Back to Newsroom

Continental courage

From Guatemala to Canada, a feisty and passionate woman fights for migrant workers impacted by global politics and climate change

July 17, 2025

One wouldn’t initially see the relationship between migrant workers and environmental issues, because it’s rarely talked about. But there is a connection. 

The relationship is something that ran as an underlying theme during the Community Climate Justice Forum this spring, a public forum held in the Downtown Eastside (DTES) and hosted by the UBC Learning Exchange. Attendees included the public and several DTES organizations who heard from UBC researchers and community advocates about new findings related to extreme heat, housing, health and urban greening. 

Participants also shared how to include traditionally marginalized groups, such as the poor and people of colour, in conversations when making policy changes.

Ingrid Mendez, a feisty and passionate Guatemalan woman, spoke on a panel and explained the plight of migrant workers in B.C. in relation to climate change issues.

Mendez came to Canada in 1991 from Coactemalan, which is a Nahuatl name meaning “place of many trees.” She fled her homeland because she feared persecution being a university student protesting against the massacres (the mass killing of the Maya Indigenous people during the Guatemalan Civil War 1960–1996) and the disappearances of fellow classmates.

When she arrived in B.C., she fought for the rights of migrant workers in the DTES, and eventually took the role of executive director at the Migrant Workers Centre, a non-profit organization dedicated to legal advocacy for migrant workers in B.C. 

She explained that each year, there are approximately 125,000 migrant workers that come to the province to work in various sectors, leaving their families behind, from countries like Mexico, Guatemala, the Caribbean, Vietnam and South Asia. 

There is a connection to the environment for these workers. According to Mendez, migrants in B.C. produce the food we eat, take care of our loved ones, grow the plants and trees for our gardens and parks, work in the food industry and clear the spaces we meet in and socialize.

“Without them,” she says, “the economy would suffer.” 

Amid growing pressure from the U.S. under Trump-era policies, immigration has moved to the forefront of public debate both north and south of the border, and Canada is being pushed to “secure its borders” — a move that’s fuelling fear and uncertainty, particularly among migrant workers and international students. 

The reality, says Mendez, is that migrants often take on work that many Canadians are unwilling to do.

“[Migrant workers] pay taxes just like anyone living here permanently, Mendez adds. Once they arrive, many face abuse and exploitation at the hands of their employers or supervisors.”

Yet despite their contributions, migrants are frequently scapegoated — blamed for everything from rising crime to the housing crisis.

And their working conditions are often hazardous. Migrant workers have been forced by their employers to continue working through wildfires and floods, Mendez says.

“Once they arrive, many face abuse and exploitation at the hands of their employers or supervisors.”

Migrant workers are often compelled to work excessive hours in unsafe, sometimes life-threatening conditions, she adds, including being made to continue farm labour while wildfires burn nearby, with little protection and barely breathable air.

Mendez says there have been cases where workers have been left behind by their employers during floods, leaving them stranded on rooftops for hours, unsure of what to do — forced to watch the animals they had cared for, and formed bonds with, perish in the waters below. These experiences leave deep psychological scars that many will carry for the rest of their lives.

Workers live in constant fear of deportation, a threat that looms large if they dare to speak up or demand their rights. Some endure emotional, physical and even sexual abuse.

There have even been cases, though it’s rarely reported on, says Mendez, where workers die or lose their limbs due to lack of health and safety. Instead, mainstream media reports there are too many immigrants that must be returned back home as quickly as possible because they are stealing Canadians’ jobs. 

Mendez says that attitude fuels division and hatred, noting that “abuse, exploitation, racism and scapegoating” are the realities faced by many migrants. 

Potential solutions include granting open work permits or providing permanent residency upon arrival. Mendez also advocates for more immigrant-positive and truthful reporting in mainstream media.

What often goes unheard, she says, are the stories of emotional, mental, physical and sexual abuse experienced by people of colour who come to Canada in search of a better life. While this country presents itself to the world as an enlightened democracy, it hides dirty secrets — including its treatment of migrant workers. 

Mendez vows to courageously continue the work, fighting for justice here just as she did in her country of origin, despite today’s oppressive political climate.