Making a Sustainable Mark
on the World
Université Laval takes action
Bureau international
Table of
Contents
3
................................................... Éric Dewailly...........................................................p.4
........................................... Faculty of Nursing...........................................................p.6
.................................................... Michel Alary...........................................................p.8
......................................... Faculty of Medicine...................................................... p.10
A Word from the Director of the
Bureau
international
A Word from the Director of the Bureau international
.................................................Richard Poulin...........................................................p.
A Scientific Circus Comes to the Caribbean
Satisfying More than a Thirst for Adventure
Combating AIDS – A Fight to the Finish
Going Places
Distance Diplomas Open up Myriad Opportunities
12
.......................................... Jacques Desautels...................................................... p.14
.............................................Around the World...................................................... p.16
.............................................The PEP network...................................................... p.20
....................Department of Computer Science
............................... and Software Engineering...................................................... p.
Over the last several years, Université Laval has successfully
met the challenge of the internationalization of education.
Indeed, in little over ten years’ time, the proportion of our graduates who have completed a period of study abroad has risen
from less than 1% to more than 13%. Université Laval’s Bureau
international has been a driving force behind the strategy aimed
at making Laval into a university that is open to the world.
International co-operation at Université Laval has always been
stimulated by the dedication of its members throughout its
various faculties. Since 2007, the Bureau international
expanded its areas of activity to include the field of international co-­operation, providing networking, funding search assistance
and consulting services. Whether this co-operation concerns
scientific activity or development, it contributes to the notoriety
of our university and provides a basis for sharing with
developing countries the best that we have to offer – namely,
our knowledge.
Tight-knit Relations with Libreville
Université Laval
Poverty Zero
Training Global Citizens to Make the Transition
from Words to Deeds
22
............................. Groupe Habitats et cultures...................................................... p.24
.....................................................Alain Olivier...................................................... p.26
................................................ Damase Khasa...................................................... p.28
....................................................................... ...................................................... p.30
....................................................................... ....................................................... p. 31
.............................Managers Without Frontiers...................................................... p.
Université Laval is proud to present its accomplishments in the
area of international co-operation, which constitutes a major
component of our presence abroad. We also wish to make a
point of highlighting the efforts of our researchers and employees, which work to the benefit of the partners receiving our
expertise. All such initiatives testify to an approach to sustainable development whose scope extends beyond the borders of
our region and our country.
Université Laval wishes to thank its financial supporters, in particular the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA),
the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), the
Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID), the
multilateral development banks and all the other institutional
partners for the backing they have provided to our work among
partner institutions. We also thank all the private donors who
have enabled us to pursue a number of our activities, particularly our training projects in international co-operation. We are
thus able to train a new generation
of co-operants having all the
knowledge necessary to working
effectively in emerging countries.
I am pleased to present to you this
publication describing the achievements of eleven international
co-operation projects in which
Université Laval played an active
role. While it does not provide an
exhaustive profile of the work of
Université Laval employees in developing countries, it does offer an
accurate overview of activities that
I hope will stimulate your curiosity.
Building a Sustainable World
Promoting the Welfare of Malian Peasants
From Brazil to Madagascar by Way of the Congo
The Bureau international
Richard Poulin
Credits
Maison Eugène-Roberge, Bureau international de l’Université Laval.
tory facilities to speak of and very little in the way of technologies. It’s only logical to want to give these populations an assist
by providing them with training (if you’re going to put your
money where your mouth is), and it’s also an ideal opportunity
to reflect on new ways of doing things,” asserts Éric Dewailly.
For example, in keeping with the financial capacity of governments, the researchers try to design simple pieces of
equipment and to develop methods which, though based on
sophisticated technologies, are easy to use and require a
minimum of maintenance.
North-South
Benefits
Éric Dewailly
A Scientific Circus Comes to the
Caribbean
Planted in the middle of the island
of Grenada is a gleaming white
circus tent, atop of which the
Université Laval flag can be seen
flying. There, however, tightrope
walkers and jugglers have been
supplanted by a troupe of researchers whose special area of study is
food- and water-borne illnesses.
Launched only a few months ago
with funding from the International
Development Research Centre, the
Caribbean Eco-Health Program will
enjoy a run of four years. Its director, Éric Dewailly, a professor and
physician both, speaks effusively of
his scientific circus.
“This program concerns the interactions between public health,
environmental health, and food- and water-borne diseases. The
project comprises three dimensions: training, research and
knowledge transfer. Researchers and students from Université
Laval, along with students from three Caribbean universities,
are involved in the program. In addition, each research project
is nested within partnerships with the local government. It’s one
way of ensuring that knowledge transfer is integrated into public policymaking.”
Water comes in for
close scrutiny
The team of scientists has focused its research on several
specific topics, including the phenomenon of food- and waterrelated gastroenteritises, the use of pesticides having an
impact on human health, and the use of untreated rainwater for
drinking water. To aid them in their research is the Atlantis
Mobile Laboratory for environmental health assessment, which
is owned by Université Laval and funded by the Canada
Foundation for Innovation. Under the tent, the researchers conduct experiments in microbiology, chemistry and toxicology
using standardized procedures, thus ensuring the reliability of
results. As such, this big top from the North is a beacon of hope
for island-dwellers in the South.
“The Caribbean countries are our neighbours somewhat. They
are small nations that have no university research and labora-
The real originality of the Caribbean Eco-Health Program consists in training cohorts of local researchers who will stay in
their country and contribute to its progress. As Professor
Dewailly explains it, “We are not attempting to export brainpower – quite to the contrary. We don’t go collecting samples in
the South for analysis in our laboratories in the North. Everything we do, we do on location. We don’t go about our business
like imperialists. Local communities take ownership of the
results. ”
He adds, “In four years’ time, the program will have graduated
upwards of 20 Quebec master’s or doctoral students who have
completed field work in the Caribbean. Most importantly, however, it will have provided training to upwards of 30 students
and 20-odd technicians hailing from the Caribbean, in addition
to civil servants.”
• Project title: Caribbean Eco-Health Program: Public
and Environmental Health Interactions
in Food- and Water-borne Illnesses.
• Sectors of activity: social and preventive medicine,
and public health.
• Countries of activity: Grenada, Saint Lucia, Trinidad
and Tobago, Guyana and Surinam.
• Main financial partner: International Development
Research Centre (IDRC).
• Period of activity: 2007-2010.
• Funding: $650,000.
• Particularity: use of a mobile laboratory for the analysis
of environmental factors having an impact on health.
In short, this program does not just exist on paper but has been
translated into practice. The travelling laboratory gives a tangible form to the research being performed. And, after only a
few weeks’ time, local researchers are running the program.
For Professor Dewailly, North-South co-operation is vital to the
success of research. “What value do our technology and our
methods have without the knowledge of the local community?
