Settlement often focuses on the moment someone arrives.
But integration takes much longer.
Between arrival and stability lies a long, invisible phase: attachment – the point when people begin to feel rooted rather than temporary, seen rather than unknown, and supported rather than alone.
Many newcomers spend years surviving functionally without ever emotionally settling. Papers are processed. Jobs are found. Children attend school.
And yet something is missing.
It’s the feeling of being “home.”
Ontario Integration Initiative works within this often-ignored phase by creating environments where people can build trust, express identity, and connect beyond the transactional nature of services.
The goal is not just to orient someone to Canada.
It is to help people attach to their community.
Attachment forms through consistent contact, peer relationships, and cultural safety. It develops when people can show up as themselves, not just as service recipients. When trust replaces bureaucracy, and connection replaces confusion.
Without attachment, integration remains incomplete.
With attachment, people begin to invest, contribute, and lead.
True belonging does not happen at the border.
It happens through relationship.
