A WORD FROM the chair

          La Mer Rouge region, made up of Southeastern New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island, is delighted to be hosting the next Congrès mondial acadien on August 10 to 24, 2019.

          The objective of the Congrès mondial acadien is to reinforce the strong ties that unite our communities and to pay further witness to modern, genuine Acadian identity. This sixth Congrès will be an opportunity for our regions to prove that we are attached to Acadian culture yet open to the world.

          This event will be another chance to showcase the whole Acadian community and allow the Acadian people around the world to express their pride. We have great ambitions for this CMA and we are eager to welcome you to our home.

Claudette Thériault

Chair of the CMA 2019 Organizing Committee (COCMA2019)

La Mer Rouge, the arm of the see along which our ancestral villages were located, is the former name of the Northumberland Strait separating Southeastern New Brunswick from Prince Edward Island. Acadians on both shores used this lovely name to describe the colour the water takes on when it is stirred up. Even in the early 1960s some “old-timers” still knew this name for the region.

La Mer Rouge was known and used by Acadians, French and English alike until around the 1780s. Even today, around Trois-Ruisseaux and Petit-Cap, after a summer storm La Mer Rouge is a very appropriate name.

With CMA 2019, we want to restore La Mer Rouge as a geographical name that creates a tangible link between Southeastern New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island.

The connection is even easier because of the Confederation Bridge, which provides many opportunities to get together.