The goal of this event open to all is to inform and stimulate discussions on the new ethical and social issues faced by Aboriginal communities and Quebec society, in a place encouraging genuine exchange and bringing together different cultures. As such, the Canadian Commission for UNESCO will be collaborating in the event through the participation of its Secretary-General, Mr. David A. Walden.

It is also in this perspective that Mr. Roméo Saganash and Ms. Marie Léger generously accepted to co-chair the Seminar. Mr. Saganash, from the Grand Council of the Crees, is one of the few First Nations specialists with more than 10 years of experience in governmental relations and international affairs.

Ms. Léger is a sociologist and coordinator of Indigenous Peoples Rights for Rights & Democracy, a Canadian organization with an international mandate. They have both worked closely with the United Nations towards its Declaration for the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

The Seminar will be held in the traditional and comfortable facilities of Ashini Adventures, near the George River (56thparallel). This timeless site has been a genuine cultural focal point for the Innu Nation for several hundred years, and hosts the migration of one of the biggest caribou herds on earth. The program consists in lectures and discussions, as well as many outdoor activities through which participants will discover the Innu ancestral way of life and immerse themselves in Northern Quebec.

We look forward to your participation to this unique event addressing critical issues in a human manner.

Thank you in advance for considering this invitation.

Yours sincerely,

Serge Ashini Goupil and Jean-Philippe L. Messier

Note: The Lectures and the debates will focus on the following subjects:

• Perspectives and implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
• Canadian international perspective regarding aboriginal rights.
• First Nations consultation regarding large economic projects in Quebec.
• Land claims and aboriginal political system.
• Myths and realities on the legal aspects of the First Nations of Quebec.
• Status of the George River Caribou and geomorphology of the landscape.

You will find attached (Poster_2008.pdf) a short document describing this out-of-the-ordinary event (poster, invitation, draft program and costs).   

The Seminar is proposed in a short version (5 days - 4 nights) or a long version (9 days - 8 nights) starting at $2995.

PRESS RELEASE

A "Northern Aboriginal Seminar" on Quebec’s social,

cultural and environmental issues

For the second year in a row a pioneering seminar will

be held in the North on the big challenges of modern day Quebec

Wendake, May 9, 2006 – This year again, the Corporation du Mushuau-nipi, in collaboration with Ashini Adventure, translates its mission into action by organizing the 2nd edition of its Northern Aboriginal Seminar.

Mr. Serge Ashini Goupil, co-organizer, mentions that, "This year, the theme of the event is " The environmental solution will stem from the collaboration between nations" and its goal is to inform and allow for a debate on environmental issues and the importance of establishing a dialog between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal. The seminar will be held from August 15 to 22, 2006 on the George River, one of the most mythical and important river of the Quebec and Aboriginal North. The concept is very innovative as it offers accommodations in tipis and debates under the big community Shaputuan.

"We are holding the Seminar in the Great North and in traditional facilities to get completely out of familiar frameworks thus fostering authentic discussions and in-depth reflection on the big issues facing modern day Quebec" adds Mr. Jean-Philippe L. Messier, the other co-organizer of the activity. This river is also the host of one of the largest herd of caribou in the world. The seminar will be co-chaired by Messrs. Ghislain Picard, Regional Chief of the First Nations of Quebec and Labrador, and Steven Guilbeault, director of Greenpeace Quebec. Ms. Hélène Raymond, environment journalist, will lead the lectures and debates, while Mr. Florent Vollant will attend as special guest.

It is open to anyone who is interested and will propose lectures followed by participatory exchanges on themes dealing with the environment and the Non-Aboriginal-Aboriginal social challenge. Other activities are planned outside the lectures: a hydroplane flight over the main natural sites of the North (taïga, tundra plain, river valley), a visit of the numerous archaeological assemblages of the sector (one of the most important of the Aboriginal North), a Rabaska canoe trip on the river, a tour of one of the biggest eskers in Quebec and the visit of an outfitting operation in the sector. Moreover, if participants are lucky again this time around, they will witness the caribou migration at their crossing.

For more information

Schedule Schedule.pdf

Why you should attend Why you should attend.pdf