Charlottetown Forum: November 9-10, 2023
Speakers & Moderators
Panel Discussions
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- Newcomers, Immigration, and the Needs of a Rapidly Changing National Community
- Economic Reconciliation
- Shared National Narratives in a Fractured Time
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The Charlottetown Forum is a newly established event that brings together artists, leaders, and the public to convene for discussions on matters of importance to Canadians.
Meeting at Confederation Centre of the Arts next to the site of the 1864 Charlottetown Conference, the Charlottetown Forum seeks to promote open learning and sharing of diverse perspectives about the evolving identity of Canada.
The Forum is part of the Centre’s wider revitalization plan, which includes the creation of a National Cultural Leadership Institute housing new spaces for the creation of art, cultural learning, and public discourse.
This year’s event features three panel discussions and public roundtables on the topics of immigration, economic reconciliation, and finding shared national narratives in a fractured time.
Passes are on sale now. A Forum pass is $50 (plus taxes and fees), or $25 for students (plus taxes and fees) and includes access to all three panels and all events on November 9 and 10. Passes can be purchased online here, via phone at 1-800-565-0278, or in person at the Centre box office.
Thursday, November 9
Opening Ceremony: 10:00 a.m. – Memorial Hall
Hidden History Walking Tour: 10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Boxed Lunch: 12:00 – 1:00 p.m.
Panel Discussion: 1:00 – 2:15 p.m. – Memorial Hall
Immigration and the Needs of a Rapidly Changing National Community
Panelists: Shamira Madhany (ED, World Education Services), Taleeb Noormohamed (MP for Vancouver Granville), and Nicholas Keung (immigration reporter, Toronto Star)
Moderator: Elamin Abdelmahmoud (journalist, author)
Coffee Break: 2:15 – 3:00 p.m.
Tour of Confederation Centre Art Gallery: 3:30 – 4:30 p.m.
Forum attendees will be invited to tour and discuss two exhibitions with thematic tie-ins to the Charlottetown Forum: the currents that carry us and Making History. The tour will be led by Art Gallery Curator Pan Wendt.
Pre-dinner Reception: 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. – Mavor’s Lounge
Friday, November 10
Panel Discussion: 10:00 – 11:00 a.m. – Memorial Hall
Economic Reconciliation
Panelists: Jonathan Davey (VP, Indigenous Financial Services, Scotiabank), Kateri Coade (Executive Director, Mi’kmaq Confederacy of PEI), and Keith Martell (former CEO, First Nations Bank)
Moderator: Harvey McCue (Waubageshig), a consultant specializing in Indigenous issues
Coffee Break: 11:15 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Boxed Lunch: 12:00 – 1:00 p.m.
Panel Discussion: 1:00 – 2:30 p.m. – Memorial Hall
Shared Narratives in a Fractured Time
Panelists: Jesse Wente (journalist, board chair of Canada Council), Tanya Talaga (writer, journalist), and Naheed Nenshi (political commentator, former mayor of Calgary)
Moderator: Devyani Saltzman (Canadian writer, curator and arts leader)
Closing Remarks: 2:30 – 3:00 p.m. – Memorial Hall
Closing Reception: 3:00 – 5:00 p.m. – Memorial Hall
Prior to the Charlottetown Forum, Confederation Centre of the Arts will present the Honourable Michael Ignatieff, PC, CM, with the Symons Medal on November 8, 2023. Held annually, The Symons Medal Presentation and Lecture on the State of Canadian Confederation provides a national platform for a distinguished Canadian to discuss the current state and future prospects of Confederation. Click here for more information about The Symons Medal Presentation and Lecture.
Newcomers, Immigration, and the Needs of a Rapidly Changing National Community
Thursday, November 9 | 1 – 3 p.m.
Canada consistently ranks as one of the most desirable destinations of immigrants and refugees from around the world, and our federal immigration policy includes 500,000 newcomers arriving by 2025. This rapid shift in immigration creates swift demographic change, opportunity, and increased diversity, but newcomers face challenges like lack of housing and affordability. This panels dives into Canada’s immigration systems, the challenges faced by newcomers, and what belonging and integration looks like in a rapidly changing nation.
Speakers
Moderator
Economic Reconciliation
Friday, November 10 | 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Eight years after the 2015 final report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, the continued economic disparity between Indigenous and non-Indigenous prosperity continues to persist. Economic reconciliation refers to the economic redress of historical injustices to Indigenous peoples, and this panel will discuss the growing field focused on increasing intergenerational wealth creation and prosperity in Indigenous communities.
Speakers
Moderator
Shared National Narratives in a Fractured Time
Friday, November 10 | 1 – 3 p.m.
In a quickly changing global landscape, including rising populism, the war in Ukraine, and a domestic landscape seeking recovery post-pandemic, Canada is negotiating its own story both at home and on the world stage. What is our collective identity, if any, and whose stories do we tell? In a moment of changing dominant narratives, new policies that legislate Canadian content, rebranding as a clean energy leader, and shifting foreign policy, we delve into our national narratives and what they may look like going forward.
Speakers
Moderator
Devyani Saltzman, senior curatorial advisor
The inaugural Charlottetown Forum is presented and curated by Confederation Centre of the Arts, in collaboration with senior curatorial advisor Devyani Saltzman, a Canadian writer, curator, and arts leader in-depth experience in multidisciplinary programming at the intersection between art, ideas, and social change. Read more…