Veterans Affairs committee  We have seen a lot of civics teachers in Ontario in the past few years. Ontario is the only province that has dedicated a course to civics, in which young people learn the value of active and purposeful citizenship. Several high school teachers requested that the memory project speakers, the veterans, come into the classroom to talk about citizenship through their eyes.

Veterans Affairs committee  On the battlefields tour, that's exactly it. What we are trying to do with that program is to pass on that passion for military history that you can only get by seeing it first-hand. It's like the memory project, but for teachers. We get teachers telling us constantly that at the end of the school year, at the end of learning about World War I or World War II, the best part of the class for students was hearing first-hand from a veteran who was able to answer their questions and was able to talk with them, saying, “I did this” and “we did that”.

Veterans Affairs committee  Probably one of the things the institute is best known for is our polling. We've been doing polling on Canadians' knowledge and appreciation of Canadian history for 12 years now. Over the course of those 12 years—and I think I presented this the last time we were here—we've moved the dial forward on Canadian military history.

Veterans Affairs committee  One body that could be useful would be the Council of Ministers of Education, where there is cooperation between the departments of education and the provinces. Is there room for federal leadership? Yes, there are possibilities. I think the ideal situation would be one where the school system in every province in Canada is focused not just on training young people to become the workers and consumers of tomorrow, but also on training them to be the citizens of tomorrow.

Veterans Affairs committee  That was a 2006 campaign of the Dominion Institute. That would probably be a perfect example of the kind of advocacy work that we take on. We developed an online petition and a media campaign asking the government to offer a state funeral to the last World War I veteran when he passes away.

Veterans Affairs committee  Our trademark, our name, carries a certain level of credibility, and legitimacy. Therefore, we are specifically recognized for issues related to military history, and as an organization that provides reliable and quality products. We do not deal with provincial departments of education nor with school boards.

Veterans Affairs committee  Absolutely. It is a huge part of our military history in Canada, and a huge part of Canada's role in the world. We are always seeking out educational tools to facilitate this teaching. We have noted over the years that the tools on the Korean War were underused by teachers. Often, we only talk about the First and Second World Wars.

Veterans Affairs committee  First and foremost, we are a public education organization. If we are unsuccessful in reaching out to a larger audience, we would be failing our mandate. So you're entirely right. Our organization is only six weeks old, but our merging organizations and programs are 12 years old.

Veterans Affairs committee  Our contacts with the legions, be it at the national, provincial or community levels, are excellent. They comprise an essential tool that allows us to carry out our work. Encounters Canada works in close collaboration with the Royal Canadian Legion, as well as with the Memory Project.

Veterans Affairs committee  No. The very essence of our work is to transmit the flame of remembrance, to keep alive the memory of the sacrifice made by veterans, and not just for one day or one week out of the year. The Veterans' Appreciation Day program does exactly that. We dedicate an additional day, at another time during the year, to recognize and celebrate the contribution of our veterans.

Veterans Affairs committee  The Canadian Forces, particularly as exemplified by our veterans, has really been one of the key instruments through which Canada's role in the world has been exercised. It's really shaped Canada's place in the world. In the classroom, that is something we really try to bring out.

Veterans Affairs committee  I think the point is correct. When you look at the high school level in Canada, you see that only four provinces in Canada require a mandatory course in Canadian history. In every other province and territory you have a course in social studies, which would be your mandatory subject, and really, let's face it, that's a mishmash of a bit of history, a bit of geography, a bit of civics, a bit of economics, and a bit of philosophy, all of which are very good things, but the historical narrative gets lost.

Veterans Affairs committee  The institute also has a media production program. We develop learning tools and learning resources for teachers. We are responsible for the Canadian Encyclopedia, which contains over 40,000 bilingual articles, all available online, dealing with all aspects of Canadian history and society, including military history.

Veterans Affairs committee  We're here today to talk about the merger of the Historica Foundation and the Dominion Institute. I will start off by saying that mergers are extremely rare in the charitable sector in Canada. What we've accomplished between these two organizations actually happens very seldom and is the exception rather than the rule.