Press Release

Val-d’Or, February 1, 2021– The Canada Research Chair on Indigenous Women’s Issues and the DIALOG Indigenous Peoples’ Research and Knowledge Network announce the creation of a Joyce Echaquan Scholarship amounting $36,000 over two years.

The Chief Scientist’s Office and the Fonds de recherche du Québec have decided to support this initiative by providing an additional scholarship of the same amount and under the same terms and conditions for a second indigenous student.

A concrete and promising initiative
Carole Lévesque, professor at the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS) and director of the DIALOG Network, and Suzy Basile, professor at the Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT) and chairholder of the Canada Research Chair on Indigenous Women’s Issues, initiated this scholarship project. Four months after the tragic death of Joyce Echaquan, they decided to join forces to create a scholarship for an indigenous master’s student, with the support of Ms. Echaquan’s family.

“The idea arose from a desire to take action and contribute to the proposals set out in the Principle de Joyce. After working with the family, the creation of this scholarship seems as a means of highlighting the issues and challenges faced by indigenous women, as well as contributing to the research training of indigenous student.,” says Professor Suzy Basile.

“At INRS, for more than 20 years, the DIALOG Network has focused on the collaborative development, transmission and sharing of knowledge among researchers, students and indigenous knowledge owners,” says Professor Lévesque. “As part of its many initiatives to create an innovative and inspiring learning ecosystem for its students, the DIALOG Network is now partnering with the Canada Research Chair on Indigenous Women’s Issues to offer a scholarship to an indigenous woman in honour of Ms. Joyce Echaquan, whose untimely death in September 2020 left all of Quebec in confusion and fear.”
The scholarship will be awarded on a competitive selection process to an indigenous student who will begin her master’s degree in the Fall of 2021. The theme of her work must be related to the call to action and commitment, as defined in the Principle de Joyce, a brief presented to the Government of Quebec by the Atikamekw Council of Manawan and the Council of the Atikamekw Nation in November 2020.
Applicants must be enrolled in one of the programs at the Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT) or the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS) to be eligible.

The complete file must be sent to the DIALOG Network no later than June 30, 2021 at reseaudialog@ucs.inrs.ca.

About Suzy Basile
Suzy Basile is a professor at UQAT’s École d’études autochtones, chairholder of the Canada Research Chair on Indigenous Women’s Issues and director of the Laboratoire de recherche sur les enjeux relatifs aux femmes autochtones – Mikwatisiw. Professor Basile is Atikamekw and a member of various indigenous organizations and research groups. Among other things, she acts as an advisory member for the Groupe de référence sur les bonnes pratiques d’évaluation par les pairs pour la recherche autochtone.

About Carole Lévesque
Carole Lévesque is a professor at INRS, head of the Alliance ODENA, and director of the DIALOG Network, which she created in 2001 and has now gained international recognition. She has received, among others, the Prix Marcel-Vincent of Acfas (2011) for her contribution to the development of the field of indigenous studies, and the Prix du Québec Marie-Andrée-Bertrand (2016) in recognition of her major role in reconciliation with indigenous peoples.