A collective composed of dedicated members
Our office team
Ajà Besler
She
Ajà Besler has been the Executive Director of the Canadian Network for Cultural Dialogue since 2021, following a career in the Canadian Francophonie in the areas of youth, performing arts and language rights advocacy. A queer artist and activist with a disability, Ajà is passionate about social justice and the Francophone community. Originally from Edmonton, Ottawa is now her adopted home.
Catherine Carle
She
Working at Réseau dialogue since 2013, Catherine holds a degree in Public Relations from La Cité College in Ottawa. Passionate about the performing arts and Francophone culture, she brings her knowledge to bear on the entertainment industry and the world of communications within the Network and its projects.
Patrick Pharand
He
For several years, Patrick has been working in various sectors within Canada's Francophone community. Whether in event management, grant management, logistics or artistic tours, he has accumulated a wealth of hands-on experience in the realities of Francophones in different regions. He hopes to create a larger public space for Francophones in an inclusive and equitable manner.
Juliet Foo
She
Project Officer
A recent graduate with a BA in Psychology and a minor in Religious Studies from the University of Ottawa, Juliet is a proud Franco-Albertan and Acadian from Edmonton. Passionate about equity and the French language, she is thrilled to be joining such a wonderful team! This is her second term as a project officer, following her position at the Fédération de la jeunesse canadienne-française. When she is not at the office, she enjoys volunteering with animals and discovering new restaurants.
Rosie Kasongo
She
VIF Program Coordinator
Rosie holds a master's degree in international development management and humanitarian action. She has been involved in feminist, anti-racist and youth initiatives for several years and also worked in international cooperation before joining the Dialogue Network team in 2025. Passionate about social justice, gender equality and youth engagement, Rosie firmly believes in the power of change driven by and for young people.
Laura Mollen
She
Graphic Designer
Laura is an Innu graphic designer who graduated from La Cité College. She is passionate about arts and culture. Her family life is a very important part of her life, and she loves cooking and discovering new recipes. As a Francophone Indigenous person, she wants to shed light on her different linguistic and cultural realities. Through graphic design, she hopes to help preserve Innu-aimun, her mother tongue.
Elisena Matellus
She
Cultural Coordination Assistant
Elisena Metellus holds a degree in social sciences, with a specialisation in international development and globalisation, from the University of Ottawa. Her career in the non-profit sector has made her aware of issues related to migration, human rights, diversity and inclusion. Curious and passionate, Elisena enjoys travelling and immersing herself in different cultures, with a particular interest in the Caribbean and Latin America. She believes deeply in a world where every individual can contribute to a more inclusive and equitable future.
Our Board of Directors
Chedly Belkhodja
He
Chairperson, Quebec/New Brunswick
Chedly Belkhodja is a professor and former director of the School of Public and Community Affairs at Concordia University. From 1992 to 2014, he was a professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Moncton. Franco-Tunisian, he grew up in New Brunswick.
He holds a PhD in political science from the University of Bordeaux-Montesquieu (1996) and a master's degree in political science from the University of Montreal (1991). His research focuses on immigration issues in medium-sized cities and regions with low immigration rates, as well as discourse and representations of cultural, religious and ethnic diversity. He also conducts research on the phenomenon of populism and right-wing ideologies.
He was involved in the creation of the Atlantic Metropolis Centre as research director and, from 2006 to 2012, as director of the centre. At the same time, he made two films produced by the National Film Board of Canada: Tableaux d'un voyage imaginaire in 2001 with filmmaker Jean Chabot and Au bout du fil in 2006.
Ania Kolodziej
She
Vice-Chair, British Columbia
Ania is a solicitor in Vancouver. She practises law in French, English and Polish. Her practice focuses on civil litigation, constitutional law and language rights. Ania has worked on one of the most significant and lengthy legal challenges in education and language rights in history. of Canada. It also provides strategic advice to numerous public institutions, including French-language school boards across Canada.
Having learned French through immersion, Ania completed her first degree in political science and French literature at Simon Fraser University as part of the French Cohort Program, a multidisciplinary programme offered primarily in French by the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Ania obtained her degrees in common law and civil law from the University of Ottawa in 2011. In 2018, she completed her Master's degree in Education and Sustainable Development at the University of British Columbia.
