Our Featured Celebration

 

Whether thick-cut, shoestring, crinkle, curly, waffle-cut, wedge, bagged or boxed, the humble French Fry occupies a unique niche in our gastronomic landscape, from the terse austerity of the British “Chip” to the gallic exuberance of Québec’s poutine. Inspired by Quentin Tarantino, the Consilium Research Bureau has prepared the following table of international and regional garnishes for the Fry to save our readers from embarrassing themselves by asking for Ketchup when they should be asking for…well, mussels, for instance, in Brussels.

WHAT'S HAPPENING AT CONSILIUM, AARLUK and ARDOS... In this corner of our site we'll be posting notes on new people, new projects, and new online materials you may find interesting. Enjoy, and come back often.

NEW PROJECTS      

 

Aarluk Consulting will soon begin working with the Hamlet of Whale Cove to prepare a five year Community Economic Development Plan. The project team includes Chris Grosset, Fred Weihs, Johnny Ningeongan and Christian Cloutier.

Chuck Gilhuly and James Arreak will be co-facilitating a three day planning retreat for Nunavut’s Department of Health in late July.

 

Terry Rudden is delighted to be working once again with his old friends and associates at the Inuit Broadcasting Corporation on a training plan for the crew of the award winning Takuginai, Canada’s first-ever Aboriginal-produced television series for children. (Shown right, one of Terry’s former colleagues at Takuginai).

 

 

ONGOING PROJECTS

 

 

Chris Grosset travelled to Clyde River in early June to present the draft strategy for the Clyde River Territorial Park Cultural Resource Inventory. The spring weather in Clyde was spectacular and drew many residents out to their fishing camps. Much to the surprise of Chris and local project coordinator Gary Aipellie, nearly 40 people turned out to the public meeting. As you can see, residents enjoyed reviewing copies of their maps, which document cultural resources located in the proposed park. The local Steering Committee provided input on the draft strategy to move it closer to completion.

 

 

Aarluk’s partners, associates and staff members Terry Forth, James Arreak and Chris Grosset, with Phoebe Hainnu, met with Lizanne Roziere Penner of Winnipeg based Meyers-Norris-Penney in Iqaluit recently. This was to kick off the multi-year evaluation of the Territorial Health Fund Access Funds and Operating Secretariat Fund (the name is almost as long as the planned evaluation!). Aarluk’s participation in the evaluation is being managed by Greg Smith.

Greg Smith, a team of ARDOS facilitators (Ian Kenney, Valerie Assinewe, Jennifer David, Ron Ryan) and editor Terry Rudden are preparing their report on a series of cross country workshops for Environment Canada staff. The workshops were on the theme of Aboriginal Analysis and Consultations.

 

 

Ian Kenney and Chris Cloutier, nos Consiliumites francophones, travelled to la Belle Province for a successful Québec Workforce Connex Forum held in Val-d’Or at the end of May. Organized with the Aboriginal Human Resources Development Council of Canada (AHRDCC), the forum is one of a series of national events designe to link the Aboriginal workforce and the labour market.

 

 

The long distance marathon that is the Formative Evaluation of the Aboriginal Human Resource Development Agreements (AHRDAs) is entering its closing phases. Greg Smith and a large team of ARDOS researchers are preparing fourteen case study reports, which have now been drafted and are being reviewed by the AHRDAs concerned and the client, HRSDC. The project began in May 2006 and will be completed in August 2007.

 

Patti Black worked with the Land Claims Agreements Coalition on June 28 and 29th on the next step in the process of developing a national land claims implementation policy. The Coalition represents all 21 of Canada's comprehensive claim organizations and governments. Watch for tentative dates and details on the next national land claims conference in newsletters to come.

HAPPY ENDINGS

James Arreak battled weather and flight schedules to deliver a one week course to six Inuit employees of Biogenie, the engineering firm currently managing the cleanup of the CAM-F DEW Line site. The course, an original Aarluk program prepared by Terry Rudden, Doreen Watson-Donald and James, introduces Inuit staff to the principles of supervision as a first step in preparing promising employees for management positions.

The initial findings from the Energy Consultations on “A Discussion Paper for Ikummatiit” was recently submitted to the Government of Nunavut’s Energy Secretariat and discussed by MLAs at their most recent session in early June. This was a joint project between Aarluk and EnviroVest Energy Ventures Inc. and Aarluk Consulting. Helen Klengenberg, James Arreak and Terry Forth made up the Aarluk team, working with Rick McKenzie from EnviroVest. Special consultation sessions with representatives from various energy-using groups were held in April and May in Qikiqtarjuak, Rankin Inlet, Cambridge Bay and Iqaluit, based on a discussion paper tabled in the Nunavut Legislative Assembly by Energy Minister Ed Picco in March. This paper and some of the preliminary findings from the consultations were discussed by MLAs meeting in Committee in early June. Feedback from the participants of the four consultation sessions will provide input to the Government of Nunavut’s evolving Energy Strategy.

