Thank you, Brigitte.
Our association has chosen Radio CKJM, Radio Chéticamp, a cooperative. Approximately 50% of our members are part of a cooperative.
The birth of this radio station truly transformed the lives of the people of Chéticamp. It was a revolution. Before CKJM people did not listen to French radio at all. They were isolated. Chéticamp is located in Cape Breton, very close to the Cabot Trail. It is a very isolated and small region, where French has been spoken for the last 400 years. The area's economic mainstay is fishing, but there's also industry and tourism.
In 1995, the opening of the radio station truly transformed the lives of the people of Chéticamp. They discovered French music and local talent. They have a recording studio and the music of local artists is played on the airwaves. People speak French with their particular accent, people understand each other, listen to one another talk. Three thousand five hundred francophones live in the region of Chéticamp. People are actively involved in this small radio station which employs four permanent workers. This is quite a feat.
The radio station truly contributes to the region's economic and social development. The radio holds many events, including a hospital fundraiser. It is truly an exemplary radio station. Through a non-scientific, in-house survey, we discovered that 90% of the locals listen to the station. It is therefore obvious that a radio station grounded in the community, a station that meets the community's needs, truly breathes life and injects vitality into the French-speaking community. People are currently looking for CDs in French, but no one is selling them. The radio station has stepped in and is now selling French-language CDs. People have become hooked, and are actively contributing to this very dynamic radio station.