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Lucille was born and raised in Chéticamp, a beautiful Acadian village in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. She has been involved in tourism services and community development for many years. Most recently, she managed a lodging business in her community. Lucille is passionate about her Acadian roots and her beautiful community.
"I am very happy and proud to be the newest member of the Economic Development, Employability and Innovation team. I look forward to bringing my many years of experience in community and economic development to the CDÉNÉ so that, with our partners, we can bring strong and sustainable economic growth to the Acadian region of Chéticamp.”

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Halifax, March 17, 2020 – Due to coronavirus disease (COVID-19), the Conseil de développement économique de la Nouvelle-Écosse (CDÉNÉ) is deferring activities that involve face-to-face meetings between its employees and the public in its offices, classrooms or any other location, until they are deemed appropriate again. This decision follows, among other things, the recommendation of the Government of Nova Scotia to avoid direct contact with others (staying at least two metres or six feet away from each other) in order to do our part in minimizing the spread of the virus. All of the government's recommendations can be found here: https://novascotia.ca/coronavirus/#protect
The CDÉNÉ is following Public Health updates closely and will keep you informed of any developments concerning the reinstatement of its meetings and group activities.
The entire CDÉNÉ team can be reached by email and telephone.
For all general questions, you can send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Allison grew up in Belleville and Pubnico, two small Acadian communities in Southwestern Nova Scotia. Allison has been very involved in the Francophone and Acadian community and has built a strong relationship with its members following her extensive tourism and social media marketing experience. In May 2017, she graduated from Acadia University with her Bachelor’s degree in Sociology. Professionally, she has worked in the tourism industry, event planning, and customer service.
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Gwen LeBlanc is from Wedgeport, Nova Scotia and a graduate of Université Sainte-Anne. She started at CDÉNÉ in 2009, as a Community Economic Development Officer representing the Argyle region.
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The VisitezNE.ca website, developed by the CDÉNÉ, offers tourist tours, news and a calendar of events in the Acadian and Francophone regions of Nova Scotia.
Available in French and English.
Visitez Nouvelle-Écosse
VisitezNE.ca allows visitors to plan their trip by choosing the place of departure, Amherst, Digby, Halifax, Sydney or Yarmouth and the duration of their trip in our beautiful province. We offer tours from 3 to 14 days which include detailed itineraries day by day. A description of each region visited is included and presents the tourist attractions according to the traveller's interests.
The itineraries have been developed to promote and extend stays in the Acadian regions. We encourage travellers to stay overnight in our regions. The tours invite tourists to visit the icons and sites that have accompanied Acadians over the decades. For example, and without hesitation, the national site of Grand Pré, and the Fortress of Louisbourg. The city of Halifax and many other must-see places are also designated as landmarks not to be missed.
Each tour is presented as a day-by-day itinerary with a variety of attractions to suit the traveller's interests. This interactive website will allow the user to see the suggested routes with lots of information about the regions and sites to visit.
VisitezNE.ca also promotes events that take place in our regions. The news section offers texts that will provide more information to our visitors. We include photos, links to videos and websites of regional tourism associations. We also include our Chemin de l'Acadie passport for those who are passionate about the game of Geocaching.
According to the Ivany Commission's 2014 report "How to Build the Provincial Economy", the tourism industry was expected to provide our province's economy with $4 billion in revenues by 2024. By the end of 2018, we were late in achieving this goal. However, we are hopeful that with the new promotional tool visitezne.ca, the Acadian and Francophone market will help to achieve the proposed result for 2024.
The Acadians of Nova Scotia are very proud of their heritage. They like to share and teach visitors their customs and how they live in French on a daily basis. They want travellers to visit more than one region. Indeed, Acadians are unique from one region to another, and from one community to another...
Visitez Nouvelle-Écosse
The itineraries have been developed to promote and extend stays in the Acadian regions. We encourage travellers to stay overnight in our regions. The tours invite tourists to visit the icons and sites that have accompanied Acadians over the decades. For example, and without hesitation, the national site of Grand Pré, and the Fortress of Louisbourg. The city of Halifax and many other must-see places are also designated as landmarks not to be missed.
Each tour is presented as a day-by-day itinerary with a variety of attractions to suit the traveller's interests. This interactive website will allow the user to see the suggested routes with lots of information about the regions and sites to visit.
VisitezNE.ca also promotes events that take place in our regions. The news section offers texts that will provide more information to our visitors. We include photos, links to videos and websites of regional tourism associations. We also include our Chemin de l'Acadie passport for those who are passionate about the game of Geocaching.
According to the Ivany Commission's 2014 report "How to Build the Provincial Economy", the tourism industry was expected to provide our province's economy with $4 billion in revenues by 2024. By the end of 2018, we were late in achieving this goal. However, we are hopeful that with the new promotional tool visitezne.ca, the Acadian and Francophone market will help to achieve the proposed result for 2024.
The Acadians of Nova Scotia are very proud of their heritage. They like to share and teach visitors their customs and how they live in French on a daily basis. They want travellers to visit more than one region. Indeed, Acadians are unique from one region to another, and from one community to another...
Visitez Nouvelle-Écosse
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Originally from France, Michèle studied in Aix en Provence, Strasbourg and Toronto. She has a strong professional experience in economic immigration and employability. She began working in these fields in 2006 in Toronto with organizations such as the French Consulate in Toronto, RDÉE Ontario (now the Société Économique de l'Ontario) and Dalhousie University in Halifax.
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Allister Surette, Chair of the board of directors of CDÉNÉ, President of Université Sainte-Anne, delivered the opening welcoming remarks by introducing the special guests.
The CDÉNÉ is pleased to have the Honourable Lena Metlege Diab, Minister of Acadian Affairs and Francophonie, Minister of Immigration of Nova Scotia and Mark Bannerman, Executive Director of Acadian Affairs and Francophonie, back in attendance. Simon d'Entremont, Deputy Minister of Seniors, Deputy Minister of Energy, was also in attendance. Many Wardens, Deputy Wardens, Municipal Councillors and CAOs were present: Ronnie LeBlanc, Warden of the Municipality of Clare and Deputy warden of the CDÉNÉ, Jacques Dubé, Chief Administrative Officer of the Halifax Regional Municipality, Danny Muise, Warden of the Municipality of Argyle, Nil Doucet, Deputy Warden of the Municipality of Clare, Alfred Poirier, Deputy Warden of Inverness County, to name a few.
Minister Lena Diab thanked the CDÉNÉ for this important initiative and networking opportunity for elected members and staff from Francophone municipalities.
Once again this year, the CDÉNÉ would like to thank Michelle Saulnier, Coordinator of French Language Services for Municipal Affairs, for her presence and support.

