Letter from the Executive Director

June 2010

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

Once again we have arrived at the closing of a wonderful year spent in the company of extraordinary and emerging leaders from around the world. Once again, it has been a learning experience not only for the Scholars, but for all of the Sauvé community. And once again, thanks to the outstanding support of the Board of Directors, staff, partners and friends of the Sauvé Scholars Program, we can take pride in what has been accomplished.

THE JEANNE SAUVÉ INAUGURAL ADDRESS

Since my New Year’s Letter, there have been so many developments that one hardly knows where to start, but without doubt, the highlight was the Inaugural Jeanne Sauvé Address “Youth Engagement in the 21st Century:  Inspiring Change in an Era of Globalization”, delivered by Her Excellency, the Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean at McGill’s Moyse Hall on Thursday, February 18. Her Excellency’s address was followed by an equally engaging Youth Panel composed of Sauvé Scholars Gabriel Bran Lopez, Éloge Butera, Janet Jobson and Mirwais Nahzat, along with Ilona Dougherty of Apathy is Boring. Her Excellency’s empathetic response to their statements underlined the reasons that we are all very proud of our Scholars. Prior to giving her inspiring address, Her Excellency was warmly welcomed at Sauvé House by members of the Board, staff, Scholars, Alumni and other friends of the Program. The pictures tell it all.

SPEAKER SERIES

The Winter 2010 Speaker Series held at Sauvé House included Dr. Thomas Axworthy’s challenging discussion of Government that works; Founder & Executive Director Geoff Green of Students On Ice who spoke on Challenging Generation G; Elizabeth May’s impassioned argument for Confronting Canada's triple deficit – ecological, fiscal and democratic. Ms. May also delighted the Scholars in a far-ranging discussion on these and other topics over breakfast the following morning. Concluding the series was CBC President and CEO Hubert Lacroix with the provocative topic of The public broadcaster and the need for a Business Model 2.0. 

AFTERNOON TEAS

The afternoon teas continued to provide an informal alternative for Scholars to meet and exchange with some outstanding figures in the community including Veronica Amberg of McGill’s Social Equity and Diversity Education Office; Concordia University President Judith Woodsworth; and Johanne Gélinas, the former Environment Commissioner of Canada, who now leads Deloitte’s Environment, Health, Safety and Sustainability group.

On the heels of his return from the Vancouver Olympics, Richard Pound, member of the International Olympic Committee and Chairman of the World Anti—Doping Association, gave an engaging insider’s view of the spectacular event.

Kyle Matthews, Lead Researcher at the Montreal Institute for Genocide & Human Rights Studies, shared insights from his career working for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in the Southern Caucasus, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Geneva as well as CARE Canada. 

Following the close of Canada 150, Martha Hall Findlay -- Liberal MP and all-round Renaissance woman -- met with scholars for a surprisingly frank conversation about her experiences in office and the challenges of successfully balancing a multiplicity of roles.  For the Scholars present, it was one of the highlights of their Sauvé year. 
Thomas Mulcair, NDP Member of Parliament for Outremont, former Québec Minister of Sustainable Development and Parks and author of Québec’s  Sustainable Development Law, ably presented the NDP’s platform and concerns, at the invitation of Scholar Liam McHugh-Russell.

SCHOLAR-INITIATED TALKS AND PRESENTATIONS

This year’s Scholars initiated and/or organized a number of talks and special presentations, among which were Shauntay’s Poetry reading; Amnon and Yaniv’s presentation on Judaism and their Invitation to Explore Israel as well as their hosting a Jewish community appreciation evening at Sauvé House ; Éloge’s presentation (with Flora Terah) to the Black Law Students Association and the Panel on Genocide; Janet Jobson’s Illusions and Mythologies of the Rainbow Nation; Keith’s talk on the Influence of Orientalism in America and Mirwais’ McGill Forum on Afghanistan. And no one will forget Maggie’s chocolate-making demonstrations.

The Scholars also led a series of in-house workshops during which they shared skills; for example, Liam led a session on chairing effective meetings; Maggie led a “True Colors” session which allowed Scholars to discover and discuss their respective decision-making styles.

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

The French Club, under Dina Rizakallah’s careful tutelage, was popular as ever, several Scholars supplemented in-house classes with intensive lessons offered by the Commission scolaire de Montréal. Professional Development workshops conducted by Kathleen Wright (Lifeskills), Amin Noorani (International Careers) and Ion Valaskakis (Presence & Presentation; Digital Autonomy; Media Training and Negotiation) were packed full of information, challenging and in some cases, fun (at least for the observers). Everyone benefitted. The individual follow-up and career advice for Scholars that Ion offered in scheduled office hours were also much appreciated. 

