The Brian Mulroney Institute of Government’s Sober Second Thinkers Speakers Series Presents
Preserving Identity: Challenges and Resilience of Chéticamp’s Acadian Community
The Honourable Réjean Aucoin
Wednesday, March 19, 2025
7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Mulroney Hall 2030
The Mulroney Institute welcomes The Honourable Réjean Aucoin as part of the Sober Second Thinkers Speakers Series. Senator Aucoin practiced law for more than 30 years and is a recognized leader in the Acadian community of Chéticamp and in the province of Nova Scotia. He was appointed to the Senate of Canada in October 2023. Senator Aucoin will be speaking on the challenges Chéticamp’s French minority community is facing, language retention and erosion, access to French-language services, cultural preservation, and the Court challenges in obtaining a protected electoral district. He will also talk about his role in the Senate of Canada and his efforts toward protecting the Acadian minority in the province.
All are welcome.
The Honourable Réjean Aucoin
The Honourable Réjean Aucoin practised law for more than 30 years and is a recognized leader in the Acadian community of Chéticamp and in the province of Nova Scotia. Prior to practising law, he worked as a journalist, radio producer, writer, and community development officer. From 2004 to 2007, he also served as a part-time board member of the Parole Board of Canada.
Sober Second Thinkers Speakers Series
As part of its mandate to initiate conversations around key policy concerns, the Brian Mulroney Institute of Government has launched the Sober Second Thinkers Speakers Series. In this speakers series, the Mulroney Institute invites sitting and retired Senators to give their reflections on their time in the Senate and to talk about the importance of sober second thought in an era of increased partisanship and divisions.
Over the course of one-to-two days at the university, visiting Senators will present a public lecture and engage with students. The series aims to involve students as well as the StFX campus and community at large, sharing Senators’ knowledge and insights as participant-observers in one of the nation’s central government institutions.
Biography: The Honourable Réjean Aucoin
Senator Aucoin’s character-defining enthusiasm and convictions concerning the French-speaking Acadian community led him to establish the Association des juristes d’expression française de la Nouvelle- Écosse. He is also the founder and president of the Conseil économique de Chéticamp. Both organizations have fostered the development and vitality of the region’s Acadian community. Senator Aucoin has also served as vice-president of the Fédération des associations de juristes d’expression française de common law inc, vice-president of the Société nationale de l’Acadie, vice-president of the Fédération acadienne de la Nouvelle-Écosse, vice-president of the Community Radio Fund of Canada, and president of the Alliance des radios communautaires du Canada. Senator Aucoin has also published several books. He is the recipient of the Prix France-Acadie for the children’s book Le tapis du Grand Pré, which was made into a movie and won the Prix d’excellence at the Festival du film de l’Atlantique in 1986.
His work and his community engagement have won him numerous distinctions, including the 2017 Lawyer’s Award of the Association des juristes d’expression française de la Nouvelle-Écosse, the Community Development Award from the Nova Scotia Branch of the Canadian Bar Association, and the Community Partner Award of the Alliance des radios communautaires du Canada. He was also named Volunteer of the Year by the Société Saint-Pierre de Chéticamp and received the Léger Comeau Certificate of Merit from the Fédération acadienne de la Nouvelle-Écosse.
Senator Aucoin was appointed King’s Counsel in 2014. He holds a Bachelor of Social Work and a Bachelor of Laws from the Université de Moncton. Senator Aucoin lives in Chéticamp with his wife; he has two daughters and one grandchild. He enjoys reading, sports, cross-country skiing, and travelling.
Credit for photos: Senate of Canada