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Lien permanent Réponse de Raymond Gagnon le 23 août 2009 à 17:55

Sorry for the typo & is there a 2nd e on Assemblé...

Lien permanent Réponse de Joseph Theriault le 24 août 2009 à 15:18

ooo Well after having listened to Québec news for half a year and knowing how l'Assemblée Nationale conducts business versus the General Court, it would be easier for me to answer the reverse question: what wouldn't I want them to discuss ... don't want any funny ideas traveling South :-)

But really, if I were setting the agenda, it would reflect an idea I've been developing for a while (that will probably eventually find expression on my blog) in which I see the 25% Franco-American population of the state as another "New Hampshire Advantage."

Toward that aim, I would have them discuss:

1. What role Québec might be interested in taking in assisting New Hampshire with the reacquisition of its Franco-Americans' ancestral language?

2. Somewhat controversially: potential New Hampshire participation with La Francophonie.

3. More blandly: develop a plan for a corridor between Québec industry and North Country resources and Portsmouth shipping.

I'm sure there are others, but those will just have to wait until the General Court sends me on a trade mission there :-)

What would you have in mind?

Lien permanent Réponse de Raymond Gagnon le 24 août 2009 à 17:06

Joseph - thanks for the feedback. My reason for asking was at the recent Council of State Government Conference in Burlington there was some thought about creating an opportunity for QC & NH legislators to meet. My thought was/is to bring together individuals around energy, transportation, agriculture, and cultural tourism. However, I don't really see any activity on this front until September - so I thought I'd ask for feedback from francos. Thanks for your thoughts - hopefully others will weigh in with an opinion.

Lien permanent Réponse de Joseph Theriault le 27 août 2009 à 10:23

Ha! You topic list is a whole lot more founded in the real world that the fantasy land I took your question to :-)

Considering the upcoming Hydro-Québec lines I think energy is a sure bet, and with our several existing cultural exchange agreements (and the fact that it's an area uncontestedly in state/provincial jurisdiction) I think that your tourism discussion is also likely -- if not in the format I was daydreaming about earlier :-)

I'm curious if you have specific items that you're thinking of in regards to transportation and agriculture, or if you think that those two topics are simply natural considering our proximity and their importance internally?

Lien permanent Réponse de Raymond Gagnon le 27 août 2009 à 12:04

It is so refreshing to know that there really are people/francos out there interested... so merci pour ta réponse.

My thought is that francos could be a vital link towards increased collaboration with Quebec & Canada. The pay off for us is increased visibility and demonstrated value to an often unaware larger US culture.

Regarding the purchase of hydro energy. The transmission lines are sheduled to come through NH for the northeast grid.

As for transportation - there are serious plans for high speed rail through Maine (Lewiston) westward through northern NH (Gorham) to Québec - this is the old St. Lawrence/Atlantic line from Montreal to Portland. Another possible line under consideration is from Concord to White River Jct and renewed Amtrak service to Montreal.

AS for agriculture - the Canadians make a strong argument on how recent US policies are negatively impacting their ability to export agricultural produce to the US. Also the dairy industry in New England operates under an archaic system - perhaps we could learn something from our cousins in Québec.

FYI there is a good possibility tha the Consul General in Boston may be coming to Concord & Manchester in October - I'll let you know as more details develop.