By providing us with ongoing monitoring, the locals help us to
detect new problems as they arise.”
In a few months’ time, the scientific circus
will be packing up and moving on – to
Dominica, Barbados and Guyana. The stops
will last six to eight months, the time required to train public health actors and to
generate research hypotheses. And, for the
duration of each stay, the Université Laval
flag will be seen flying over the mobile
laboratory.
work context in which the role of health professionals is
different. The participants learn to adapt the care offered by
taking into account patients’ beliefs, working with the available
technology, and using creativity to design health promotion
and prevention programs. There’s more to it than just field
observation.”
In India, for example, students set up the dispensary of a music
school attended by disadvantaged children. There they developed care protocols that factored for traditional approaches,
integrating medicinal plants in particular.
Adventure
“I laid the groundwork for my experience during the year preceding my departure. In addition to taking preparatory classes,
I read up on malaria, which was widespread in the village I was
travelling to. As a result, I was sufficiently informed to be able to
act more effectively once I was on location. Nevertheless, you’re
never completely prepared to experience a cultural shock of
that order. Fortunately, we were given quality supervision on
location,” Catherine allowed.
Furthermore, the future of the work term program lies in offering interdisciplinary international experiences. In Ms. Lazure’s
view, further efforts should be dedicated to promoting these
initiatives, which, for example, bring together students in nursing, medicine and dentistry around common objectives.
• International and Intercultural Semester program:
The program enables more than 30 students to do
work terms in developing countries.
• Countries of activity: China, Senegal, India, Mali, Ghana,
Cameroon and Burkina Faso.
• Goal: contribute to the education of nurses aware
of major social challenges through their participation
in work terms in health settings different from those
of Quebec. These work terms are also designed
to incorporate a new sociocultural dimension into
the care given to patients.
This year, 33 nursing students will be participating in an international education program in conjunction with Université
Laval’s partners in China, India, Senegal, Mali, Ghana,
Cameroon and Burkina Faso. Since training is the focus of
these work terms, students are thus provided supervision by
health professionals from the host country. Prior to their departure, they acquire knowledge pertaining to all the sociocultural
dimensions shaping the kind of care provided to patients.
Ultimately, these international work terms are designed to educate citizens having both an awareness of the major challenges
confronting a globalized world as well as a capacity for critical
thinking.
For her part, Catherine came back from Mali – only to
depart again, to Nepal this time. She notes that beyond
satisfying her thirst for adventure, she has come away
from her overseas experiences a richer, fuller person.
“When you provide care, you have to show empathy for
the other person, know how to put yourself in their position in order to better understand their situation and
adapt care accordingly. Travelling enables you to get to
know yourself and your own culture. By the same token,
you understand your own people better. So many things I
was unaware of before I did my work term in Mali!”
The view from the
field
Photo: Catherine Breton.
For Catherine Breton, a nursing student who made a 10-week stay in
Mali, the outstanding lessons of her
experience make for a rather long
list: adapting, being ready for any
eventuality, keeping one’s mind
open, accepting difference, and
more. The Université Laval undergraduate took part in the Bureau
international’s student mobility program known as the International
and Intercultural Semester program
(stage international et interculturel),
designed to allow students to
experience the developing world.
Ms. Lazure stresses the need to educate culturally competent
professionals who are able not only to respond to the needs
of an increasingly multiethnic clientele but also to work in harmony with colleagues hailing from a range of cultural backgrounds.
Photo: Catherine Breton.
Satisfying More than a Thirst for
Photo: Catherine Breton.
Faculty of Nursing
How to describe the main benefits of these training programs?
Ms. Lazure is firmly convinced that students come home
thoroughly transformed: “Our program participants are confronted with very different health situations, thus prompting
them to reflect on their role and commitment as nurses. Once back
home, they become more fully engaged in their community.”
“The International and Intercultural Semester program represents a strategy of prime value,” notes Ginette Lazure, program
supervisor. “It constitutes an extended encounter in a particular
A lunch of rice in peanut sauce enjoyed in the company of the dispensary
physician.
Michel Alary
Combating AIDS — A Fight to the
Finish
In the early 1980s, Michel Alary, at the time a general practitioner, was placed in charge of monitoring infectious diseases
by the Beauceville (Quebec)’s community health department.
That was when he noticed that sexually transmitted infections
(STIs) were the most frequent type of notifiable diseases. The
discovery prompted him to go back to school and complete
both a master’s and a doctorate in epidemiology. A short time
afterwards, he headed for West Africa, whose emerging nations
were now becoming engulfed in the AIDS epidemic.
“I work on projects that can make a difference, that amount to
more than shuffling papers. Something happens in the field.
The operations yield results having a major impact,” explains
Professor Alary. “On a global scale, the Indian project is, at this
time, considered to be one of the most promising on account of
its scope. It covers the four States where HIV is most present
– i.e., in States numbering some 300 million inhabitants and
that are home to hundreds of thousands of female sex workers
who are seen almost every week. This exceedingly high coverage rate is a key factor in the success of this venture.”
Where to from
here?
While Michel Alary admits to being almost always on the run, he
is as resolute as ever to continue his fight against AIDS. He
wishes to this disease one day cease being the world’s number
one health problem – particularly in Africa, where HIV continues
to constitute one of the most serious public health threats.
“AIDS has a huge impact on development. It causes a considerable decrease in productivity as it takes a toll on the working
population. It attacks the health and education systems. How
will these countries be able to sustain their future development?
How will they be able to emerge from their current situation?”
• Sectors of activity: monitoring and evaluation
of HIV/AIDS epidemics in developing countries.
• Countries of activity: Benin and India.
• Main financial partners: Bill and Melinda Gates
Foundation, and also Canadian Institutes of Health
Research (CIHR).
• Goal: increasing the autonomy of Southern countries
in the field of HIV/AIDS research.
In his capacity as researcher, Michel Alary is confronted with
an array of challenges. Such as continually locating funding
with which to keep his research teams working, or training the
next generation of public health specialists, given that pursuing a university career in this field has become too risky.
Professor Alary also dreams of a research chair dedicated to
his field. It is his hope that the countries hit hardest by AIDS
become more autonomous, at least in intellectual terms. “Even
if they don’t have all the money required, if at least they have
the [human] resources… There has got to be a stop to the
brain drain from the emerging countries to the developed
countries,” he concludes.
Dr. Alary’s sentiments go hand in hand with the message of a
poster hanging on the wall behind him: Open Your Eyes; Don’t
Turn Your Back on AIDS.
A combat on several
fronts
Dr. Alary’s main work in Africa unfolded in three phases. In
the early 1990s, the researcher worked in Benin, the Central
African Republic, Guinea and the Congo. Other countries were
subsequently added to the list. Doctor Alary focused his activities not only on the monitoring and evaluation of STIs but also
on patient management strategies. Numbering among his
accomplishments was the construction of a clinic for female
sex workers in Cotonou (Benin).
