By: Tomos Land, Staff Writer

Every year, hundreds of thousands of people move to Canada, but oftentimes getting here is only half the battle. Between meeting immigration requirements, learning a foreign language, and finding bearings in a new city, being a newcomer can be overwhelming. 

Two enterprising SFU students — and childhood friends — Cedric Tanafranca and Savar Gupta developed an app that aims to make newcomers’ experiences that much easier. Launched in March, Unify Social centralizes essential resources and educational tools on their platform, while creating a community through in-person workshops. The Peak spoke with them to learn more.

The following interview has been edited for concision.

The Peak: What are your backgrounds and what do you study at SFU? 

Tanafranca: My name is Cedric and I am currently in my final year of university studying business administration. For the past couple of years, I have been involved in a student organization called Enactus, which focuses on social entrepreneurship — using technology and entrepreneurship to address a problem in the world. This led to building Unify along with Savar, who I have known since elementary school.

Gupta: My name is Savar and I am also in my final year, studying business and mechatronics engineering as a double degree student. I have always been passionate about entrepreneurship and making a social impact. Witnessing the struggles my parents went through when they immigrated to Canada is part of why I started Unify. 

The Peak: What experiences were catalysts for the creation of your app?

Gupta: It really stemmed from being part of an Enactus engineering project in my first year. I also got to be involved with the business side more and compete for competitions, and that led me to pursue a double degree now. So the main thing has been the community at SFU, the clubs, and the technical skills I developed through my background in engineering.

Tanafranca: The catalyst for me was also extracurricular activities. Experiences like co-op, being co-president at Enactus, and being involved in other clubs like Axis Consulting gave me the skills. My family being an immigrant family was a big piece of why I wanted to build this out. Growing up, I saw this struggle firsthand: visiting food banks, navigating systems we didn’t understand. They left behind everyone and everything they knew in the Philippines — extended family, community, a life they had built — and arrived in a new country without anything. One of the hardest parts was watching my parents have to reset their credentials entirely, like going back to school and working their way through various jobs.

The Peak: Tell us more about what went into creating this app.

Tanafranca: Building the app was very much a team effort, which began in August 2025. We brought together students who not only resonated with the mission but also came from diverse academic backgrounds. Our team spans software, design, marketing, events, partnerships, and campus ambassadors. Savar and I led the cross-functional coordination. We also surveyed over 225 individuals and conducted in-depth interviews with more than 50 people, including international students, skilled workers, and immigrants, and spoke with non-profits that serve newcomers directly, to hear firsthand about their experiences and challenges.

Savar: We beta-launched in January 2026 with over 100 users. We then officially launched on the Apple App Store in March. Today, Unify is built by a team of 30 SFU students. The core product team that directly worked on the app includes around 10 students from the School of Interactive Technology and computer science.

The Peak: As newcomers to Canada, what do international students in particular seem to struggle with the most?

Gupta: When you come to Canada, it is really hard to figure out where to start. There are tons of resources, but they are scattered all over the place. International students also tend to struggle with finding a community. SFU and student clubs host many events and provide resources to students, but it’s still hard to connect and find that community, like making long-term connections beyond meeting someone at an event. 

The Peak: How does Unify Social try to alleviate these struggles?

Tanafranca: One of our main missions is to centralize everything newcomers need on to our platform, whether that’s resources, community, or events, by creating a one-stop shop for all their basic needs. Right now, everything is scattered through government websites, Reddit, Facebook forums. The app also has a social hub where newcomers can ask questions and connect. Another piece is that, whether you are an international student, refugee, skilled worker, or trying to get your permanent residence, we try to personalize everything to the user’s specific needs, and provide checklists based on this and how long you’ve been here.

“If you are a student, for example, we provide a learning module for SFU, information on finding courses, study spots on campus, and other nitty-gritty details that only SFU students would need to know.”

— Cedric Tanafranca, Unify Social co-founder

Beyond that, we also host events with not-for-profits, including SFU International Student Services and public libraries.

The Peak: What is the importance of the in-person component of your work?

Tanafranca: We knew our solution couldn’t just live on a screen, and hearing that isolation was such a difficult piece for students, we wanted to have that in-person component to put everything from the app into a community building process. We also want to make everything accessible for people who might not be technologically capable. We also noticed that a lot of the existing events for newcomers happen during the workday, and a lot of immigrants work or have school, so we usually host events on weekends and outside the workday. As long as someone can make one meaningful connection at these events, or learn something that can contribute to their integration within Canada, that’s a win in our eyes. 

The Peak: How do you envisage Unify Social growing and what are your plans for the future?

Tanafranca: It comes back to accessibility, which is the big focus for us. We would like to provide the app in every language and expand across Canada. For example, the materials required for newcomers in Ontario are different to elsewhere, so providing accessibility across provinces and territories is one of our next steps. We are also currently developing a web app, as right now we are mobile only, but we are in the works to launch our web app in the very near future. 

Gupta: We are also starting to roll out our app in other languages, such as Hindi and Punjabi, which is a major area that the government could help support to make information accessible to those who don’t yet speak English. 

Visit Unify Social on LinkedIn or Instagram (@unifysocial.ca) for the latest news or download the free app on the Apple app store.