France was the first to send colonists to Acadia in 1604. Most of these colonists were Basques or from the province of Poitou. In 1713, after a number of disputes with England, France signed a treaty giving it jurisdiction over île Saint-Jean (Prince Edward Island, where it established a permanent colony in 1720) and île Royale (Cape Breton Island). Mainland Nova Scotia became British territory, but many Acadians living there refused to swear an oath of loyalty to England. In 1755, England decided to put an end to this passive resistance by deporting the Acadians. Some 7,000 Acadians from the territory migrated to various places in the United States and Eastern Canada, with a large number going to Prince Edward Island. However, Francophones were in the minority on the Island, as most of the population came from Scotland and Ireland. Gradually, the French-speaking population broke out of its isolation, asserted itself and set up French-language schools. Two centuries later, it is represented in both federal and provincial government institutions. Today, Prince Edward Island's Acadian and Francophone population is a vibrant community that is opening up to the world.

An Island of Red, Green and White

Canada's smallest province, Prince Edward Island, is 224 kilometres long and between 6 and 64 kilometres wide. The Island is famous for its vivid red soil, high sand dunes and 800 kilometres of beaches. Blessed with a temperate climate, half of the Island is under cultivation, the largest crop being potatoes, earning the Island the title of "Canada's Million-Acre Farm".

Many of the Island's Francophones and Acadians live in fishing and farming communities. The public sector and small private business employs the rest. The largest city on Prince Edward Island is Charlottetown; it has a population of 33,000. Sixty per cent of the Evangeline area's population of 2,200 is French-speaking.

The Island is situated in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and is separated from the mainland by the Northumberland Strait. Having remained isolated from the mainland for so long, the Francophone and Acadian population developed a community spirit which is now legendary. The Evangeline area abounds with cooperatives, including grocery, fishing, funeral and cable distribution cooperatives. Networking and cooperation hold no mystery for the Islanders! The Island has been linked to New Brunswick by the 13-kilometre long Confederation Bridge since the end of May 1997, a fact that will, in all likelihood, change the life of the Island's population forever.

From Fishing to the Information Highway

Its traditional reliance on fishing, farming and tourism has meant that Prince Edward Island's Francophone and Acadian population has had to live with a high rate of seasonal unemployment. Today, it is counting on its community spirit and cooperative talents to boost its economy, as it takes advantage of new opportunities in the field of information and communications technology.

The knowledge-based economy is opening up new markets, and French-speaking people on the Island are especially interested in education via the information highway and the production of French-language multimedia tools. The entire francophonie will soon be connected to the Internet, yet there are very few tools available in French. Francophone and Acadian Islanders see an opportunity in this to carve out a niche in the world market for multimedia production. Their response to those who feel the Internet poses a threat of assimilation is that the language of the Internet is the language of the user. It is up to us to choose French-language sites and tools, learn about the new technology, and develop applications that suit our needs.

Using a telecommunications network at the leading edge of technology (ATN broadband network), the Francophone and Acadian community recently launched a telecommunity project which, among other things, will make it possible to expand the network for French-language distance education for all school levels. The project attracted a great deal of attention at the National Telecommunications Conference in Halifax in August 1997. The Virtual Incubating Lab is another innovation. It delivers an entrepreneurship and multimedia production training program in exchange for assistance in carrying out multimedia production contracts it takes on from the private and community sector.

Tourism

The new Confederation Bridge will likely lead to an increase in tourism on the Island. Lobster, Malpeque oysters and miles of beaches are now only a car ride away! No more packed ferries or long line-ups. Not to mention the attraction of the bridge itself - a 60-metre high, 13-kilometre long structure built on pillars and designed to provide the least possible hindrance to the flow of ice in winter. The Francophone and Acadian community is accordingly working on increasing its capacity to provide quality accommodations and restaurant services.

The summer months are filled with numerous Francophone and Acadian festivals:

Festival mondial de danse (World Dance Festival) - early July - Traditional and modern dance representing cultures from every corner of the globe!