In 2006, funding for many anti-AIDS activities had become
harder to come by. Nevertheless, Professor Alary carried
forward with his activities, namely: assessing the impact of
HIV/AIDS projects, training African students, building a specialized laboratory for STIs, implementing (elsewhere than in West
Africa) services for female sex workers, and so on.
Photo: Isaac Minani.
A ton of documents rises toward
the ceiling. A desk lies buried
beneath heaps of paper. Such is
the shambles that first greets the
visitor upon entering the office
Michel Alary, Professor at the
Université Laval Faculty of Medicine.
On the walls of his basement lair
at Québec City’s Saint-Sacrement
Hospital are posters from awareness campaigns and photos of a
lively, animated Africa that awaken
the urge to travel. Welcome to the
world of a researcher determined
to vanquish AIDS.
Photo: Marguerite Massinga Loembé.
At the same time, he joined forces with colleagues who were
carrying out a HIV/AIDS prevention project in the State of
Karnataka, India. It was in this context that the Bill and Melinda
Gates Foundation awarded him a grant of US $7.68 million
to evaluate the effectiveness of an AIDS prevention program
in India.
Field visit in the context of a population study of the prevalence of HIV and
sexually transmitted infections in the district of Bellary, Karnataka State,
India.
Faculty
of Medicine
Going
Places
Upon departing, they are curious,
eager for new experiences, keen
to discover that “elsewhere” that
is so different from home. Upon
returning, they have been literally
transformed for having pushed so
far past their initial limitations.
For Faculty of Medicine students
who do a work term abroad, they
can expect no less from their
experience. The following is a brief
account of their metamorphosis.
Marie-Hélène Dufour is a student in medicine, Amélie Descent
a student in physiotherapy. The former had gone on a 10-week
work term in Mali, while the other was getting ready for her
experience in a developing country. Ahead of their respective
departures, both became involved in the Fonds étudiant de la
Faculté de médecine pour la santé internationale, or FEMSI
(Faculty of medicine student fund for international health).
(stage international et interculturel) is also awarded a $2,000
scholarship from the Bureau international. This year, the funding target is in the neighbourhood of $170,000.
Observation and
Until now, FEMSI has awarded scholarships to close to 200
students taking part in the International and Intercultural
Semester program. As Amélie, the co-ordinator of the current
campaign, points out, “Not all of the students who share in
managing the fund necessarily do an internship. They simply
believe in the cause – nothing more, nothing less!” It is worth
mentioning that 5% of the moneys thus gathered are invested
in sustainable development.
What are intercultural internships like, exactly? In medicine,
the emphasis is on observation. Students may also take part
in awareness campaigns. In physiotherapy and occupational
therapy, however, internships are primarily centred on practical training. Whatever the case, the experience constitutes a
turning point in the lives of participants, as Marie-Hélène can
attest to:
Once the funds have been raised, the students leave it up to the
Faculty to award scholarships. It’s a way of avoiding conflicts of
interest. According to both students, FEMSI is driven by a number of noble values. Says Marie-Hélène: “It’s all a matter of
mutual aid, sharing and solidarity – solidarity between students,
to begin with, then between programs, and finally between
peoples. On top of that, it’s a matter of open-mindedness, a
quality that is required in one’s practice, considering the diversity of the clienteles seeking professional assistance.”
In Amélie’s view, the students who work together managing
FEMSI come away with solid experience in management and
communications. Alison Threatt, international and intercultural
studies advisor at the Faculty of Medicine, believes that FEMSI
not only prompts several students to commit strongly to international health but also helps to attract new students to the
Faculty.
practice
“In Mali, I worked in the emergency ward of a hospital located
in a region at a considerable distance from the capital. I
experienced something of a shock just making a first tour of the
premises. There were open areas where meals were prepared
right next to the patients. The standards of hygiene contrasted
strongly with our own. There, even the notion of emergency
takes on a different meaning. If you show up at the hospital
bleeding but without a penny to your name, you will not be
provided with any care. Supplies and medicines are paid by the
patients. That was when I realized how lucky we are here. Above
all, I strived to understand the Malian situation in its own terms.
I have come away from this experience with a number of values,
such as taking the time to listen to people. It’s a good way of
dispelling prejudices.”
Ms. Threatt confirms that internships not only forge critical
thinking but also help to educate health professionals who are
Spotlight on
FEMSI
Created in 2005 by four female medical students, including
Marie-Hélène, FEMSI was a groundbreaking initiative. The fund
is managed mostly by medical students, with the addition,
beginning last year, of physiotherapy and occupational therapy students. Its goals are to support the funding for international work terms of health science students and to promote
sustainable development by contributing to health-related
projects in partner countries.
How does FEMSI work? Each year, a funding target is established on the basis of the number of students wishing to take
part in a work term. The success of the campaign rests on the
search for partners and sponsors as well as on the staging of
several fundraising activities. For each dollar gathered, the
Faculty makes a matching dollar contribution to FEMSI, up to a
total of $60,000. Each participant in the student mobility program known as the International and Intercultural Semester
• Mission of FEMSI: to support the funding for health
science students’ international work terms and, in
addition, promote sustainable development by contributing
to health-related projects in partner countries.
• Annual budget of FEMSI: $170,000.
• Number of scholarship recipients since 2005:
approximately 200.
• Type of work terms: observation, awareness
and practical training.
• Goal: to train health professionals who are more
fully engaged in their communities.
more deeply involved in their community. “In medicine, a new
work term was recently launched in Quebec among refugee
and marginalized populations. Close to a third of the students
who enrolled in the program had previously done an international internship. All of which goes to show the degree of
commitment shown by these students following this experience.”
For her part, Amélie will soon be departing. She claims she is
ready to throw into question her values and her cozy lifestyle.
She demonstrates the desire to grow and mature through this
internship experience. You can be sure there’s a metamorphosis in her future.
For Université Laval, the benefits of this project have been sizeable too. “To begin with, we developed the materials, expertise
and technical know-how required for distance teaching. That is
what now allows us to make this fund of knowledge and experience available here in Quebec and abroad. Internationally, for
example, we are aiming to sign off on the same type of partnerships with institutions of higher learning and thus export our
diplomas. We are also hoping to host the graduates from these
programs at some point,” explained Guy Mineau.
Distance Diplomas Open up Myriad
Opportunities
• Financial partners: the Canadian International
Development Agency (CIDA) and the Association
of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC).
• Goal: the Université Laval computer science program
in French-speaking Africa is designed to contribute to the
economic development of French-speaking West Africa
by building these countries’ capacities in respect
of information and communications technologies.
• Results: By 2009, more than 220 African students will
have obtained either the bachelor’s degree or a certificate
in computer science from Université Laval.
