Toronto Samara Canada and Woldeyes

: Woldeyes was one of three Canadians to receive the "Everyday Political Citizen" award at a ceremony on Thursday in Toronto, according to Vancouver Observer. Samara Canada, a charity that promotes civic engagement, set up the award to celebrate how ordinary Canadians — not just elected officials — engage with politics."It was hard at first because I had to overcome my fears and because I thought I would never see my mom and I'd never find friends, I'd never get to speak English properly," Woldeyes said of her move to Canada."I was scared to talk or approach people, because what if they asked me something What am I going to respond back It was so hard."Woldeyes said proactively connecting with immigrant youth, rather than waiting for them to figure out available community services, helped her to survive her own period of integration. The 17-year-old Vancouver high school student, who emigrated from Ethiopia in 2013, has been reaching out to young newcomers in her area after living through the bewildering experience herself. Cory Nicotine of Edmonton began reaching out to fellow citizens after doing development work in Tanzania. That led to other events, including one session on Edmonton municipal election, featuring mayoral and ward candidates. He said he was curious about the Idle No More movement when he returned to Canada, and decided to set up a panel discussion to inform other people about the indigenous rights initiative too. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.