Suzanne Jacob
She
Treasurer, British-Columbia
Very involved in British Columbia's Francophone community, she has served as president of Réseau Femmes and the BC Economic Development Corporation. Since 2018, she has been a member of the board of directors of the Fédération des Francophones de la Colombie Britannique. as a representative of Greater Vancouver. She is now the lead mentor for the BC Economic Development Corporation's business mentoring programme.
She has had a career in management and is now a financial adviser.
Liane Roy
She
Présidente Chairperson of the FCFA, New Brunswick
A native of New Brunswick, Liane Roy has devoted her career to the French-speaking community at the provincial, regional, national and international levels. She has served as Assistant Deputy Minister in the Department of Post-Secondary Education, Training and Labour and in the Department of International Affairs. intergovernmental organisations in New Brunswick. As the first Chief Executive Officer of the New Brunswick Community College (NBCC), she led this post-secondary institution towards autonomy by overseeing the entire transition process to a new structure. She worked as a youth technical advisor for the International Organisation of La Francophonie (OIF) in Paris in preparation for the Francophonie Summit in Moncton (1999) and served as Technical Advisor for the Partnership for Non-Formal Education in Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso).
She has also headed organisations dedicated to promoting Acadia, such as the Société nationale de l'Acadie (SNA) and the Société de l'Acadie du Nouveau-Brunswick. In 2019, she completed a second master's degree in education and doctoral studies (EdD) in the field of Educational Leadership – Cultural and Linguistic Diversity Management at Simon Fraser University. She also holds a master's degree in education, with a specialisation in guidance counselling, from the University of Moncton and a bachelor's degree in social work from the same institution.
Liane Roy is currently a member of the Board of Governors of Université Sainte-Anne and the Board of Directors of the Marichette Foundation. She has also served as Chair of the Board of Directors of Colleges and Institutes Canada, the National Consortium for the Development of French-Language Educational Resources in Colleges, and Atlantic Colleges Atlantic.
President of the FCFA since 2021, Liane Roy works to promote a strong, open and diverse Francophonie that is committed to international engagement and reconciliation with Indigenous peoples. Another of her priorities is the adoption by the federal government of a modern and respected Official Languages Act.
Françoise Sigur-Cloutier
She
SecretaryAlberta
Françoise Sigur-Cloutier is originally from Toulouse, France. She immigrated to Canada and settled in Calgary in 1969. She devoted much of her career to community development, then spent 18 years as Regional Communications Manager for Radio–Canada in Saskatchewan. Volunteer activist, she works in several organisations Francophone provincial and national organisations, particularly in publishing and feminist groups, elected president of the Assemblée communautaire fransaskoise (ACF) Françoise Sigur-Cloutier focuses her mandate on political representation, immigration and the development of post-secondary education.
Having returned to Calgary in May 2019, she is once again very involved in the Francophone community at the local, provincial and national levels.
Françoise is married, mother of three children, grandmother of four grandsons and great-grandmother of little Arthur.
Claire Thibideau
She
Administrator, Ontario
Ms.Thibideau has been working in education since 1978, starting as a teacher. Until 2010, she was also an educational advisor, primary school headteacher and director of identity building at the Mon Avenir Catholic School Board.
Throughout her career and since her retirement, she has been involved with Francophone organisations in Ontario and across Canada, serving as:
- Representative for the Centre-South region at the Association des enseignantes et des enseignants de l'Ontario (AEFO)
- Board member and chair of the Association des directions et directions adjointes des écoles franco-ontariennes (ADFO)
- Volunteer President and Chief Executive Officer of the Canadian Federation of Francophone School Principals (FCDEF)
- Member of the Teaching Tools Committee and the Professional Development Programme Planning and Guidance Committee, Ontario representative on the Board of Directors and member of the Governing Council of the Association canadienne d'éducation de langue française (ACELF)
As an educator, Claire Thibideau has written various teaching tools and coordinated and developed an ADFO leadership tool entitled Le leadership culturel partagé (Shared Cultural Leadership). As a member of the FCDEF, she has produced, in partnership with the ACELF, the FCCF and various federal departments, a tool entitled Le passeur culturel (The Cultural Conveyor).