 

 

Not for nothing do those in the know refer to Ron Ryan as the Pharoah of Phacilitation (shown here with his trusty sidekick, Phlipchart). In late May Ron facilitated a strategic planning session for the Eeyou Economic Group, the Community Futures organization servicing the nine Cree communities on the Quebec side of James Bay, followed immediately by a quick whip up to Iqaluit for a strategic planning session of the Baffin Chamber of Commerce. (Look forward to a major BCC-organized trade show in conjunction, with the Labrador Chamber of Commerce, to be held in Ottawa at the same time as Winterlude 2008.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You just can’t keep a good man out of the newsletter. Many happy returns to our most recent addition, Chuck Gilhuly. AND, celebrating her natal feast just ONE SHORT DAY before International Day of the French Fry…Patti Black!

 

 

   GOSSIP

 

 

 

As part of the research for our lead article this month, Greg Smith enjoys fish and chips from his favourite shop in Herne Bay (Auckland) New Zealand, where he lived in the 1970’s and visited with wife Marianne in 2005. He reports that the chips are as good as ever, although through some strange alchemy they seem to show a little more around the waist than thirty years ago.

 

 

 

 

 

                           

                           

On July 13th (International French Fry Day, remember?), Aarluk will again be fielding a team at the Second Annual Habitat for Humanity Iqaluit - Golf Tournament, to be held (not surprisingly) in Gatineau (given the fact that there is no ice to play on in Iqaluit in July). The fearsome foursome this year will be led by Captain Ron Ryan and supported by stalwarts – Chris Grosset, Chuck Gilhuly and Terry Forth (not actually as pictured above). Aarluk is proud to once again be supporters of this event as sponsors of the 16th hole!

 

From our “My Brush With Greatness” series: Ryan Lotan, shown here breathless and starstruck in the presence of mega celebrity and broadcast deity Mike Duffy. And let’s face it, who wouldn’t be? This historic encounter occurred at Game #4 of the Stanley Cup final, where Ryan was cheering on the Senators while secretly, in his heart of hearts, hoping for a Ducks Victory. (Yes, it’s ALL HIS FAULT.) Ryan’s school friend, Almonte Alumnus and Ducks defenseman Kent Huskins plays defence for the Ducks, which means, according to tradition, he will be bringing the Cup to Almonte for a visit.

Terry and Valerie spent a weekend in Atlanta, Georgia, prior to a presentation by Valerie to the international Drug Information Association. Among the attractions they visited were the excellent Civil Rights Museum, the amazing Georgia Aquarium, and the World of Coca Cola Museum, where they learned (a) that people will actually pay to gain admission to a place whose purpose is to sell them stuff, and (b) that Italy’s leading, top-selling Coke product, “Beverly”, tastes an awful lot like a handful of Aspirin mixed with vinegar and fizzy water.

 

Researcher Chris Cloutier (aka The Clootch, aka Nibbler – don’t ask) wants you all to know that his two slo-pitch teams, The Brass Monkeyz (Red and Gold editions), are doing well in their respective divisions. Fans whose taste in t-shirts leans toward the lurid anthropomorphic rococo may purchase support the Clootch and his confreres by purchasing an official Brass Monkeyz t-shirt, sure to be a collector’s item wherever evil-looking monkey memorabilia are sold.

 

THIRTY YEARS AGO LAST MONTH....

We invited you to identify the Consilium shareholder pictured left in an earlier reincarnation. Ryan Lotan thought it was Helen Klengenberg. Helen Klengenberg thought it was Mary Wilman. No word on who Mary Wilman thought it was.

The first of several correct responses came from Peggy R., a faithful reader in Calgary, who wrote: “That beautiful slim young girl is my one of my bestest friends, Ms. Valerie Assinewe!”
Bingo.

 

 

 

 

 

THIRTY YEARS AGO THIS MONTH…

 

The year was 1977. Pierre Trudeau was Prime Minister, Jimmy Carter was President, “Roots” was the talk of network TV, “Star Wars Episode IV: A New Beginning” had just been released as plain old “Star Wars”, and “Never Mind the Bollocks: Here’s The Sex Pistols” was unleashed. This Consilium-staffer-to-be appears curiously unruffled by all that. Guesses?

 

 

   CHECK BACK EVERY MONTH FOR MORE CONSILIUM NEWS, TOOLS, AND GOSSIP.