Why Canada...?
Canada was the first country in the world to adopt a policy of multiculturalism which acknowledges that all cultures bring fundamental value, showcasing Canada’s multicultural values and intercultural understanding. Canada is a bilingual country where French and English are both official languages. Canadians are known as being some of the politest individuals on the planet, who value equality, diversity and respect, having a strong intercultural understanding, and global citizenship.
Oxfam defines Global Citizenship as “someone who is aware of and understands the wider world – and their place in it. They are a citizen of the world. They take an active role in their community and work with others to make our planet more peaceful, sustainable and fairer” (Oxfam, 2023). Global Citizenship is highly important as it ensure individuals are able to build their own understanding of the real world, world events, and values important to them, giving global citizens the opportunity to learn and be involved in local and global communities, developing intercultural understanding and expanding views and encouraging people to challenge inequality. Global citizenship involves exploring one’s interpretations and assumptions, engaging with multiple perspectives and applying that learning to real world situation (Oxfam, 2023).
The excursion will allow students the opportunity to develop intercultural understanding, communication skills, and give the experience needed to inspire others to travel and develop an insight to global citizenship.
Canada is currently ranked second regarding the largest area in terms of land, as well as having the most and biggest lakes in the world, the Great Slave Lake and The Great Bear Lake. The name ‘Canada’ comes from the work ‘Kanata’ meaning settlement of ‘Village’ which I found thought-provoking as Canada’s population as of 2022 is 38,232, 593, showing how much Canada has expanded and grown since first appearing on a map in 1547. 90% of Canada’s land is uninhabited.
Canada is known for its love of Ice Hockey and Maple Syrup, Aurora Borealis, otherwise known as the Northern Lights, due to the country’s northern areas which reach close to the Arctic Circle and fall within the auroral oval (where the lights are visible). Also, home to the Rogers Centre (Skydome) – the first stadium with a retractable roof, CN Tower which held the record for the world’s tallest free-standing tower for 32 years, Banff National Park and Niagara Falls.
The ‘Arts’ are a large part of Canadian culture, home to many famous individuals such as Margaret Atwood, Author of the Handmaids tale, signers such as Celine Dion and Bryan Adams, Directors such as James Cameron, who directed films such as Titanic and inspirational individuals such as Terry Fox, a Canadian athlete who ran a marathon a day across Canada at the age of 18 after having his leg amputated due to cancer. Canadian cuisine is difficult to identify particularly, due to the multi-ethnic nature in Canada, there are a wide range of foods.
As we update this blog, we will for sure share some of these experiences!
-H
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