It all began after the turn of the millennium. The Government of
Canada had donated $12 million to the nations of Frenchspeaking Africa with the objective of structuring postsecondary
education in French. The project, funded by the Canadian
International Development Agency and managed under a partnership with the Association of Universities and Colleges of
Canada, was awarded to Université Laval, which was specifically mandated to produce a number of courses for delivery in
synchronous mode (i.e., “live online”). Specifically, the goal was
to provide a distance bachelor’s program to two cohorts of
students. To date, upwards of 60 students in the first cohort
have earned a bachelor’s of science in computer science from
Université Laval without ever having left their native country.
The African project has spawned a number of successors, with
a new cohort having just been formed in Côte d’Ivoire and
negotiations currently underway with the government of Gabon.
For countries experiencing a rapid increase in population and
that have non-recurrent training needs, the service provided
by Université Laval is ideal, according to Mr. Mineau. “It is considerably cheaper to invest in scholarships than to build infrastructures, hire staffs, etc. The fixed costs can be very high.
With our approach, access to postsecondary education is a lot
less expensive.”
Other countries, including France and Tunisia, have shown
interest in Université Laval’s distance education offering. In
Quebec itself, there is a desire to build greater awareness
about the existence of this program. At this time, efforts are
underway to establish a master’s program based on the distance approach.
“With webcasting, it’s a bit like being blessed with the gift of
ubiquity!” notes Guy Mineau.
“Now that we have the expertise, we’re looking for other partners with a view to exploring other formulas. There’s a multitude
of options to work from. To facilitate access to knowledge and
a degree, one has to demonstrate
flexibility and develop a broad
range of potential gateways.”
The wonders of going
synchronous
In Québec City, a professor establishes a connection to a distance teaching platform. Students at learning centres located
in Africa hear his voice and see his screen. In fact, they are
attending a PowerPoint presentation delivered in real time. They
thus have the opportunity to raise questions as though they
were in an actual classroom. The synchronous mode fosters
interactions between the various participants and facilitates
feedback from the professor. Assignments and exams are corrected in Québec City. Upon completing the program, Université
Laval awards these African students a diploma – an international diploma, moreover, that can open many doors for them.
Photo: Pierre Marchand.
In a university classroom in Burundi,
students patiently wait for class to
begin. When class finally takes in,
however, the professor is still thousands of kilometres away – at
Université Laval, home to a distance
bachelor of science program in
computer science, the first of its
kind in Quebec. This project, an
initiative of the Department of
computer science and software
engineering, was initially targeted
at French-speaking Africa. Today it
offers a range of opportunities, as
can be attested to by Guy Mineau,
department director during the rollout of the project to establish a
virtual university in Africa.
• Countries of activity: Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi,
Cameroon, Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Senegal.
Photo: Pierre Marchand.
Department of
Computer Science
and Software
Engineering
• Project: “Programme informatique de l’Université Laval
en Afrique francophone” (PILAF).
Graduation ceremony in Burundi, June 2008.
By the time the project in Africa
comes to and end in 2009, more
than 220 students – from nine
centres across eight different
countries – will have obtained
either the bachelor’s degree or a
certificate in computer science
from Université Laval. “I have the
feeling that we have made a big
difference in the lives of these
young people; we’ve enabled them
to acquire a specialization offering
value-added on the labour market
and, at the same time, changed
their future prospects,” concludes
Mr. Mineau, not a little proud at
this outcome.
will be to create a master’s in education program in Libreville. It
is a daunting challenge, as Professor Desautels emphasizes,
“This project is much more difficult to bring to completion, since
it has to be carried out in accordance with Gabonese tradition.
In no way is it a question of exporting a ready-made master’s
program originating here. That is why the courses figuring in
the new program are being prepared and given jointly by professors from the École and Laval. Once this process has been
completed, the École normale supérieure de Libreville will have
appropriated both the program and the accompanying teaching
instruments.”
Jacques Desautels
In addition to developing the master’s program, several other
operations are on the drawing board: continuing professional
development for teachers, succession training, and the creation
of research programs, not to mention the computerization of
the École’s administrative and academic affairs.
• Main partner: École normale supérieure (ENS),
Libreville, Gabon.
Tight-knit Relations with
• Years of activity: 1999-2010.
Libreville
The request originated in Gabon. In
1999, the École normale supérieure
(National teachers’ college) in
Libreville wanted to offer a master’s
degree in didactics (i.e., the instructional aspects of teaching), but did
not itself have the teaching staff
required to do so. Thus it came
knocking at the door of Université
Laval’s Faculty of Education – and so
began an adventure in co-operation
with Libreville.
• Outcome: joint development of a master’s program
at the ENS.
• Particularity: 14 Ph.D. students in the Faculty
of Education and 40% of students enrolled in Université
Laval’s didactics program hail from Gabon.
During the first phase of this project, Gabonese students enrolled at Université Laval took courses in their home country.
The courses were given by Quebec instructors. However, following the departure of the college’s director, the project was
suspended for an entire year. It was, as they say in Gabon, a
“blank” year. In the end, Professor Jacques Desautels took over
where things had been left off, infusing new life into the project.
Ultimately, a total of 35 Gabonese master’s level students received their degree following a three-month stay in Québec
City. It was a classic form of co-operation, with the North
exporting its expertise to the South. Eleven of the Libreville
graduates also received scholarships from the Canadian International Development Agency and are currently enrolled in the
doctoral program at Université Laval.
A major shift in
direction
A successful track record of this kind holds great promise for
the future. Then, a second phase of co-operation was launched
with an entirely different aim – namely, institutional development. The overarching objective is to make the École normale
supérieure de Libreville the first centre of excellence for the
training of education professionals in central Africa.
For now, the École provides a bachelor’s-level program of instruction to preservice secondary teachers, school inspectors
and educational advisors. Thus the goal of the second phase
It is clearly an understatement to say that the players in this
second phase of co-operation have their work cut out for them.
According to Jacques Desautels, everything might not be
wrapped up by 2010, the project end year. Regardless of the
pace of progress, however, the benefits are already measurable. “We have proven that projects can be fully implemented
in Africa. Another strong point is co-participation. We do not
export our expertise. We are working jointly on creating a new
form of expertise. There is clearly a determination to come up
with new avenues of co-operation so as ensure the sustainability of the results of project actions.”
It is also worth noting that co-operation
is not a one-way street. In keeping with
an approach that is a source of professional and cultural enrichment, “each
one teaches one” – and vice versa!
Furthermore, the on-campus presence
of foreign students clearly brands
Université Laval as an institution of international scope. Jacques Desautels also
points out that 40% of the current enrolment in the didactics program consists
of Gabonese students. He firmly believes,
moreover, that their presence contributes to maintaining the quality of postgraduate programs at the university’s
education faculty. And what does the
future hold? In Professor Desautels’
view, Gabon constitutes an ideal gateway to all of central Africa, and for this
reason alone, justifies maintaining tightknit relations with this country.
