Letter from the Interim Executive Director, June 2023

Hello everyone, it’s a pleasure to be writing you as Interim Executive Director!

While I am new to the role, this month marks four years since joining the team for me, so I am certainly no stranger to ELAN and its community. Nevertheless, I’m very much looking forward to getting to know you better in the weeks and months to come, and I’m sure there will be many great opportunities to do so.

Speaking of great opportunities: the first hints of summer are finally upon us, and everyone is no doubt itching to get outside and enjoy some arts and culture activities. Why not start by joining us for our Fringe Schmoozer at the Fringe Park on June 12^th? It’s a great way to make some new connections and enjoy some (fingers crossed) beautiful weather at the same time – how can you go wrong? See you there!

For the more air conditioning-oriented among us, ELAN members can also take advantage of a member-exclusive screening of What We Choose to Remember on June 9^th at the NFB Building in downtown Montreal. For those of you who have yet to see the film, it’s a very poignant and thought-provoking documentary and absolutely not to be missed.

We spend most of the year waiting for summer, so make sure you get out and enjoy it – and be sure to keep an eye on ELAN’s newsletter and social media feeds to stay up-to-date on all the great stuff going on in your community!

Nick Maturo
ELAN Interim Executive Director

Click here to read this month’s project news.

Land Acknowledgement

ELAN is an official minority language organization within a country that recognizes two languages as official. ELAN is located in Tiohtià:ke, the original name for Montreal in Kanien’kéha, the language of the Mohawk—also known as Mooniyang, which is the Anishinaabeg name given to the city by the Algonquin. While we are based in this city, our projects have also taken place in many regions across Quebec.

We acknowledge the colonial origin of English and French in Canada, and recognize that both languages benefit from official status throughout the land. The province that we know as Quebec is an amalgamation of the traditional territories of the Innu and Inuit nations, Algonquian nations, as well as the Mohawk nations of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. Kanien’kéha and Anishinaabemowin are but two of the original languages of this province; Atikamekw, Cree, Inuktitut, and Innu-aimun are also among the many Indigenous languages spoken across Quebec as majority languages, all well before French and English.

ELAN acknowledges the important work being done by First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples to revive the traditional languages of these territories, and their advocacy for the official status of Indigenous languages.