The WE LIP Council

About the Windsor Essex Local Immigration Partnership

About the Council

In order to achieve our key objectives, a partnership council was established including a variety of community partners from:

Employment & Trade
Community and Social Services
Education
Government
Service providers
Health care
Ethno-Cultural groups
Economic & Workforce boards

Members of the WE LIP Council plan their programs and services with a clear understanding of the needs of immigrants while valuing the contributions immigrants can provide to our region.

In addition to the membership, the Council welcomes the participation of resource persons such as funders or representatives of other agencies. They receive notification of meetings and events as well as minutes and/or reports produced by the WE LIP. The participation of the resource members provides opportunities to increase the awareness of the initiatives undertaken by the WE LIP and leverage these opportunities throughout Windsor and Essex County.

WE LIP Executive

The Executive Committee is a Standing Committee of the Windsor Essex Local Immigration Partnership Council (WE LIP) comprised of council members from organizations with voting status.

Role of the WE LIP Executive

To provide strategic input as to the direction and activities of the Windsor Essex Local Immigration Partnership as aligned with the deliverables and objectives as outlined in the IRCC Contribution Agreement;
To provide leadership within the WE LIP Council to promote and support WE LIP activities;
To provide a forum for discussion and/or the development of recommendations for the Windsor Essex Local Immigration Partnership Council on issues related to newcomer integration in Windsor and Essex County; and
To act as the authority decision maker for emergency purposes when required or instructed by the Windsor Essex Local Immigration Partnership Council.

Meet the WE LIP Executive

Chair: Ronnie Haidar, University of Windsor

Vice-Chair: Dr. Riham Al-Saadi, Transparency Counselling Services

Member at Large: Hussein Kawas, Conseil scolaire Catholique Providence

Member at Large: Joan Simpson, Beauty is Me

Member-at-Large: Yasmine Joheir, Centre communautaire francophone Windsor Essex Kent (CCFWEK)

Member at Large: Laura Strathdee, Windsor Essex Community Health Centre

The WE LIP Coordination Team

The Team works to facilitate the objectives of the Council by coordinating, providing organizational support and overseeing the development of a local settlement strategy and targeted action plan.

Project Manager: Stephen Lynn

Director of Community & Workforce Development: Kelsey Santarossa

WE LIP Project Lead: Alanna Oddoye

WE LIP Project Lead: Aaron Fauteux

WE LIP Project Coordinator: Dimple Gogna

2024-2025 WE LIP Terms of Reference

To view the 2024-2025 Windsor Essex Local Immigration Partnership Terms of Reference, please download a copy below.

WE LIP 2024-2025 Terms of Reference - EN.

WE LIP 2024-2025 Terms of Reference - FR

Proposal Assessment Tool-fillable

Annual Community Forum

This year’s annual forum is a chance for partners to come together to celebrate the contributions of service providers, staff, partners, and community agencies, through the introduction of the Welcoming Community Awards. At the forum, 10 individuals or organizations will be recognized for their contributions to the development of welcoming communities.

This year, WE LIP received 3 nominations for its 3 vacant Executive seats. The following will be presented for acclamation by consensus at the Annual Forum:

Dr. Riham Al-Saadi has served on the on the Windsor Essex Local Immigration Partnership (WE LIP) Executive team in the roles of Member at Large, Vice-President and as a Co-Chair of Inclusion and Antiracism Group. Dr. Al-Saadi’s commitment to WE LIP’s mission and its role within our Windsor-Essex County best support her to continue in the serving role as a Vice-Chair or Member-at-Large. Dr. Al-Saadi’s background serves and best equip her to continue tackling her Executive role to continue working alongside integral stakeholders in the immigrant, refugees, and particularly the newcomer sector.

Dr. Riham Al-Saadi is an Assistant Professor at the School of Social Work, University of Windsor. She is a Palestinian Canadian, a descendant of Al-Saadi family who has refuged to Lebanon in 1948, carrying with her the life-long refugee stories and multiple settlements she has experienced in her journey. Dr. Al-Saadi completed all her studies at the University of Windsor. She holds a BSc. in Behaviour, Cognition, & Neuroscience; a Master and Ph.D. degrees in Social Work. Her doctoral dissertation focused on immigrant and refugees’ acculturation process, and her positionality as a Palestinian with immigrant and refuge milestones.

As a practitioner, Dr. Al-Saadi has also been a practitioner for over 10 years working in private practice (Transparency Counselling Services), direct mental health supports to individuals and families, working with immigrant and refugee populations, as well as in palliative care. Her professional history consists of significant involvement with the immigrant and refugee populations dating back to 2010 with engagements at Women Enterprise Skills Training (WEST), the Multicultural Council of Windsor Essex, and Ready Set Go where she carried multiple roles to support diverse backgrounds and age groups in processes of settlement and resettlement to meet their needs in areas of health and mental health, social skills development, employment, education, and community connections. Professional history also expanded to include Family Services Windsor Essex, Hospice of Windsor Essex, supporting clientele with various emotional challenges and life complexities.