Université Laval
around the world
For data concerning Europe,
please see next page.
Russia
3
1
8
1
Kazakhstan
1
United States
26
39
Syria
12
42
Morocco
20
38
6
3
3
1
1
Honduras
Grenada
Nicaragua
6
Venezuela
Colombia 1
2
1
2
Panama
Costa Rica
6
5
1
6
1
Bolivia
2
11
10
3
1
Paraguay
Uruguay
Argentina
2
8
3
Academic exchanges (number of students)
12
Chile
Institutional agreements
7
6
Funded international co-operation (number of projects)
7
1
3
6
1
2
1
1
3
5
2
Indonesia
Kenya
1
1
1
Singapore
3
Gabon
1
3
Laos
5
4
Vietnam
2
Benin
3
3
7
1
1
Ghana
27
Japan
8
Taiwan
Cameroon
9
49
5
4
Guinea
6
India
6
3
1
2
Democratic
Republic
of the Congo
1
Fiji
1
Madagascar
3
4
4
Key
4
1
1
12
1
Brazil
9
1
International work terms/internships (number of students)
1
14
1
41
21
Burkina Faso
Peru
Ecuador
1
1
10
5
Senegal
Barbados
Israel
Egypt
1
Mali
1
Haiti
2
1
9
Guadeloupe
1
Cuba
Guatemala
2
3
Dominican
Republic
Mexico
5
5
China
1
Lebanon
Tunisia
South Africa
2
1
Réunion
3
Australia
5
5
2
2
1
Université Laval
around the world
Iceland
1
Finland
Sweden
15
Norway
6
1
7
3
2
3
5
1
6
Estonia
1
Denmark
13
6
1
The
Netherlands
United Kingdom
11
1
7
18
5
9
Poland
2
Germany
Belgium
47
31
1
9
4
14
2
25
6
Czech
Republic
1
Austria
France
203
22
204
23
1
Switzerland
10
11
1
3
1
1
1
Hungary
6
1
2
4
Romania
1
Key
5
Bosnia-Herzegovina
1
Italy
Academic exchanges (number of students)
Bulgaria
4
4
International work terms/internships (number of students)
1
2
Institutional agreements
Funded international co-operation (number of projects)
Moldavia
1
Portugal
7
1
2
Spain
34
4
14
Albania
1
AND ORGANIZATIONAL MANAGEMEN
The PEP Network
Poverty
zero
It takes money — and
guidance
In the 1990s, a research project was being conducted in the
Philippines, at the time in the throes of major economic adjustment: budget cuts, tax hikes, currency fluctuations, liberalization
of markets, and so on. The objective was to find out how such
changes impacted communities. Did the poor really benefit
from these structural transformations or, on the contrary, were
they penalized by them? This ambitious project then expanded
to include India, Pakistan, Vietnam, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and
West Africa.
Follow-up is important, too notes Professor Cockburn: “From
the outset, local researchers are prompted to consult policymakers. As their work progresses, they are also encouraged to
stay in contact. At the end of their project, they are provided
with the funding necessary for staging a policy conference in
their country at which they make their findings public. We lay
considerable stress on dialogue with policy-makers.” For the
network’s instigators, the dissemination of results is always
vital to efforts to shape policies in a manner benefiting the most
disadvantaged members of society.
What subjects are of particular interest to researchers from
emerging countries? Among the projects sponsored by the PEP
network, several concern the multiple dimensions of poverty,
the differential impact on women and men of macroeconomic
policies, trade liberalization, and the effects of public spending
on poverty. Take the case of multidimensional poverty. Put
simply, poverty cannot be considered only in terms of income
levels. For example, some disadvantaged groups do not have
access to adequate health and education services. PEP researchers are tackling the challenging issues this raises: How
does one measure poverty simultaneously in several dimensions? What indicators can be used and how should they
be measured? Professor Cockburn acknowledges that the
challenge is a daunting one indeed.
• Title of project: Poverty and Economic Policy (PEP)
research network.
• Countries of activity: 5000 researchers throughout
the developing and developed worlds.
• Main financial partners: Canadian International
Development Agency (CIDA), International Development
Research Centre (IDRC) and the Australian Agency
for International Development (AusAID).
• Budget: 2002-11: $13 million.
• Goals: to promote research on issues related to economic
policies and poverty, particularly in developing countries,
and to foster the use of results in policies having
an impact on poverty.
Heading
south
The PEP network has grown continually since the time of its
founding, yet John Cockburn feels that there is still a good deal
more to be accomplished. There is a need to diversify resources
and, above all, to empower the South. “Here at Université Laval,
we have a group of professors and graduate students who are
committed to building capacity in emerging countries and who
believe in working in partnerships with Southern researchers. It
is our vision that more local researchers will contribute in policy
and academic debates on poverty issues not only in their country but also on a global scale. But there is always a question of
ensuring funding and scientific support.”
John Cockburn is firmly convinced of the importance of mobilizing local researchers in the fight against poverty. He believes
that conducting research directly in developing countries makes
it possible to implement more realistic policies. “Malnutrition,
child development delays, infant mortality – the needs are all
staring us in the face. If a way can be found to share our resources and expertise, local researchers will certainly be able to
contribute to improving the fate of their community and reducing
poverty in their respective countries. That is the hope I cherish,”
he concludes.
Throughout this time, a team from Université Laval’s Economics
Department provided the researchers with scientific support.
But there was a desire to do more. In 2002, the PEP network
was established as part of an initiative undertaken jointly by the
Philippines-based Angelo King Institute and Université Laval.
Today the PEP network numbers more than 5000 members
throughout the world. How does it work, exactly? To begin with,
researchers from emerging countries submit research projects
for analysis by a grant selection committee. It is a rigorous process; in response to nearly 2000 proposals received until now,
the PEP network has provided support to 102 projects involving
over 300 researchers. The role of the network is not limited to
financial support alone but also includes substantial scientific
support. For example, members are provided with a research
Photo: Stephanie Colvey/IDRC.
They are researchers in developing
countries around the world united
with a common purpose: Fighting
poverty in their community. To support them in their efforts, they have
turned to the Poverty and Economic
Policy (PEP) research network. John
Cockburn, Professor at the Université Laval Economics Department,
speaks enthusiastically about this
network that he was instrumental
in creating.
Photo: Stephanie Colvey/IDRC.
environment as close as possible to those of their colleagues in
developed countries. This assistance can take numerous forms:
access to e-journals, four-week study visits in a foreign institution of their choice, the opportunity to participate in international
conferences so as to share information and views with other
researchers or with decision-makers, training workshops,
detailed comments, etc.