SPECIAL ACTIVITIES AND TRIPS

The Scholars took advantage of Concordia University’s arrangements for the annual trip to the Québec Winter Carnaval, as always a great success, and everyone returned with the requisite number of fingers and toes. The following week, thanks to Nancy Wright’s wonderful hospitality, they enjoyed a glorious rural Winter Wonderland celebration at her country home, complete with dog sledding, cross-country skiing and snowshoeing - truly a highlight of the winter program.

On March 9, it was off to Ottawa for three days packed with meetings. As Maggie wrote “it was not only the politicians and their staff who engaged with us. We cherished our time with Canada’s leading journalists, human right activists, Aboriginal advocacy groups, educators, social development foundations, and world-class researchers. We learned about their work, their motivations, and their relationships with the government.” From Alex Neve head of Amnesty International Canada, Paul Davidson head of the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada, Khalil  Sharif, CEO of the Aga Khan Foundation of Canada, and the International Development Research Centre staff to Ministers Stockwell Day and Peter van Loan; Speaker Peter Milliken; NDP Leader Jack Layton and MP Olivia Chow; Liberal MPs Justin Trudeau and Marlene Jennings; and Peter Donolo, Chief of Staff to Leader of the Opposition Michael Ignatieff, to the media gurus Chantal Hébert and Paul Wells, everyone was welcoming, informative and deeply interested in our Scholars who responded in kind. It was a proud moment!

Among major events outside Sauvé House were the J.R. Mallory Lecture in Canadian Studies, given by Chantal Hébert, astute political observer and columnist for the Toronto Star; PechaKucha’s special Soap event; the McGill conference on Canadian Water: Towards a New Strategy and - the week before the formal end of the Program - the Montreal Millennium Summit, headlined by Al Gore and focused on the impact of climate change on the Millennium Development Goals, with the spotlight on Haiti reconstruction
 
SAUVÉ SCHOLARS AND THE KAHNAWAKE COMMUNITY

Also keeping the Scholars busy were the common projects with Sac à dos and the continuation of last year’s enriching  relationship with the Kahnawake community, which culminated in a day-long series of workshops during which Scholars shared their own experiences with students and teachers at the Kahnawake Survival School (KSS). I am absolutely delighted to announce that the success of this project, ably guided by Dr. Ann Macaulay and the Scholars she has mentored during the past two years and in close collaboration with the wonderful Kahienes Sky, has led to a decision to incorporate it as an ongoing and integral part of the Scholars’ community engagement.   

Throughout everything, the Scholars worked on their individual projects, found time to hang out together and forge life-long friendships. Finally, on April 30, the 2009-2010 Great Adventure concluded, with the Graduation ceremony and reception at Sauvé House for Scholars, Alumni, Mentors, Members of the Board, Staff and Friends, presided over by President Jean-François Sauvé.

SELECTION OF THE 2010-2011 SCHOLARS

Yes, a packed schedule indeed. And while it was all happening, so was the painstaking selection process and the incredibly difficult (there were so many wonderful candidates!) final selection of the 14 members of the 2010-1011 cohort, all superbly coordinated by Outreach Officer Simone Hanchet. Following the initial pre-selection carried out by Sauvé  Alumni around the world,  the assistance of this year’s Scholars during the process leading up to the final selection was invaluable. Friends of the Foundation also worked tirelessly to review, analyze and consult the results at every stage of the process.  In the end, we are proud that yet another outstanding group will be coming to Sauvé House in August from the four corners of the world – Armenia, Burma, India, Iran, Nigeria, Peru, the Philippines, Venezuela, and, of course, Canada.

SCHOLARS NEWS AND PLANS

As this year’s cohort gradually disperses, I am pleased to share with you some of their plans.
Gabriel, who was recently honoured with the Canadian Public Policy Forum’s 2010 Emerging Leaders Award, will be continuing to grow Youth Fusion, his Sauvé Scholar Project.

Éloge will return to Law School after a summer of working as a research assistant. But the Big News is his engagement to the lovely Simone Hanchet, who has been the pillar of the Applications process this year. 

Shauntay, who in February launched her first CD, WORDRHYTHM, is already back to work at CBC (hosting regional music program) and busy securing funding for Poets 4 Change, planning the inaugural 2010/11 series; planning and coordinating FREE VERSE, a national gathering of Canada's Poets Laureate (happening July 2010); planning and coordinating the Atlantic Jazz Festival's Words + Music series; performing at music and literary festivals; teaching at youth summer writing camp …. She never stops!

