Minister Guilbeault Concludes His First Tour of the Maritime Provinces

From: Canadian Heritage

News release

HALIFAX, December 18, 2019

The Honourable Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Canadian Heritage, concluded a three-day tour of the Maritime provinces, where he met with stakeholders from the arts, culture and heritage sector and the sport community, as well as representatives of the Mi’kmaq community in Nova Scotia.

During his visit, Minister Guilbeault took part in round tables on arts and culture in Charlottetown, Moncton and Halifax. These activities gave him the chance to meet with key players and organizations in the Maritime provinces. Those in attendance were able to share their concerns, such as the need to create Canadian content, copyright, and the resources required to run festivals and events successfully. Participants at the Moncton round table also highlighted the special characteristics of the Acadian and Francophone arts and culture scene.

Minister Guilbeault also met with representatives of the Confederacy of Mainland Mi’kmaq in Debert, Nova Scotia. Elders from the region’s Mi’kmaq community presented the Mik’mawey Debert Cultural Centre project.

The amateur sport community in Nova Scotia is dynamic and very well organized. During a round table discussion with amateur sport representatives in Halifax, Minister Guilbeault was able to learn more about things such as the challenges surrounding high-performance amateur sport and coaching.

He rounded out his tour by meeting with the organizing committee of the 2020 North American Indigenous Games, which will be held in the Greater Halifax Area from July 12 to 18, 2020. The Games will be the largest multi-sport event ever held in Atlantic Canada.

In addition to these many meetings, Minister Guilbeault was able to visit several important sites in the Maritime provinces, including the Confederation Centre of the Arts, the Aberdeen Cultural Centre, the Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21, the Canadian Sport Centre Atlantic and the Discovery Centre.

During his visit to the Discovery Centre, he took the opportunity to announce $355,400 in funding from the Canada Cultural Spaces Fund to improve the technical equipment in the centre’s dome.

Quotes

“As the new Minister of Canadian Heritage, I believe it is crucial for me to go out in the field and meet with stakeholders in the sector across the country. My visit to the Maritime provinces and the meetings I took part in gave me the chance to see the vitality, creativity and passion of people working in the arts, culture and sport sectors. I was able to recognize the direct effects of Canadian Heritage’s various initiatives on the region and get to know the key organizations and stakeholders better.”

—The Honourable Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Canadian Heritage

Quick facts

  • The Confederation Centre of the Arts was created in 1964 as the only official monument to the Fathers of Confederation. Its construction was a joint initiative of the governments of Canada and Prince Edward Island to mark the centennial of the Charlottetown Conference of 1864, which led to Confederation in 1867.

  • The Aberdeen Cultural Centre is a creative hub that houses more than 20 organizations active in arts, culture and education. The Centre is one of the most important parts of New Brunswick’s Acadian cultural infrastructure.

  • The Mi’kmaq are the original inhabitants of Nova Scotia and remain the predominant Indigenous group in the province. There are 13 Mi’kmaq First Nations in Nova Scotia.

  • The Discovery Centre, at four stories high and over 40,000 square feet, is the newest science and technology museum in the country. It offers cutting-edge experiences, innovative galleries and incredible exhibits from around the world.

  • Pier 21 is a national historic site that served as an embarkation port for 368,000 members of the Canadian military during the Second World War.

  • The North American Indigenous Games are a multi-sport event and cultural celebration involving Indigenous athletes from across North America that have been held intermittently since 1990.

Associated links

Contacts

For more information (media only), please contact:

Camille Gagné-Raynauld
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Canadian Heritage
819-997-7788

Media Relations
Canadian Heritage
819-994-9101
1-866-569-6155
pch.media-media.pch@canada.ca

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