AND ORGANIZATIONAL MANAGEMEN
Photo: Timur Ridjanovic.
izations. Some students go on to pursue a career in the same
NGO for which they interned. Until now, more than 60 highly
diverse internships have been organized in a dozen countries
located on three continents.
Managing in the
field
Training Global Citizens to Make the Transition from
Words to Deeds
It is a cutting-edge program, moreover, as Université Laval is
the only institution in Canada to propose such a robust training
offering. There are internships corresponding to all three levels
of university education, thus making for better fit with the varying complexity of NGO needs. Furthermore, by taking advantage of the competencies of future managers, NGOs are able to
do more with the aid they receive. “It’s all well and good to be
generous and open-handed,” Robert W. Mantha points out, “but
it is also vital to master the tools of management.”
This testimonial was offered by Julie Herman-Lemelin, who
did an internship under the Managers Without Borders
(Managers sans frontières) program offered by the Université
Laval Faculty of Business Administration. This student travelled
to Ouagadougou, where she aided the city oral health centre in
tasks relating to personnel management and upgrading organizational values.
• Managers Without Borders: Managers Without Borders
is a non-profit organization that enables young managers
to apply the knowledge acquired in university classes
in the workplace in developing countries.
• Partners: various Canadian or international development
assistance organizations.
• Particularity: for two years now, the organization has
worked in association with the television channel
TVA-Québec to increase awareness of the situation
of developing countries through the series of clips known
as Sur les traces des Managers sans frontières.
To describe these internships as rewarding experiences is to
put the matter lightly in the case of some participants, such as
Valérie Tremblay, who travelled to Port-au-Prince, Haiti, to provide technical assistance to the authorities in charge of risk
and disaster management.
“After the hurricane had passed over Haiti, I spent two days
attempting to evacuate four wounded and shipwrecked fishermen. People had carried them to their village about two hours
away by foot under very poor conditions, including landslides
and flooded roads. There was no way of contacting them to
find out more about the situation of the wounded men or even
to determine their exact location, since the village in question
did not appear on any map. In this context, I mobilized a doctor
and a helicopter to rescue these people. Ultimately, the villagers lit a fire on the beach so we could spot
them.”
Instituted in 2005, Managers Without Borders pursues the mission of training managers in international development and
humanitarian action. According to Robert W. Mantha, dean of
the Faculty, the program also attracts young people who are
ready for an overseas experience but who had not contemplated going into management.
So how does Managers Without Borders work, exactly? Requests
originate with partner organizations, such as Uniterra, Action
Against Hunger and Oxfam Québec, which produce a match-up
between the needs to be filled and the profiles of the different
student applicants. Requests also originate with students who
have, through their own efforts, identified the organization for
whom they would like to work.
Managers Without Borders thus offers a complete support service in the search for internships, acting as the referring agent
between its network of non-governmental organizations (NGOs)
and the student community. Upon arriving in the host country,
internship participants are also provided with a supervision and
co-ordination service set up in conjunction with partner organ-
Photo: Gaston Rousseau.
“At first, I was in awe at the beauty
of the people and the surroundings.
Then I grew frustrated over the disparities I noticed between rich and
poor. At one point, I thought I had
lost the core motivations that had
taken me this far. I felt powerless in
the face of all the work that had to
be accomplished in for Burkina Faso
to meet and surpass its potential
for development in both economic
and human terms. Finally, I came to
the realization that while these
people lacked material goods, they
still had so much to offer.”
Photo: Valérie Tremblay.
Managers
Without Borders
Managers Without Borders has a wide range of challenges to
offer, such as proposing corrective measures to emergency action plans in Niger, aiding the marketing of regional products in
Bolivia, or developing export markets in New Delhi, India. To
take advantage of these opportunities, the program provides
what are called “training-action partnerships” – i.e., wellstructured internships lasting an average of five months, during
which participants receive solid training from professors having
broad field experience.
Mélissa Laporte during her internship in Niger with OXFAM-Québec.
While not all missions seem like a scene
out of the Adventures of Indiana Jones, the
experiences of internship participants have
nevertheless been a source of interest to
the general public. For two years now, the
Quebec television chain TVA has broadcast
clips entitled Sur les traces des Managers
sans frontières (On the trail of Managers
Without Borders), which tracks students in
the midst of action. The reports presented by
internship participants provide insight into
international development; above all, they
are a window on to the range of feelings
experienced and all the knowledge acquired
over the course of these journeys to the four
corners of the globe.
AND ORGANIZATIONAL MANAGEMEN
Groupe Habitats
et cultures
Building a Sustainable
World
Vietnam, China, Senegal – a common thread emerging from all
the places where urban design projects have been completed
is this interest in difference, this desire to know others. It is of a
piece, moreover, with one of the characteristics shared by all
the intercultural workshops – namely, an appreciation of cultural diversity. Which means approaching architecture from a
human rather than a technical perspective. Another common
denominator is the participatory approach. As Professor Casault
explains it: “Our students learn to design projects with communities. We try to come up with methods and ways of doing
things that involve people. We try to find out what things they
like about their built environment, what things they like less,
what things are less well adapted, culturally speaking.”
In addition to being intrigued by the participatory approach, the
Chinese collaborators were amazed by the low density of the
project. Here, the project concerned 400 single-family homes
for 2000 inhabitants. There, the same land area would have
been home to approximately 30,000. The Innu, for their part,
were keen to acquire a built environment that fitted more
closely with their way of life. The community of Sept-Îles, on
the other hand, wanted the project to respect the buffer zone
between the reserve and the city.
“In architecture, we do not perform miracles,” notes André
Casault. “The key thing is to maintain dialogue, to remain determined to jointly arrive at solutions, not only in social and economic terms but also in environmental terms. Ultimately, we
proposed a plan with which the Innu could identify and which,
at the same time, complied with agreements with the people of
It should be noted that the intercultural workshops are offered
to students in the final year of their bachelor of architecture
program. At the master’s level, the “Habitats et cultures” workshops are led by André Casault in collaboration with a group of
professors, including, Pierre Côté, Tania Martin, Denise Piché
and Geneviève Vachon, Professors at the School of Architecture, and Louise Lachapelle, Associate Professor at Université
Laval and Professor at the Collège de Maisonneuve in Montreal.
Photo: Groupe Habitats et cultures.
Each project is the occasion of enriching exchanges. In Uashat,
an Aboriginal reserve on Quebec’s North Shore, Professor
Casault and colleagues recently co-ordinated an architecture
and urban design workshop. The project consisted in expanding
the reserve located on the city limits of Sept-Îles. One of the
particular features of this workshop was that it involved not only
the Innu community, the citizens of Sept-Îles and the Université
Laval team but also a Chinese professor with students from the
Center of Urban and Landscape Design (CULD) in Shenzhen, in
tow as well as some representatives from Malika, Senegal.
