Creating Space for New Voices in North Bay 

In North Bay, newcomer youth are finding ways to connect, create, and belong in a community where opportunities for cultural and creative expression are limited. The Near North Mobile Media Lab (N2M2L) is helping these young people tell their stories and build confidence through media arts with support from the Rideau Hall Foundation’s Catapult Canada grant. 

Building Belonging Through Creativity 

The New Voices Co-Design Lab invites newcomer and refugee youth to explore storytelling, photography, film, and digital design through hands-on workshops in N2M2L’s Makerspace. Youth, led by trained facilitators, co-design each session, deciding together what they want to learn and create. Using cameras, tablets, and editing software, they gain practical media skills while collaborating on projects that reflect their cultures, experiences, and ideas for the future. Participants work in a welcoming, low-barrier environment designed to foster belonging and build peer connections. 

“The RHF’s Catapult grant allows us to open creative pathways for newcomer youth in North Bay by helping them build confidence, connect with peers, and share their voices through media and storytelling, while deepening and expanding our support for young people in the community,” says the team. 

Addressing Barriers to Belonging 

Newcomer youth in North Bay face unique challenges to learning and belonging. The number of newcomers in the region has grown sharply in recent years, increasing by more than 20 percent between 2021 and 2024, driven by immigration and international study programs. The Northeastern Ontario Multicultural Centre (NEOMC) supported more than 300 newcomer youth last year, a 76 percent increase from the year before. 

At school, newcomer youth often feel both invisible and exposed. Overlooked in curriculum, yet singled out in classrooms. Most after-school programs focus on sports, leaving few spaces for creative expression or cultural exchange. The New Voices Co-Design Lab fills this gap, creating a safe, inclusive environment where youth can build digital literacy, confidence, and community through art. 

Strengthening Youth Learning with support from the Rideau Hall Foundation 

With support from the Rideau Hall Foundation’s Catapult Canada initiative, N2M2L is expanding its creative learning programs to reach more newcomer youth across North Bay. Catapult funding enables the organization to hire facilitators, strengthen partnerships, and equip its Makerspace with the tools needed to deliver high-quality, youth-led media programming. 

Beyond financial support, Catapult connects N2M2L to a national community of youth-serving organizations working to make learning more equitable, inclusive, and creative.  

By investing in initiatives like N2M2L’s New Voices Co-Design Lab, the Rideau Hall Foundation is helping young people across Canada gain the skills, confidence, and sense of belonging they need to imagine and build their futures.