English Language Art Network (ELAN)
Waves of Change is a 200-year (1820-2020) oral history of Quebec’s English-speaking communities, recorded on the 50th anniversary of the FLQ crisis. Five of the documentaries focus on families that arrived in Quebec during historical waves of immigration, and a 6th episode features English-speaking communities living in many regions of Quebec. An important untold story recounted by eyewitnesses of major events in Quebec’s history since the mid 20th century, Waves of Change is also a universal tale about immigration, adaptation, languages, complex identities and the quest for belonging.
Participants in Waves of Change came to Quebec from every continent (except Antarctica!). The earliest families arrived in the 1820s and the most recent arrived in 2015. They came as adventurers, farmers, entrepreneurs, labourers, exiles, refugees, students, teachers and immigrants seeking a new life in North America, Canada and Quebec. They share fascinating stories about language, identity, and belonging.
Are identity and belonging determined by history – the number of years/generations that a clan has lived in this territory? Is it about language? Are Anglo-Québécois credentials strengthened by adding French-language skills, or diminished? Who decides that you belong in Québec? Do you have to wait to be accepted, or can you make your own decision and stake your claim anytime you’re ready?
Find out more about ELAN's project
Seniors Action Quebec (SAQ)
Seniors Action Quebec (SAQ) will create videos that will feature interviews with seniors from around Quebec exploring why many English-speaking seniors have chosen to stay in Quebec through changing times such as the Quiet Revolution and the 1995 referendum on Quebec independence. The videos will ask the questions – why did you decide to stay in Quebec? What is it that makes you a Quebecer and what is unique about being and English-speaking Quebecer? The goal of the series is to provide an opportunity for seniors to share their stories and celebrate their contribution to Quebec society.
Leading English Education and Resource Network (LEARN)
LEARN through its network of Community Learning Centres (CLCs) will empower students and teachers across Quebec to explore the theme of belonging through three asynchronous learning opportunities: (1) Students are paired with local artists to examine the relationship between identity and belonging through literary and visual arts, (2) Students explore their sense of belonging as they participate in a 6-week Digital Storytelling project, with support from digital media experts at Hands-On Media Education, (3) Students engage in Community Service Learning projects, where they take positive actions that foster a greater understanding and sense of belonging to their communities.
Find out more about LEARN's project
Black Community Resource Centre (BCRC)
Black Community Resource Centre (BCRC) will partner with three English-speaking Black community (ESBC) organizations to participate in the Bridging Language And Culture In Quebec (BLACQ) project that will aid in alleviating some of the negative impacts of Covid-19 by creating avenues through which the community can access culture through technological solutions. Partner organizations will produce a series of online cultural events that explore the contributions of English-Speaking Black people to Quebec. They will include productions by, and about, the English-speaking Black communities that strengthen and promote its cultural history. These productions are intended to promote cultural awareness, social inclusion and a sense of belonging while simultaneously providing cultural content that contributes to physical, mental and emotional well-being.
Quebec Anglophone Heritage Network (QAHN)
Quebec Anglophone Heritage Network (QAHN) will work with heritage institutions around Quebec on programming that contributes to the theme of “belonging and identity." In addition to assisting with locally conceived projects, QAHN will contribute conferences and/or tours, and a traveling exhibition. In the event the Covid-19 pandemic persists, all project activities will be deliverable either online or in some other way that ensures they reach a community that may still be in isolation due to the pandemic. Activities will contribute to the well-being of community members by helping to reduce their feeling of isolation.
Find out more about QAHN's project
Youth 4 Youth (Y4Y)
You Are Here: A Next-Gen Approach to Promoting ESQ's Heritage is Youth 4 Youth’s (Y4Y) latest youth-led project. It aims to improve the sense of belonging amongst English-speaking youth in seven regions of Quebec through the development of region-specific cultural learning activities, including engagement of local seniors’ groups. Intergenerational and community-wide discussions about the English-speaking community’s (ESC) heritage, culture, art, and history will benefit youth in particular as they strive to become Youth Cultural Ambassadors for their regions. It is Y4Y's hope that the youth who get involved in the You Are Here project will infuse their communities with a renewed enthusiasm for local ESC heritage through their work.