Zhang Changjuan, a student at the Center of Urban and Landscape Design (CULD),
Harbin Institute of Technology, Shenzhen Graduate School, presents a development
proposal for the Uashat (Quebec) expansion project.
• Sectors of activity: urban design, architecture and local
participatory governance.
• Countries of activity: Senegal, Vietnam, China and Canada.
• Main financial partners: Canadian International
Development Agency (CIDA) and International
Development Research Centre (IDRC).
• Particularity: work among vulnerable communities, such
as Malika, located on the edge of the Dakar (Senegal)’s
city dump, so as to enable its inhabitants to better plan
their development and improve their living conditions.
Sept-Îles.” For this supervisor of the intercultural workshops,
the challenge, in a nutshell, is to create rapprochement with
the other group, without imposing one’s own values on its
members. Since the relationship to space varies enormously
from one culture to the next, one must adopt a position of
relativity in terms of what can be considered beautiful or ugly
in architecture.
To date, more than 200 students have taken part in one of the
School of Architecture’s intercultural workshops. In addition to
being major actors in their own education, they have contributed to the well-being of a community. They have learned to
respect cultural differences in their work as architects. They
have understood that the first principle of sustainable development is allowing communities to take ownership of their
environment.
Photo: Groupe Habitats et cultures.
“Hubert Reeves (the Quebec-born
astrophysicist) once said that we
were made of stardust. Our houses
are too. In my view, a house is an
extension of myself. It’s something
that must live in keeping with
my pace,” declares André Casault,
Professor at the Université Laval
School of Architecture. His comments provide an apt illustration
of the approach favoured in the
intercultural workshops that he coordinates in the four corners of the
world. It is an approach in which
human beings receive top billing.
Photo: Groupe Habitats et cultures.
in precarious settings – shanty towns, for example – inhabited
by impoverished communities. The contexts require of students
that they exhibit greater creativity. What is it they do, exactly?
These future architects perform the work upstream from actual
construction; specifically, they consult communities about their
needs and expectations in relation to the built environment. At
the end of the process, they produce plans, development outlines, computer-generated imagery of neighbourhoods, etc.
Living communities come
into view
The subjects of the intercultural workshops centre on habitats
and neighbourhood planning. In each situation, students work
Professors and students meet the delegate from the Diamalye neighbourhood
in Malika.
For Professor Casault, such lessons are invaluable in a professional’s career. “For the first time
in the history of humanity, the
urban population outnumbers the
rural population. Urban inhabitants construct buildings, roads and
infrastructures. At the same time,
there is a need to learn how to
build sustainably. That is the core
value of our intercultural workshops: promoting a green architecture that takes human beings
into account.”
Professor Olivier is a believer in the virtues of mixed crops. “It is
a known fact that including trees in production systems is
beneficial. Aside from producing fruit and edible leaves, trees
also grow deeper-running roots. They thus draw nutrients from
soil layers that are usually not used by field crops. In addition,
as soon as leaves fall to the ground, they enrich the arable soil
layer, improving its organic material level and fertility. Now
there’s something that contributes to sustainable production.
Trees sequester carbon. They also produce wood, obviously. It’s
important to recall that for millions of people on the planet,
wood represents their main source of energy.”
Promoting the Welfare of Malian
Peasants
Over the last 10 years, Professor Olivier has conducted agroforestry research in Mali, Burkina Faso and Senegal. His work
has focused particularly on non-mechanized production systems
that grow trees and crops side by side in fields. The current
project is an outgrowth of relations established over the years
with researchers and instructors at the Institut polytechnique
rural de formation et de recherche appliquée in Mali.
Specifically, its objective is to train professors, researchers,
engineers, technicians, extension officers and peasants to
combat environmental degradation. An additional goal is to
safeguard Mali’s productive capacity with respect to food, firewood and livestock feed. According to Alain Olivier, training
such a wide range of actors has the potential to create a major
impact. Furthermore, certain training modules will be revised
and some new courses will be created. As well, Malian professors
will come to Université Laval to do a master’s in agroforestry.
Finally, a series of pilot initiatives will be conducted among rural
populations.
project
While the Malian project concerns agronomists and forest
engineers first and foremost, it also involves anthropologists,
sociologists and experts in rural economy. Professor Olivier
points out that work in peasant communities necessarily brings
into play economic, social, cultural and political issues that
have an impact on the adoption of techniques. He notes that
Université Laval is able to supply specialists in all these fields
– a fact fully in keeping with the spirit of the project. By cultivating long-term relations with Mali, Université Laval has laid the
groundwork enabling its students to do internships in the field.
• Project: “Des arbres et des champs contre la pauvreté
au Mali.”
• Term of project: 2007-13.
• Funding: $1 million.
• Financial partners: Canadian International Development
Agency (CIDA) through the Association of Universities
and Colleges of Canada (AUCC).
Alain Olivier hopes, moreover, that the African partners will take
ownership of the project. If all goes according to plan, in six
years’ time, Mali will have an institute that is better equipped to
provide quality training in agroforestry. Rural communities are
also expected to reap benefits from this knowledge both economically and socially as well as in terms of food security.
• Main goals: to support a university-level agroforestry
institute and to intensify the integration of trees in
agricultural practices and thereby help reduce poverty
among the peasants of Mali.
For Olivier, the Malian project has a global scope. “Our fates
are linked. The environmental problems of the South have an
impact on the North. We often forget that peasants are the
origin of our wealth. Without good food, we don’t amount
to anything. Unfortunately, those who satisfy our essential needs are often those who suffer the most. It’s not a
question of charity but of justice. We have a duty to demonstrate solidarity toward them.” Proof again that human
issues are the raison d’être of this researcher’s work.
Trees for
life
Mali, a country characterized by a generally arid climate, has
been confronted with serious problems in respect of its agriculture. The degradation of soils and soil fertility has made it
necessary to revise peasant farming practices. Whence the
rationale for the current project involving fields and trees. Trees
Photo: Jean Bonneville.
“Human issues are often the triggers
of research projects,” states, from
the get-go, Alain Olivier, Professor
at the Université Laval Plant Science
Department and director of the project known as “Des arbres et des
champs contre la pauvreté au Mali”
(Trees and fields to combat poverty
in Mali). Olivier, a researcher clearly
smitten with this West African
country, speaks glowingly about
this ambitious project focused on
teaching and training.
A pluridisciplinary
Photo: Jean Bonneville.
Alain Olivier
Photo: Jonathan Charlebois.
AND NATURAL RESOURCES MANAGEMEN
in particular play an important environmental role and, at the
same time, provide a number of products – for example, shea
butter, used in various places around the world, or baobab
leaves, a local ingredient of meals.
