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We did this in 2026, as a way of having people on hand at The ‘Family Photo’ to answer basic questions from visitors considering moving to the area.
Each table is staffed by one or two people from a partner organization, and is focused on one specific topic. Visitors walk around, ask their questions, and move on.
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IMPORTANT: Once word gets around that you are planning Info Tables, you will probably be overwhelmed by community groups requesting/demanding that they also have a table.
You can do your event however you want, but we recommend holding the line on the number of tables. It can quickly get overwhelming with too many tables.
Choose based on what is most useful to the visitors actually coming, not on who is asking loudest.
For groups that don’t get a full table (like, say, the curling club) that is exactly what The Conversation Tags are there to do. They can become “walking tables.”
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The Main Tables
- Immigration. Two registered Canadian immigration consultants, answering questions about visas, work permits, and the path to permanent residency.
- Housing. A local realtor and a real estate lawyer, talking about the local housing market.
- Schools. A parent or local educator, talking about the school options and how registration works.
- Healthcare jobs. A representative from the regional health authority, talking about openings and the application process.
- Queer community. A local 2SLGBTQIA+ community group, talking about the social and cultural landscape for queer visitors and prospective residents.
Other Tables
- The Welcome table. Run by your team, distributing any spare lanyards people may have dropped off, and answering questions.
- Adopt-a-Visitor. Locals signing up to host or accompany visitors during the weekend. This doesn’t have to be staffed; just pens, forms, and bulletin boards.
- A table with labels and pens for people to write their The Conversation Tags.
Some suggestions:
- Each table should fit in a single sentence. "Talk to a realtor about housing." "Get your immigration questions answered." If you cannot describe the table that simply, the table is not useful.
- Our tables ran from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Earlier than 11 is too early. Later than 2 is when the volunteers staffing them are exhausted. Plus, you want people to get out and about in the community!
- Brief your table partners in advance. A short email a week before, telling them: when to arrive, what to bring, what visitors are likely to ask, and what to do if they get a question they cannot answer (point them to the right resource later).
- Set them up close together. Not so close that they crowd each other, but close enough that visitors can do all the tables in one circuit.
- Have a runner. One volunteer whose only job is to walk the tables every 15 minutes, checking that volunteers have water, that nobody is trapped in a long conversation they cannot escape, and that supplies are not running out.
The Web Site
We created a special web page for Table Hosts (the people sitting behind the tables). It was not linked publicly. An image of it is below, in case the web page goes offline.
(The image there with the tables and cardboard signs were AI generated to give people an idea of the grassroots vibe we were aiming for.)
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