What is the RVF?

Les Rendez-vous de la Francophonie (RVF) is part of the events surrounding the Journée Internationale de la Francophonie (March 20), which is organized every year around the world to promote the French language and its numerous cultural expressions!

The RVF is an initiative of the Canadian Foundation for Cross-Cultural Dialogue, whose mandate is to promote and support dialogue among the Francophone and Acadian, and all other communities in Canada.

Today, more than 9.5 million people in Canada keep the French language alive and bring it to others. Most of these people live in Acadian communities, Quebec and Ontario, but some of them live in western and northern Canada. Some come from families that have been established in Canada for generations, while others are more recent immigrants, or Anglophones or allophones who have chosen to learn French and immerse themselves in its culture.

The RVF is a time for Canada’s Francophonie to celebrate! In 2011, more than 800 activities took place across Canada. Community gatherings, multicultural meetings, ceremonies, shows, singing, theatre, poetry, film viewings, word games, contests, educational activities, essentially, everything provided an excuse to make merry.

By bringing together and listing the hundreds of activities organized by Francophones and Francophiles across the country, the RVF conveys the tremendous energy of the communities and regions, and invites you to join the party by promoting these celebrations through the pan-Canadian calendar of activities.

The RVF is an extraordinary opportunity to come together in celebration!

Theme: Understanding builds a better future

Since its creation in 1999, the RVF, as a giant celebration of the French culture and language, has addressed a number of themes, including First Nations, the first European settlers, new communities and diversity. In 2010, on the heels of the Vancouver Olympic and Paralympic Games, the RVF launched a three-year project aimed at encouraging bridge-building among Francophone communities through the exchange of knowledge, culture and expertise. At that time, the RVF adopted a theme that would unfold over three years:

• 2010   Discovery stimulates interaction
• 2011   Interaction leads to understanding
• 2012   Understanding builds a better future

Thus, in 2010, inspired by the theme of Discovery stimulates interaction, Quebec municipalities were paired with provinces or territories that had the same number of inhabitants in their Francophone and Acadian communities. For example, Drummondville, which has 67,392 inhabitants, was paired with British Columbia, which has 70,410 Francophones. This first phase was structured around the Flag-raising activity, which led to visits by delegations of representatives of Francophone communities in the twin province or territory to the twin city for exchanges and an official raising of the twin province's Francophonie flag.

In 2011, we brought in the second phase of the action plan, around the theme of Interaction leads to understanding, with delegations from the Quebec municipalities visiting their twin province for a further exchange of cultural, social, economic and tourism knowledge and expertise.

In 2012, Understanding builds a better future will consist of activities involving these same Canadian communities and Francophone communities around the world. This will provide the opportunity to build bridges among the cultures, and to highlight the full energy and vitality of Canada's Francophone community on the international stage.

Understanding builds a better future will also be part of a specially designed campaign directed at young people through humour and the social media.

Pairing Francophone Communities

In 2010, the RVF launched a three-year project aimed at building bridges between 12 cities in Quebec and Francophone communities in Canada's provinces and territories. What followed was a series of activities that associated Francophone communities in Canada's various provinces and territories with a municipality in Quebec with the same number of inhabitants. For example, we paired Manitoba, which has 44,000 Francophones, with the Chambly region and its 42,119 inhabitants, in the same manner as the 70,410 Francophones in British Columbia were paired with the 67,392 residents of Drummondville.

In the first year, 12 participating Quebec municipalities hosted a delegation of provincial/territorial Francophone representatives. These meetings took different forms: a tour of business entrepreneurs, school and arts exchanges, the exchange of tourism expertise, sustainable development, etc.

For 2011, a delegation from each of Quebec's 12 municipalities headed to their partner province or territory to observe the full vitality of Francophone communities.

In 2012, delegations from the municipalities and their partner province/territory will travel abroad to showcase the dynamism of the French language in Canada.

Tour Schedule

Board of Directors

Marc Arnal, Chair Dean
Saint-Jean Campus,
University of Alberta
Alberta

Bernard Voyer, Vice-Chair
Explorer
Quebec

Michel Matifat, Secretary
President, SDECB
British Columbia

Mariette Carrier-Fraser
President, Centre canadien de Leadership en évaluation
Ontario

Luc Laîné
President, Orihwa inc.
Quebec

Aldéa Landry
President, Landal inc.
New Brunswick

Suzanne Laverdière
Senior Director, Canal Indigo, Videotron
Quebec

Benoît Pelletier
Professor, University of Ottawa
Ontario

Jean-Guy Rioux
Consultant
New Brunswick

Caterina Sotiriadis
Consultant, Sotiriadis Education Services
Manitoba

Andrée Lortie, C.M., O. Ont., Director
Founding president of la cité collégiale
Ontario

Hon. Allister Surette, E.C.N.S., Director
President and Vice-Chancellor,
Université Sainte-Anne
Nouvelle-Écosse

Azza Youssef
Student
Ontario

Marie-France Kenny, Associate member
President, FCFA du Canada

Executive Director
Guy Matte
Ontario