With support from the Canadian International Development
Agency (CIDA), this large-scale project was designed in accordance with the needs voiced by the local people. Ultimately, however, it concerns all stakeholders. The Congo basin is, after all,
home to one of the most diverse ecosystems, in addition to
being the earth’s second lung.
• Sectors of activity: forestry and natural resource
management.
Damase Khasa
From Brazil to Madagascar by Way of the
Congo
The projects led by Damase Khasa
take place at points all over the
globe, involving for example, the
training of forestry engineers in the
Congo basin, designing a conservation program for Mexican conifers,
studying the impact of intensive
clonal forestry in Brazil, or aiding
the people of Madagascar to develop
a sustainable tourism sector. And
yet, wherever these initiatives are
conducted, they all have some
points in common. For one, they
contribute to a sustainable management and use of natural resources. Furthermore, they imply the
sharing of knowledge between researchers from Quebec and abroad.
Damase Khasa, Professor of Agroforestry and International
Forestry at Université Laval, becomes effusive when the subject
turns to his research projects, particularly the one involving
central Africa. His enthusiasm is entirely understandable, considering that he was trained in the Democratic Republic of the
Congo (DRC) by professors from Quebec and that he in turn is
now carrying the torch.
At this point, it’s worth briefly examining the situation in his native land. The Congo is home to one of the world’s largest forest
resources, second only to the Amazon basin. Nevertheless, this
precious resource is currently imperilled. There has been a
shortage of human resources to manage this huge forest cover
in the many years since the conflict affecting the Democratic
Republic of the Congo first broke out. At this time, there are only
40 forestry engineers to provide stewardship, and they will all
be retiring in the next five years. Therein lies the core of Professor Khasa’s project: re-launching the training of new forestry
engineers (upwards of 30 per year from year 3 of the project)
who will successfully meet the challenge of ensuring the sustainable management of the country’s natural resources, and
supporting the training of forestry instructors with the assistance of Canadian partners.
Université Laval is acting in the capacity of “champion” of this
project, which is targeted at creating centers of excellence in
three specific countries: the Democratic Republic of the Congo,
Cameroon and Gabon. The resources concerned are all renewable, such as the forest, water, wildlife, air and soil. “These
Photo: Benoît Aymoz.
AND NATURAL RESOURCES MANAGEMEN
resources are the foundation of a sustainable development plan
for the countries of central Africa,” notes Mr. Khasa. “More than
70% of Africa’s population lives in forest environments and
engage in farming. Thus the forest is both a major source
of income for these countries as well as the basis of their
subsistence.”
• Main countries of activity: the Democratic Republic
of the Congo, Cameroon, Gabon, Brazil, Mexico
and Madagascar.
• Financial partners: Canadian International Development
Agency (CIDA), Agence universitaire de la Francophonie
(AUF).
• New project: a large-scale, five-year project, accompanied
by a budget of over $6 million and supported by CIDA, is
aimed at re-launching (DRC) and strenthening (Cameroon
and Gabon) training in forestry and natural resource
management .
The value of sharing one’s
knowledge
There are still other projects driving Damase Khasa forward. For
example, this professor has been recently studying the ecological risks associated with the intensive cultivation of poplar
in Quebec and eucalyptus in Brazil. Then, the twinning of a
Quebec student and a Malagasy student is aimed at effectively
revegetating degraded ecosystems in Madagascar. For three
years now, with the support of the Agence universitaire de la
francophonie, Damase Khasa has also been offering a course in
ecotourism and community development in Madagascar, the
world’s fourth largest island. His work is aimed at developing
sustainable tourism in this environment where natural resources are subjected to strong pressures. “Each year, 1100 square
kilometres of forest cover disappear. We must at all costs
promote the sustainable management of this vital resource and appropriately train and educate the island’s
stakeholders,” asserts the Université Laval researcher.
Damase Khasa brings the same enthusiasm to his dual
mission of training and research in Africa and South
America. So doing, he has the conviction that he is aiding
his peers while also becoming personally richer scientifically and culturally. His fondest desire is to pursue this
tradition of sharing with communities on other continents.
Clearly, the planet could use natural resource stewards of
this stripe!
The Bureau
international
Credits
Founded in 1999, the Bureau international pursues the mission
of developing and providing services related to international
co-operation and the internationalization of education. Specifically, the Bureau international undertakes actions pertaining to
student mobility, international development and international
relations through institutional agreements. It supports the
Bureau du recrutement (Recruitment office) on the international
aspects of promoting Université Laval.
The Bureau international wishes to thank the following people and organizations for their contribution to the creation of this booklet:
The Bureau international: some figures
at a glance
Jean Bonneville
Michel Alary
Paméla Farman
Benoit Aymoz
Joanne Fournier
Michelyne Belleau
Julie HermanLemelin
Diane Blouin
Catherine Breton
•In 2007, more than 13% of graduates had taken advantage
of the outstanding opportunities afforded by Université Laval’s
international programs, thus making the university a Canadian
leader in student mobility;
André Casault
Jonathan
Charlebois
•En 2007-08, more than 852 students received direct support
from the Bureau international for an overseas education
experience;
•The Bureau international coordinates upwards of one hundred
visits by partners each year;
•The Bureau international manages 573 agreements with
partners in more than 65 countries;
•The Bureau international has supported the development of
international projects that have garnered Université Laval
more than $7 million in new funding since 2007;
Damase Khasa
Mélissa Laporte
Ginette Lazure
Robert W. Mantha
Fonds de développement durable
(Sustainable development fund)
of Université Laval
Public Affairs Division of Université Laval
(Web communications and institutional
advertising unit)
Computer and Telecommunications Division
of Université Laval
Managers Sans Frontières/Managers
Without Borders
John Cockburn
Guy Mineau
Micheline Cyr
Sonia Moreau
Jacques Desautels
Alain Olivier
Amélie Descent
Gaston Rousseau
Department of Computer Science
and Software Management
Éric Dewailly
Timur Ridjanovic
The PEP Network
Marie-Hélène
Dufour
Allison Threatt
International Development Research Centre
(IDRC)
Roger Fankap
•More than $2.9 million in scholarships are awarded to our
students for international study or internships.
Christian Hudon
Office of the Executive Vice Rector
of Université Laval
Valérie Tremblay
Fonds étudiant de la Faculté de médecine
pour la santé internationale (FEMSI)
Groupe Habitats et cultures
The whole team at the Bureau international
…And probably many other people and organizations whom we may have overlooked.
30%
Bureau international de l’Université Laval
Université Laval

Québec (Québec) G1V 0A6
CANADA
 (418) 656-3994
 (418) 656-2531
 [email protected]
This booklet was created by Maelström créatif.
Production team:
Co-ordinator: Andrée Pelletier
Project manager: Geneviève Savard
French texts: Marie Dufour
English translation: Donald Kellough
Graphic design: Sarah Boisvert
Printing: Service de reprographie de l’Université Laval