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(Toronto - 4 March 2011) The 8t^h annual edition of the National Ambassador Youth Forum (NAYF) was held in Quebec City from February 25 to March 1, 2011.  
    
For this four-day event, the thirty 2011 French for the Future Ambassadors – core French, French immersion and French First Language high school students from minority environments from across Canada – took part in several cultural and educational activities focused on the advantages of being bilingual.

The 2011 NAYF’s cultural activities included a guided tour of the Observatoire de la Capitale and of the Centre de la Francophonie des Amériques, a snowshoeing excursion on the Plains of Abraham and an evening at the sugar shack, which was accompanied by traditional Quebecois dance lessons and improvisation workshops.  
 
“A language without its culture is nothing,” declared John Ralston Saul, Founder of French for the Future, who underlined during his address the importance of culture in learning the French language.  

The ambassadors also took part in several workshops, exploring the current issues of bilingualism in Canada which helped them define their role and responsibilities as ambassadors.

During the NAYF closing ceremony, which took place at the Capitole de Québec on February 28th 2011, each ambassador pledged, in front of distinguished guests – notably Dr. Bernard Garnier, Vice-Rector at Université Laval – to promote French in their communities by writing articles in their local French newspaper, giving presentations to their class or school or by creating a French blog.

As for Luke MacLean, one of the two Nova-Scotian ambassadors, he wants to start a petition to keep French Immersion programs in his community.  “I want to show that [French Immersion] is important for us,” said Luke.  

Inspired, full of ideas and motivated to have discovered a vibrant and dynamic Canadian Francophonie, French for the Future Ambassadors have now returned to their communities, ready to make a difference!


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French for the Future is a national not-for-profit organization that supports and motivates Canadian students on their path towards bilingualism. Founded in 1997 by John Ralston Saul and Lisa Balfour Bowen, French for the Future reaches thousands of Francophone and Francophile students through its many activities and programs, offered both on the local and national level.

Contact: Pier-Nadeige Jutras, Communications Coordinator
French for the Future, National Office
366 Adelaide Street East, Suite 444
Toronto (Ontario)  M5A 3X9
tel.  416 203-9900 ext. 221  email. pjutras@french-future.org