Background/Purpose: Immigration drives approximately 75% of Canada’s population growth. While demographic and economic impacts are well studied, other aspects such as social wellness—described by belonging, inclusion, and health-adjacent phenomena—remain underexplored. Participatory, community-based creative practices, including community arts (CA) programs, can foster belonging, expression, and cross-cultural understanding, offering a distinctive lens for newcomer wellness research and practice. The purpose of this study was to examine Canadian research on arts engagement initiatives in community contexts that address newcomer mental wellness.

Methods: This project is a collaboration between a university research team (FLOURISH Collective, University of Toronto Scarborough) and a community organization (Access Alliance). It synthesizes existing literature in response to the central research question: What does current research reveal about the impact of CA interventions on improving mental wellness for newcomers in Canada? Using two parallel knowledge-generation streams— (1) a scoping review of 31 peer-reviewed studies and (2) an environmental scan mapping 41 direct-intervention grey literature sources— both employed robust search strategies, qualitative coding, and inductive thematic analysis. Together, these sources identify gaps in the literature, inform best practices for CA initiatives, and generate recommendations to strengthen newcomer mental wellness outcomes.

Results: Findings highlight the distinct needs of newcomers and the potential of CA as a sustainable, culturally responsive approach to supporting mental wellness. Framed through Cultural Humility and Cultural Brokering, the results indicate that CA extends beyond clinical or health-services-aligned outcomes to generate transformative cultural spaces conducive to improved social and mental wellness.

Discussion: Recommendations for future research and practice include longitudinal and intersectional approaches to assess long-term impacts of CA engagement for newcomer populations, with the aim of advancing knowledge and practice at the nexus of arts-wellness-community engagement. By embedding CA into newcomer support systems, creativity becomes a pathway to wellness, resilience, and thriving in a new home.

Esther-Joelle Asare is a Research Assistant with the “FLOURISH: Community-Engaged Arts for Social Wellness” Collective at the University of Toronto Scarborough, working under the guidance of Principal Investigator, Dr. Andrea Charise. With an undergraduate background in Biology for Health Sciences, Biomedical Communications, and Education Studies from the University of Toronto Mississauga, Esther-Joelle aims to use the health humanities to reframe traditional health narratives in innovative ways. Now, as a first-year Master’s student in the Social Dimensions of Health Program at the University of Victoria, she is drawn to understanding how health and well-being unfold across the life course and how social, cultural, and structural factors shape these experiences.

COI Disclosure: I do not have an affiliation (financial or otherwise) with any for-profit or not-for-profit organizations

Andrea Charise, PhD, is Associate Professor in the Department of Health & Society and Acting Associate Vice-Principal Research and Innovation (AVPRI) – Strategic Initiatives & Partnerships at the University of Toronto Scarborough (UTSC), Canada. Visit www.andreacharise.ca for more information.

COI Disclosure: I do not have an affiliation (financial or otherwise) with any for-profit or not-for-profit organizations