• Colombia to Canada: A journey of self discovery and cultural identity.
  In this video, Emilio Borja discusses his journey with his cultural identity. Borja discusses topics such as his life before Canada, his reasons for coming to Canada, what he misses about Colombia, and what he likes about life in Canada. All these topics build up to Borja’s discussion of cultural identity. Borja tells us what he feels his personal cultural identity is and explains why he feels this way. Borja then explains his definition of cultural identity, and how he believes cultural identity is fluid and able to change over time. He also explains why he feels this fluidity can be both good and bad.
• Colombia comes to Canada: A Story of grandmother
  Stella Acero immigrated to Canada from Colombia in 2013. The video focuses on her adaptation to life in Canada. She discusses the various obstacles she has had to overcome in order to adapt to her new life and highlights how, as an older immigrant, it takes much longer and requires a lot more effort to learn a new language. She also talks about the reasons for her move, her ties to Colombia, and the differences between life in Canada and life in Colombia.
• Community of Song: Latin Music in Sharing Identity and Promoting Cultural Humility
  In this video, Colombian-Canadian singer-songwriter Gerry Rozo, through a retelling of his personal experiences, explores the role of music in cultural identity and community-building. He discusses his journey to Canada, the progression of his music career, his thoughts on cultural humility in Canadian society, and the ways in which he believes music can be a conduit for both the preservation of cultural identity and promotion of intercultural communication.
• Staying Connected Between Two Cultures
  The video is made to portray my community partner’s experience of migrating from Colombia to Canada. (as stated in the subject) It portrays how she had to learn to adapt to a completely different and new culture, and what she has done to stay connected with both her heritage in Colombia and new life in Canada. It shows how she overcame obstacles to build a new life and the things that helped her stay focused and feel a part of Canadian culture. It discusses the Colombian community here in London, Ontario and her work as an Army reserve for Canada. This video’s goal was to analyze her completely different lives and views of both cultures, and see what she did in order create her own identity. She also compares aspects of the two countries and what she finds most important to herself.
• Memories in The Present
  Katherine Tibasosa, originally from Bogota, Colombia, moved to London, Ontario about a year ago with her husband and children. Katherine discusses the significance of weather, different regions in her country, and traditional foods. Moreover, since coffee is a very significant part of Colombian culture and Katherine's life, she opens up about how she keeps that aspect of her culture alive here in London. This video focuses on how she keeps the various aspects of her culture alive since moving from Colombia.
• Seeing the World Through a Colombian Lens: Travel Stories from Roberto Mocetón
  Roberto Mocetón shares the cultural importance of travel in Colombia. He reflects on his motivations for personal travel after moving from Bogotá, Colombia to London, Canada with his family. Roberto views travelling as an opportunity to connect with his family, become more globally-minded, and pass along these values with his son. He highlights that travel is a way for us to learn from and connect with others. In this video, he also reflects on the similarities and differences between the role of travel in Colombian and Canadian cultures.
• Cultural Connections: A Colombian's Journey to London
  In this video, we follow Alberto Alvarez as he journeys from Colombia to London. We will delve into his experience with being a new immigrant in Canada while also trying to understand what it is like to become part of a new culture/new community. Alberto then explains the process of reconnecting with his Colombian roots through the London community. Further, this project will seek to understand how culture and identity intertwine to create a distinct cultural identity that differs depending on who you are around at a specific point. Community Connections brings together music, image, and video to tell the story of a determined young man who grapples with his identity to become the bicultural community member he is today.
• From the Manizales Home to the London Home: A Youth's Story of Immigrating from Colombia to Canada
  This portrait features an interview with Juan Gaviria. During this interview, he shares stories about his experiences of moving from Colombia to Canada as a youth with his family. Juan also shares his opinions on “what makes a home”. Juan talks about how he believes Colombia and Canada are both home to him, yet, he feels many differences between his two homes. In addition, Juan has also shared some specific stories about the challenges he has faced during his process of making London his new home as well as some of his heartwarming encounters in the London Latino-Canadian Community, that have helped to minimize these challenges for him. At the end of the video, Juan shares some examples of the events and activities in London that remind him of his heritage culture and his Colombia home. Juan’s sense of “home” indicates his sense of belonging to his new community. This also marks that his journey of settling in London has shaped his new identity as a Latino-Canadian. In addition, his stories have vividly illustrated the importance and impacts of cultural humility and have demonstrated how an understanding of only the surface culture without an understanding of the deep culture can cause misunderstandings and lack of respect among individuals who have different cultural backgrounds.