Ambassadors from Acadian Peninsula Complete Outreach Program in Saint John Area
In June, 2007, Dialogue New Brunswick announced that residents of the Acadian coast of New Brunswick had wrapped up a three-day outreach and information sharing program in the Greater Saint John area today.
The group is part of a new initiative created and organized by Dialogue New Brunswick, a provincial, non-profit organization that promotes understanding, respect and appreciation between English-speaking and French-speaking citizens of the province.
The initiative, called the Dialogue Ambassador Program, enables leading members of one linguistic community to experience the lives, amenities, and workplaces of the other in a positive, encouraging way.
“We believe that when people visit each other’s homes, it results in greater comprehension, increased respect, and new appreciation for New Brunswick’s linguistic diversity,” said Carole Fournier, Dialogue New Brunswick’s executive director. “If we can provide the opportunity, people can and will collaborate on issues of common interest. We want New Brunswickers to discover all that our beautiful province offers.”
Added Saint John Mayor Norm McFarlane: “It’s been a privilege to host these ambassadors over the past few days. A program like this only serves to build bridges between our respective communities. It cements the idea that our diversity is one of our great strengths in New Brunswick, and that by understanding our rich cultural distinctiveness, we are forging a stronger province for everyone.”
The ambassadors spent their time touring the downtown and selected businesses, visiting the New Brunswick Museum and the Fundy Trail at St. Martins, and dining at some of the city’s finest establishments. “It’s been a great opportunity” said Jean- Eudes Savoie, Mayor of Tracadie-Sheila. “It’s important to experience how other communities actually live and work, and to bring this knowledge back to our own homes.”
Indeed, said Fournier, “We have opportunities here that do not exist anywhere else. We are all responsible for fostering the type of province that attracts new residents and retains the ones we have. Everyone has a role to play.”