Opening of the Institut de la Francophonie pour la gestion dans la Caraïbe The Québec government assisted in setting up the Institut de la Francophonie pour la gestion dans la Caraïbe (French-language institute dedicated to management issues in the Caribbean, or IFGCar for short), which was inaugurated in Port-au-Prince on April 8. The main objective of the institute, which is connected to the Francophone University Agency (AUF), is to train public and private and local community management specialists in the Caribbean region.

Francophone Demographic and Statistical Observatory inaugurated Laval University celebrated the opening of the Francophone Demographic and Statistical Observatory (ODSEF) on April 9 at a ceremony attended by Pierre Arcand, Minister of International Relations and Minister Responsible for La Francophonie, and representatives of the Francophone University Agency (AUF) and the International Francophone Organization (OIF). In addition to housing the Observatory, Laval University will oversee the scientific management of the project, which aims to develop a linguistic atlas of the French-speaking world.

Next season, Québec artists will shine on New York’s greatest stages This fall, Québec artists will once again be in the spotlight on New York City’s greatest stages.

French/Québec Fund for Decentralized Cooperation (FFQCD): call for projects The deadline for submitting projects to the French/Québec Fund for Decentralized Cooperation (FFQCD) is April 30. The Fund provides French and Québec partners with matching financing for innovative joint projects aimed at fostering local development. Projects may be socio-economic or cultural in nature or relate to sustainable development.

The crisis and developing countries A seminar dealing with the impacts of the financial and economic crisis on developing countries was held on March 31 at Egmont Palace in Brussels. Organized jointly by the OIF (International Francophonie Organization), Egmont Palace, the Canadian Embassy and the Québec Government Office in Brussels, the seminar’s purpose was to provide an opportunity to consider the implications of the crisis for developing countries and the role the international community could play to minimize its repercussions.

Unipex acquires Belgian firm Unipex Group has purchased the Belgian firm Codibel Distribution, based in Zaventem. The Québec company specializes in manufacturing and distributing ingredients for cosmetics and pharmaceutical products.

The City of Montréal wins a Gold Edison Award The BIXI self-serve bicycle system of the City of Montréal won first prize in the “Energy and Sustainability” category at the Edison Awards on April 1 in Mountain View, California. These awards, which are inspired by the famous American inventor, are awarded annually for the most innovative products in North America. The Québec Government Representative in Los Angeles, Denis Turcotte, was in attendance to receive the award on behalf of Mayor Gérald Tremblay.

Sustainable development action plan for 2009-2013 The Ministère des Relations internationales (MRI) has just released its first sustainable development action plan, which sets forth the efforts that the department plans to prioritize in order to contribute to the Government Sustainable Development Strategy for 2008-2013. The MRI’s sustainable development contribution is adapted to the department’s special mission and will mobilize all of its resources, in Québec and abroad.

An international organization promoting sustainable trade sets up shop in Montréal FAST, which stands for Finance Alliance for Sustainable Trade, recently inaugurated its secretariat in Montréal. This international NGO’s mission is to increase sustainable production and trade through financing adapted to small and medium-sized enterprises in developing countries. The Ministère des Relations internationales assisted in establishing the secretariat of FAST in Montréal through the Fonds de développement International de Montréal (fund for the international development of Montréal).

AMERICANA 2009 - Belgium and the Netherlands well represented! The eighth AMERICANA conference, the International Environmental Technology Trade Show that was held from March 17 to 19 in Montreal, hosted some 8,000 participants representing all sectors of activity in the environmental industry, including 400 exhibitors, 230 guest speakers and delegates from 60 countries. AMERICANA 2009 provided an opportunity to take stock of the latest developments in such sectors as water, air, soil, residual materials, energy and sustainable development and to discuss such wide-ranging topics as life cycle analysis, biofuels, environmental management, sustainable development and transportation.

Recipients of 2009 Anne-Marie Boucher grants For the third consecutive year, the International Association of Québec Studies, thanks to a donation made by Anne-Marie Boucher, encourages projects by instructors, authors and students intended to teach non-francophones about Québec and its culture through teaching French. This year, five people received a grant.

La Francophonie’s Demographic and Statistical Observatory set to begin operations The memorandum of agreement creating La Francophonie’s Demographic and Statistical Observatory was ratified on March 25 in Montréal in the presence of Abdou Diouf, Secretary General of the International Francophone Organization (OIF). The Observatory’s creation stems from a pledge made by Premier Jean Charest at the 12th Francophone Summit, which was held in Québec City in October 2008.

Dictée des Amériques – Rencontre des finalistes belges

Brussels: City of Words - Around the world in French Exploring the French language’s status around the world, a panel discussion entitled “Brussels, City of Words” was held in the Belgian capital to mark International Francophone Day (March 20).

Return to Québec City In 2008, when the 400th anniversary of the founding of Quebec City was celebrated, residents of Mons came to Quebec City with their giants to participate in the New France Festival that takes place every summer.

Moscow-Québec Centre marks 10th anniversary Pierre Arcand, Minister of International Relations and Minister Responsible for La Francophonie, celebrated the Moscow-Québec Centre’s 10th anniversary together with Alexey V. Isakov, Consul General of the Russian Federation in Montréal, on March 19. The Centre is the result of a cooperation agreement between Laval University and Russian State University for the Humanities in Moscow.

Montréal designer honoured in the Best of Newspaper Design 2009 competition The National, a United Arab Emirates-based daily newspaper, won 22 awards of excellence, including three silver medals, at the 30th annual Best of Newspaper Design competition. Montréal designer Lucie Lacava and her team designed the layout of the paper, which was launched last year in Abu Dhabi.

La Francofête

Jean-Pierre Ferland honoured on International Francophone Day In conjunction with International Francophone Day (March 20), Pierre Arcand, Minister of International Relations and Minister Responsible for La Francophonie, paid tribute to singer, songwriter and performer Jean-Pierre Ferland for his outstanding contributions to the French language and Québec culture on the international stage.

Québec Film Festival in Haiti Eight Québec productions will be shown at the inaugural Québec Film Festival in Haiti, which will be held in Port-au-Prince from March 19-22 in conjunction with the Quinzaine de la Francophonie. The festival receives support from the Government of Québec.