Festival du Cove de Cap-Egmont (Cap-Egmont Cove Festival) - mid-July - A celebration of the sea and fishing.

Jamboree atlantique des violoneux (Atlantic Fiddlers' Jamboree) - early August - A foot-tapping good time!

Fête nationale de l'Acadie (National Acadian Day) - August 15th - A marvellous opportunity to learn about Acadian heritage.

Exposition agricole et Festival acadien (Agricultural Exhibition and Acadian Festival), Abram-Village - late August - The year's biggest festival.

Summer concerts at Le Village in Mont-Carmel in July and August.

Fruitful Partnerships

First Ever Partnership with Two Levels of Government

The Island's Francophone and Acadian community is a pioneer in community-government cooperation in that it was the first to enter into a tripartite partnership (community, Government of Canada and provincial government) in June 1997. The agreement was signed by Human Resources Development Canada, the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, the province of Prince Edward Island (represented by the Deputy Minister of the Department of Economic Development and Tourism, and by the Clerk of the Executive Council and Provincial Co-chair of the Knowledge Economy Partnership), and the Acadian and Francophone community of Prince Edward Island (represented by the President of the Société Saint-Thomas-d'Aquin and by the President of the Société éducative de l'Île-du-Prince-Édouard). Among other things, the agreement involves the delivery of on-line French-language government services to the Francophone and Acadian community using the telecommunity network. It enables government organizations to easily reach a larger percentage of their clientele, while providing members of different communities with access to detailed, up-to-date information in French, 24 hours a day!

Other partnerships, on a smaller scale

Island Festivals

This year, the numerous festivals on the Island have benefited from improved organization thanks to the participation of the Department of Human Resources Development Canada. The Department hired three persons for the season to coordinate festival logistics. These persons have been helping the organizers of the various festivals, moving from village to village throughout the summer. This is the first cooperative effort in this area between the Government of Canada and the community, and it has made it possible to deliver a higher quality product which, it is hoped, will attract more visitors, thus generating larger revenues. One day, this initiative might even lead to the creation of self-sufficient, profitable organizations.

Acadian Museum

The Acadian Museum had two dreams:  to launch a marketing campaign to increase its tourist clientele, and to provide visitors with a better quality audio-visual presentation as well as summer programming. As it did not have the resources to carry out these major projects, it decided to look for partners. Museum staff attended numerous functions at which representatives of various federal and provincial programs were present, made some contacts, spoke about the Museum's plans and activities, and eventually, found some partners.

As a result, ACOA, the Department of Education (Cultural Development and Acadian Cultural Development programs), the Canada-Community agreement group and the Association touristique Évangéline (Evangeline Tourism Association) provided the museum with funding to develop its marketing campaign. The museum also received support for its audio-visual presentation from Canadian Heritage (Official Languages and Cultural Initiatives programs) - financial support, of course, but also logistical support, in that Canadian Heritage provided equipment and assistance in getting the project under way, providing advice on steps to be taken and the names of contacts in the field of video production. ACOA and the Bureau du Québec also provided some funding for the project, while Radio-Canada (French-language counterpart of the CBC) in Moncton and Parks Canada (Atlantic region, Halifax) provided a studio, a technician, advice on the script, and equipment. The summer programming took the form of the "Festival Folk-Acadie" (Acadian Folk Festival), funded by the Canada-Community agreement group, the Department of Education (Cultural Development program) and Canadian Heritage (Young Canada Works program, under which a student was hired).

The Acadian Museum stresses that its networking activities were the cornerstone of this success story. According to the museum's staff, it is absolutely imperative to knock on doors and to make yourself known in order to diversify sources of support. The hardest part is getting the first partner. Once the first has agreed to participate, others are less hesitant about becoming involved. The final outcome of this project is telling:  the Acadian Museum won the Heritage Canada achievement award for its video, "The Island Acadians", and its clientele increased by 25.7% over the course of the summer of 1996.