Julie Oliver, Executive Director of the CDÉNÉ, the Honourable Lena Metlege Diab, Minister of Immigration, Minister of Acadian Affairs and Francophonie, Allister Surette, President of Université Sainte-Anne and Chair of the board of directors of the CDÉNÉ
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Halifax, September 17, 2019 – The Economic Summit highlighting the 20th anniversary of the Conseil de développement économique de la Nouvelle-Écosse (CDÉNÉ) was held in Halifax on September 11, 2019. The official opening began with welcoming remarks from Allister Surette, Chair of the CDÉNÉ, and Julie Oliver, Executive Director of the CDÉNÉ.
The Mayor of the Halifax Regional Municipality, Mike Savage, then gave his welcoming address recalling the positive impact that the CDÉNÉ has had in Halifax and Nova Scotia.

Mike Savage, Julie Oliver and Allister Surette
The Mayor of the Halifax Regional Municipality, Mike Savage, then gave his welcoming address recalling the positive impact that the CDÉNÉ has had in Halifax and Nova Scotia.

Mike Savage, Julie Oliver and Allister Surette
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Born in Senegal, Issam studied at the University of the Sahel (Dakar, Senegal) where he obtained a degree in Economics and Management. He then continued his studies at Université Sainte-Anne where he obtained a Bachelor of Business Administration (B.A.A.). Professionally, his combined management, economic and community experience will be an asset to his position as a project development officer.
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Born in Nouakchott, Mauritania, Diariata studied in Grenoble, France, at Pierre Mendes France University. She obtained two Masters degrees: the first in Territorial Development Project Management and the second in International Economics and Globalization.
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Originally from Edmundston, New Brunswick, Daniel studied at the Université de Moncton before venturing into the labour market in New Brunswick and Western Canada. His experience in the fields of management, accounting and project supervision will be an asset for his new position. His work experience has also led him to develop a passion for financial management, project development, and strategic partnerships.