In addition to her work in education, Ms. Thibideau is President of the Centre Colibri in Barrie, which helps French-speaking women who are victims of violence. She is also a member of the board of directors of La Meute de Lafontaine, an organization that organizes a French-language cultural festival and cultural activities for schools in the Simcoe region of Ontario.
Paula Popescu
She
Administrator
El Hadji Arona Diop
He
Administrateur, Nouvelle-Écosse
Originally from Senegal, he graduated from Université Sainte-Anne in Nova Scotia and has a background combining entrepreneurship, social innovation and economic development. He works as a business development, entrepreneurship and innovation officer at the Nova Scotia Economic Development Board. His role involves designing programmes, supporting young and new entrepreneurs, and mobilising Francophone communities around promising and sustainable projects. Thanks to my post-secondary education, various certifications and involvement in interprovincial initiatives, I hope to bring to the Dialogue Network a field-based perspective, rooted in the development of Francophone and Acadian communities and focused on inclusion, youth and intersectoral collaboration.
Geneviève Pelletier
She
Administrator, Manitoba
Geneviève Pelletier is a Métis creator and director from Winnipeg, located on Treaty #1 territory. Since 2012, she has been delighted to be at the helm of Théâtre Cercle Molière as its artistic director. She is interested in cultural intersections and the multiple possibilities opening up in a world that is becoming smaller and smaller, giving rise to fertile and complex spaces for creation.
Angélique Bernard
She
Administrator, Yukon
Angélique is a bilingual translator and reviser with a bachelor's degree in translation from Concordia University in Montreal. She is the Yukon Commissioner from 2018 to 2023. She is the first Francophone in the territory's history to hold this position.
Before and after this nomination, she ran Angélique Bernard Communications in Whitehorse, providing translation and project coordination services. She was also the first employee of Les Essentielles, a group of Francophone women in the Yukon, from 1996 to 2001.
She serves in several volunteer and leadership roles within Yukon's Francophone community, including president of the Association franco-yukonnaise, radio host of the programme Rencontres, volunteer with the Yukon Francophone Historical Society, theatre director and actress. She also volunteers for Special Olympics Yukon and is president of the Whitehorse Women's Soccer League.
She represents Yukon within the National Women's Education Action Network, the Fédération des femmes canadiennes-françaises, the Canadian Women's Health Network, and the Fédération des communautés francophones et acadienne.
She has written books about the Yukon and the Yukon's French-speaking community.
Angélique has lived in Yukon since 1995.
Valérie Levesque
She
Administrator, New Brunswick
A professional committed to the French-speaking world for over ten years, she has held various positions that have allowed her to better understand the dynamics of the Canadian Francophonie and contribute to major projects, including the États généraux de l'Acadie during the 2024 World Acadian Congress. Now assistant director at the Société Nationale de l'Acadie, she is actively involved in consultation, governance, human resources and youth projects mobilising young Francophones in the Atlantic region. Her career has been guided by a commitment to inclusion, collaboration and pride in identity. Her training in psychology, combined with her management and governance skills, allows her to approach issues in a humane and structured manner.
Pierre Jury
He
Administrator, Ontario
Pierre Jury spent nearly 35 years at Le Droit newspaper, the last 18 of which as chief editorial writer, defending the French language and the principles of social justice, democracy and good governance.
He covered all areas of journalism, from economics to politics and sport. He distinguished himself by being the first French-speaking journalist to cover the creation of a National Hockey League team, the Ottawa Senators. He also wrote a column on gastronomy and restaurants for over 25 years, served as a judge in numerous culinary competitions and juries, and was one of 30 Canadians to receive the prestigious Ordre du Mérite Agricole, awarded by the French Republic.
The son of a Ukrainian father and a French-Canadian mother, Pierre Jury is a graduate of the International Olympic Academy. He holds a bachelor's degree in German and Russian history from McGill University in Montreal. He also studied at the University of Montreal and Laval University, and was a fellow at the Rotman School of Business in Toronto.
Jason Doiron
He
Administrator, New Brunswick
Fluent in both French and English, he could facilitate communication and the expansion of our initiatives in both official languages, thereby strengthening our reach among French-speaking and English-speaking communities. His experience in group facilitation and mediation would enable me to effectively support the dialogue processes we endorse. He has an ability to identify development opportunities and develop sustainable strategies that could help the Foundation expand its impact while remaining true to its core values.