In terms of service, Dr. Al-Saadi continues to serve on multiple professional and academic committees, enabling her to respond to diverse populations and advocate for the enhancement of social justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion.

Academically, Dr. Al-Saadi was a Sessional Instructor at the School of Social Work since 2016 teaching Bachelor, Master, and Ph.D. courses until her appointment as a faculty member. She continues to be a frequent guest lecturer both at the University and in the community on topics focusing on the immigrant, refugee, and Arab immigrant experiences. Her research portfolio includes collaborations with faculty from both the School of Social Work and department of Psychology where she explores studies of immigrant and refugee populations, Arabs’ experiences in Canada and the United States, Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality. These topics and more continue to shape Dr. Al-Saadi’s research interests.

Dr. Al-Saadi believes that a combination of her academia, practice and participations in committees and initiatives best equip her to continue holding the role as a Vice-Chair or Member-at Large role as part of WE LIP Executive team and allow her to fulfill her vision and passion in the immigrant and refugee experience. Her dedication and commitment to continue being an active participant, advocate and promoter of diversity and equitable participation are primary driving forces for her interest in holding this role, for which she is seeking the support of WE LIP Council members.

I am the Co-Founder and Program Coordinator of Beauty is Me (BiM), a program dedicated to promoting cultural identity and self-love among Black and biracial children and youth, while empowering their caregivers and community. Also, in my previous role as Programs Manager at Women’s Enterprise Skills Training of Windsor Inc. (WEST), I had the opportunity to work closely with the Executive Director to develop, implement, evaluate, and oversee programs that enhance the professional skills and employability of women, youth, newcomers, seniors, and individuals with disabilities. Additionally, I provided supervision and mentorship to three local Black-led projects: Family Fuse, Black Legal Action Clinic (BLAC), and Immigrant Francophone d’Afrique pour le Développement et l’intégration (IFAPID), which address Anti-Black Racism, discrimination, and prejudice at both the systemic and community levels. For three years, I served as Co-Chair of the BACC Advisory Committee, a partnership with Windsor-Essex Children’s Aid Society (WECAS), aimed at improving service delivery and outcomes for families from the African Diaspora, while providing guidance and support on how to best engage with this community

As a resident of Windsor-Essex for over 30 years I have extensive experience working alongside colleagues and residents from communities. I have also collaborated with women-centered organizations, community partners, and stakeholders to address issues related to Anti-Black Racism, Anti-Racism, social injustice, and gender inequality. My work has consistently focused on challenging prejudice and discrimination faced by marginalized groups, particularly women, Black and Brown people, newcomers, youth, and children. My years of experience in these roles have allowed me to be part of advocacy and activism for change, while also contributing to the implementation of programs and initiatives that continue to move Windsor-Essex toward being a community that embraces diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Please accept my self nomination for the WELIP Executive Council. I have been in the health care industry for many years. Started my career in Detroit and returned to Ontario before COVID hit! At the time, I was a Project Manager with Ontario Health and put my hand up to be redeployed. During that deployment, I quickly fell in love with WESPEAK and our Greenhouses/IAW space.

During the day, I support 2 large teams within Windsor Essex Community Health center. One team is funded to offer primary care to some of our guest workers. We have a large population of clients without insurance in the county so it has been interesting to learn about healthcare for those without OHIP or IFH.

I am a member on Ontario’s Emergency Medical Assistance Team based out of Sunnybrooke as well as Team Rubicon for post disaster supports. These skills were learned during COVID IMS response as well!

My presence is often measured in animal adoptions so beware – any committee I sit on – generally folks go home with a kitten.

You can view the 2024 WE LIP Annual Community Forum presentation below:

Présentation (Francais)

Presentation (English)

Special Remarks from IRCC Minister Marc Miller are available here:

Video Remarks

The Terms of Reference udpated documents, to be approved by the membership, are below:

Terms of Reference – English

Termes de référence – Français

Every year the Windsor Essex Local Immigration Partnership invites council members and community partners to an Annual Community Forum. This event provides opportunities for the council to shine a bright light on their collective accomplishments from the past year. This event focused on youth and featured a keynote presentation on the topic of navigating the future of work for youth and employers – the future is unpredictable, but the future of work does not have to be. How can we build a more welcoming work environment for diverse youth employee needs?

This Keynote focused on:

Strategies for meaningful youth engagement
Guide for Navigating the Future of work for Youth and Employers
And other topics

You can view the 2023 WE LIP Annual Community Forum presentations below:

Keynote We Believe in Youth - Tamarack Institute

South Asian Centre Presentation

ProsperUs - Community Update

NCCE Inc. VEEP Presentation

ACFO WECK Cercle Bénévole!

Every year the Windsor Essex Local Immigration Partnership invites council members and community partners to an Annual Community Forum. This event provides opportunities for the council to shine a bright light on their collective accomplishments from the past year. This year’s Forum featured keynote speaker Jean Samuel, Former Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Ontario Association of Children’s Aid Societies, who spoke on the topic of Getting Ready to Get Ready for Equity Leadership in our Community.

This keynote focused on: