Island of Songs  
In March 2005, the Island of Songs project facilitated  collaboration between Newfoundland and Irish singers and songwriters. The exchange saw seven singers and song writers’ travel to Ireland in March and a reciprocal visit by Irish performers in June. As well as hosting a series of live performances in each location, the group hopes to produce a joint CD in the future.

Cross Cultural Music Festival
The Music Industry Association of Newfoundland and Labrador, the Peace A-Chord, the City of St. John’s, the Waterford Music Network and Garter Lane Arts Centre, in the spring and summer of 2005, organized an opportunity for young musicians to export their work to a welcoming city on either side of the Atlantic Ocean.  A band from each city, through a competitive process, was selected to play at a festival from the other city. The St. John’s Band played at the Waterford Spraoi in July 2005 and the Waterford Band played at the Peace–A-Chord in August in St. John’s.

Battered Cod Video 
Ms. Libby Seaward, Waterford Youth Drama, in conjunction with Gordon Pittman of My Dog Productions in Newfoundland has creating a video docu-artistic video collaboration that examines a threatened industry, the fishing industry of Newfoundland and Ireland. Through the mediums of dance and movement, poetry and music, fisherman’s story telling, archive footage and location filming, on young fisherman’s optimistic story is set against a tide of decline.  This video was recently screened at the Women’s International Film Festival in St. John’s, NL. 

Vickers Vimy  
Commemorating the first transatlantic flight 86 years ago, adventurer Steve Fossett and his co-pilot successfully flew an old world biplane across the Atlantic from St. John’s,NL to Connemera Golf Course in  Clifden, Ireland on July 3- 4, 2005. Fossett and airplane enthusiast, Mark Rebholz, who jointly operated a custom built replica Vickers Vimy, wanted to honour and emulate the June 1919 achievement of John Alcock and Arthur Whitten-Brown.

150th Anniversary of the Basilica Cathedral of St. John
the Baptist
Leading up to the 150th Anniversary of the Basilica on September 9, 2005, the Basilica Historical Society organized twelve months of celebrations under the theme “We Remember, We Celebrate, We Go Forth”.  A key event of the Anniversary Celebration was the formal recognition of Bishop Anthony Michael Fleming as a “Person of National Historical Significance” by the Canadian government with the unveiling of a plaque by the Historic Sites and Monuments Board on the Basilica Grounds.

Born in Ireland circa 1792, Bishop Fleming has been touted as the most influential and important Irish Immigrant to come to Newfoundland and Labrador in the 19th century.  He presided over the growth of the Roman Catholic Church in the province from a mission to a diocese, laid the foundations of a Catholic education system, and encouraged the politicization of Irish Roman Catholics. In 1834, Bishop Fleming revealed his plan to erect a large stone church as the Cathedral for Newfoundland.  On September 9, 1855, the Roman Catholic Basilica – Cathedral of St. John the Baptist was consecrated amidst great fanfare.

Canada-Irish-Newfoundland Fellowships and Roundtables
The Canada-Irish-Newfoundland Fellowships and Roundtables (CINFR or “Coracle”) initiative was announced by Memorial University in January 2005. The initiative is designed to strengthen linkages between the two jurisdictions through fellowships and exchanges lasting from one to three years. 
The CINFR also includes provisions for Roundtables on matters of mutual interest to the two governments.  Fellowships are intended for university faculty, senior civil servants, labour and business leaders, cultural and artistic leaders, and practitioners of various professions. This is the first year for the Coracle Fellowship and two successful candidates have been identified. They are: Mr. Walter Kirwan, former Assistant Secretary, Department of the Taoiseach and Dr. Trevor Bell, Department of Geography, Memorial University.
For details, go to: www.mun.ca/coracle.php

Exchange between RNC Historical Society and An Garda Siochana 

The RNC Historical Society Inc. took a delegation to Ireland in May 2005 to explore and foster the historical link between the Royal Irish Constabulary (An Garda Siochana) and the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary (RNC).  The visit was intended to formalize an agreement for the exchange of information and artifacts.

Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Memorial University and University College Cork
In February 2005, Memorial University signed an MOU with University College Cork to examine areas of opportunity for collaboration in innovative techniques for seabed data interpretation and visualisation. The MOU is hoped to also facilitate the identification of further areas of cooperation such as in information and communication technologies and engineering. Strategies for student exchange programs in coastal management and for new R&D projects concerned with ocean technologies are other goals of the partnership. Click here to read full press release.

MOU between Sir Wilfred Grenfell College and Waterford Institute of Technology  

Sir Wilfred Grenfell College and the Waterford Institute of Technology formalized their long
standing relationship by signing an MOU in April 2005. The
MOU affirms the commitment of both institutions to continue
to work collaboratively and to provide opportunities for faculty and students to work together in support of common objectives.  It also represents the institutions’ commitment to strengthening ties and building relationships between the two regions. Several projects are planned including a delegation from the WIT visual arts faculty visiting Grenfell; incorporation of a student exchange component in the tourism studies programs; and two Grenfell faculty members will attend WIT as visiting professors for the 05/06 academic year.