Ever eager to absorb new skills and knowledge, Maggie has been attending the Coady Institute Certificate Program on Livelihoods and Markets; she writes that Sauvé Alumnus (2004-2005)  “Farouk Jiwa has been facilitating and he is doing such a top-notch job. It is a pretty cool Sauvé to Sauvé connection - and also demonstrates how rich the alumni network can be as a place of mentoring.”

Liam, after spending some eight weeks at the International Labour Organization in Geneva, will return to Montreal to start his Master’s at McGill in the fall, continuing his concentration on International Labour Law.

Mirwais is going to Ghana this summer to undertake an implementation plan for the USAID-funded education decentralization project. He will work with World University Service of Canada (WUSC) in Ottawa on a full-time basis while continuing to consult with DFAIT.

Yaniv, who has received a E. David Fischman Scholarship to attend the Harvard Kennedy School as a Master in Public Policy candidate, this summer will launch Comtribute, the innovative online-based organization he co-founded and developed as his Sauvé project (and which has recently secured the cooperation of Canada World Youth).

Keith is completing his dissertation on Anglo-American conceptions of ‘warlords’ in colonial and contemporary times, and in September starts as a visiting student in the Yale Political Science Department.

James, who we all agree is the person we all would have wanted as our high school teacher, has returned to the U.K. He is working for Teach First over the summer and, beginning in October, will be pursuing a Masters degree in Education Policy at the Institute of Education in London. James’ thoughtful blog this year has been a source of inspiration and discussion for many of us; we hope he will maintain it.
 
ALUMNI NEWS
 
Alumni news includes three wedding announcements. Megan Bradley (2008-2009) and Tim Wideman were married in May.  In July, Leila Farah (2004-2005) will marry Spyridon Kotsovilis in Athens, and two weeks later, Philip Osano (2006-2007), who recently won the IDRC Doctoral Research Award, will marry Rahma Adam in Nairobi – to the surprise of no one who knows Philip, the wedding will take place in the Botanical Gardens. Another Sauvé footnote: Philip and Rahma were introduced by Sauvé Scholar (2006-07) Eunice Ajambo.  More good news: Clarice Reis (2008-2009) and Nathan Souza (2006-2007) are engaged with plans for a Brazilian wedding in October 2012. Meanwhile, Clarice has just received an exceptional Merit Award from the Margaret McNamara Memorial Fund in “recognition of her ongoing work for the benefit of women and children, and aspirations in this regard”.

After a year as a research fellow at Lumsa University in Rome, Marta Massi (2008-2009) will be returning to Canada in mid-August as a PhD candidate in Management at Carleton University, Ottawa; she writes that she plans to join in Sauvé events as often as possible. 

Finally, Ed Vainker (2008-2009) and Emily McKenzie are contributing to the pool of next generation of Sauvé Scholars – they are expecting a baby in August – and plan to marry in the UK in 2011.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR NEWS

Which leads me to my fantastic news. As those of you who have been at Sauvé House during the last few months may have noticed, I too am expecting. Our second child is due on or about June 24th just in time for Québec’s Fête nationale, so, as of June 17, I am going on maternity leave until March 2011.

While I am away, Ion Valaskakis will be Acting Executive Director. Ion, the son of two distinguished university professors, is a graduate of McGill with a Masters of Arts Degree in Political Science from the University of Western Ontario and an MBA from London Business School.  Self-described as culturally fluid, he has three nationalities – Canadian, U.S. and Greek – and has worked in four countries. Many of you know him through his leadership over the past two years of highly successful professional workshops for the Scholars along with one-on-one career guidance sessions. The Program is in excellent hands.

IN CONCLUSION

As this Program year closes, I wish once again to gratefully acknowledge the unflagging interest, support and encouragement of our Chairman, Sonny Gordon, President Jean-François Sauvé and Directors Diane Sauvé, Nancy Wright and Fred Lowy; the invaluable assistance and devotion of Louise Brunet Nelson and François-Xavier Tremblay; Simone Hanchet’s tireless and graceful administration of the application and selection process for the incoming 2010-2011 cohort of Scholars; the thoughtful suggestions of the 2009-2010 Scholars and many Alumni for ways in which to make the Program ever better; the Academic Mentors who have enriched the Scholars experience; McGill university, whose precious collaboration and resources are the underpinning of the Program; and our partners, including most particularly our newest one, Canada World Youth; as well as all the unsung heroes who work behind the scenes, whether on accounting, cleaning, building maintenance, IT, or other tasks essential to maintaining a thriving Program and Foundation.

Regards,



Désirée McGraw
Executive Director
Jeanne Sauvé Foundation and Sauvé Scholars Foundation