How intergroup relationships build community: Four success stories

Fund to Foster Belonging grantees have brought together immigrants and non-immigrants to build community-wide belonging since 2021. This year, we supported four grantees whose projects bridged immigrant, refugee, and U.S.-born communities through shared initiatives.

Their efforts demonstrated how local bridge-building work between different groups — also known as intergroup bridging — can successfully create connections, reduce loneliness and isolation, and combat social division.

Learn more about these successful projects below!

Creating intergenerational relationships through art and horticulture

ECHO Collective and Aging Partners recognized an important opportunity to strengthen social connection, cultural exchange, and mental well-being for neighborhood seniors in Lincoln, Nebraska. Instructors from Ukraine and Mexico shared their artistic and horticultural skills with the participating elders, in return, learning about the seniors’ stories and building deep connections.

Highlights:

  • A key element of deep connection is time. Scheduling plentiful time for socialization during the activities helped participants build stronger connections.
  • The senior participants shared life experiences — from their creative endeavors, gardening lessons, or simple memories — which enriched interactions for the instructors and everyone involved.

A common table — Building cultural bridges with food, art, and poetry

In north Florida, a series of events hosted by Rural Women’s Health Project and the Gainesville Immigrant Neighbor Inclusion Initiative brought immigrant and US-born communities together to work as teams to complete creative activities focused on cuisine, art, and poetry. During one event, local chefs shared a culturally significant dish representing their heritage and led a common recipe activity where participants created their own salad. These rich exchanges led to connections, enlightening conversations, and increased cultural awareness.

Highlights:

  • Location was a key element in deciding where to host these events. The organizers intentionally hosted events in neighborhoods where connections with neighbors would carry extra impact, such as communities affected by redlining and food deserts.
  • Icebreaker activities where people shared about their culture and a multilingual poem written by the participants led to rich exchanges, ultimately increasing cultural awareness.

Bringing teens together through community service

Organized by One World One Love, the Helping Hands Teen Service Club was born out of the need to reduce isolation and increase belonging for refugee youth in New Jersey. By working together to serve their community, young people from refugee backgrounds and U.S.-born teens broke down barriers and stereotypes, ultimately forming stronger social bonds.

Highlights:

  • Participating youth gave regular feedback on the program design: including service projects they wanted to do, icebreaker questions, and the service club t-shirt, which was designed by a student.
  • Multilingual materials for recruitment and service project information helped students understand the impact they were making.

Developing leadership skills and a “third space” for youth and adults

What began as a leadership development program for young people in rural Minnesota bloomed into something so much more. The Bridge Center — an emerging community hub and “third space” in the town of Pelican Rapids — was developed with the help of these youth leaders from different cultural backgrounds. They recognized the need to expand leadership development opportunities to the rest of the community, leading to the Bridge to Leadership program that exists today.

Highlights:

  • West Central Initiative supported participants by providing a stipend for their participation, thus increasing equity for those who needed to miss a shift at work or cover childcare costs.
  • Flexibility was a key factor in the program's success. Opening the opportunity to different types of community leaders increased participation from newcomers, and meeting one-on-one with those who missed sessions ensured that no one felt like they were falling behind.

Five ways to take action and learn more

  1. Become a member of the Welcoming Network or partner with welcoming organizations in your area.
  2. Design a local bridge-building initiative or event with your community — Welcoming Week is a great way to begin.
  3. Our Taste of Belonging Cookbook shares examples of intergroup bridging activities related to food and beyond.
  4. Read more about successful bridging practices in Cultivating Contact: A Guide to Building Bridges and Meaningful Connections Between Groups.
  5. Stay connected! Follow Welcoming America on social media: LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and X. Search for “#BelongingBeginsWithUs” on social media to see recent Fund to Foster Belonging projects and learn how communities in the U.S. are using intergroup bridging to strengthen connections.