Atlantic Partners
In September 2004, the Canadian Centre for Marine Communications, GSI and the Irish Marine Institute signed a MOU creating the Atlantic Partners. Together, they will further exploit the knowledge emerging from the Irish seabed survey and related initiatives and to make it available to third parties. International markets will be targeted in view of the opportunities related to seabed delineation under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. Atlantic Partners will build teams from the private, academic and public sectors to pursue appropriate opportunities. 

Town of Tilting
A delegation from the Town of Tilting, Fogo Island visited Ireland in May-June 2005 to explore future economic development opportunities arising out of the strong cultural linkages that exist between the Town of Tilting and Ireland. 
For the past twelve years, culture and heritage has been a sector for development for the Town, culminating in
designation as Provincial Heritage District in June 2003 and a National Historic Site of Canada in September 2004. 
Restoration projects have included numerous fish stages and stores in the harbour as well a number of homes, one now a museum and a number future commercial properties. Tilting is investigating future twinning possibilities in Ireland and is exploring opportunities in producing replica furniture in restored homes, traditional fencing, traditional gardening and preservation of its cemetery, site of first generation Irish immigrants.   

North West Atlantic Marine Observatory
The growing demand to monitor physical and environmental processes occurring in, on and below the ocean, processes which have a high correlation with ecosystem life and evolution, climate change and geo-hazards, continue to heighten the awareness and demand for ocean observing infrastructure investments by countries bordering the world’s oceans. A unique opportunity has been identified for Newfoundland and Labrador to collaboratively design and develop the core enabling technologies required for the emerging ocean observatory market. A MOU between the Province and the government of Ireland presents an opportunity to bring the necessary partners together for the deployment of marine observatories on both sides of the Atlantic. Such an initiative would build upon the strong ocean technology focused business relationships currently existing between Newfoundland and Ireland. 

In March 2005, the Ireland Business Partnerships commissioned a study to provide an external analysis of opportunities and threats for a North Atlantic Observatory led by Newfoundland and Labrador. The contract was awarded to a study team made up of Innova Quest Inc., Petra International, OceanTouch, and Connections Research. The objective of the project was to undertake an independent examination of the opportunities and threats in pursuing a collaborative approach to a North Atlantic observatory initiative. The study identified the key benefits and challenges of Newfoundland and Labrador and Ireland being lead advocates in collaborative development and deployment of eastern and western North Atlantic Ocean observatories. A report was received by the department on March 24, 2005. Future investigation and discussions will be based on these results and the recommendations put forward.

Tramore Theatre Troup
The Tramore Productions Inc. is a community based non-profit arts organization dedicated to the preservation and promotion of the oral history and cultural traditions of the Cape Shore
and Placentia Bay area of Newfoundland. Each year the Tramore Theatre Troup, located in Cuslett, Placentia Bay, brings the Cape Shore history to life through a series of artistic productions including plays and ballad singing events.  For seven years distinctive programming has successfully drawn audiences from the region, the Province and from around the world, with each year proving more prosperous than the last. The cultural reach extends from rural Newfoundland to rural Ireland with performances in communities around the province and exchanges with theatre troupes in Ireland.  The Troup’s connections with Irish partners enrich the programming.

Tramore Theatre Troup has been collaborating with the Druid Theatre Company of Galway, Ireland for several years.  The Druid Theatre Company has been performing work by Irish playwright, John Millington Synge’s work since 1975. Each year Tramore performs one of  Synge’s plays along with other Irish plays and locally written works. This year, the artistic director for the Tramore Group went to Ireland to meet with the artist director for the Druid Theatre Troup and to view the performance of several of J.M. Synge’s plays. This ongoing collaboration with the Druid Theatre Company and other Irish partners is important to building capacity and sharing best practices.

Pope Productions   
“Atlantic Sound” is a contemporary comedy series, comprising eight, one-hour televisions shows, developed for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation CBC and Radio Telefís Éireann ($8 million). Atlantic Sound is a co-production between Paul Pope of Pope Productions (Newfoundland) and Michael Garland and Paul Donovan of Grand Pictures (Ireland).

Morag Productions   
“Love and Savagery” is a love story feature film ($5.5 million). This is a co-production between Barbara Doran and Lynne Wilson of Morag Productions (Newfoundland) and Tristan Opren Lynch of Subotica Entertainment (Ireland).

WIT Centre for Newfoundland and Labrador Studies
The Waterford Institute of Technology has established an institute of Newfoundland and Labrador Studies, which is actively promoting linkages, such as student and staff exchanges, and to build academic programs and faculties between Newfoundland and Ireland.  While the primary areas of co‑operation are in the cultural area, active business to business development activities are in the process of being developed. In March 2004, the Institute hosted a Seminar and Discussion programme on Cultural Tourism, where scholars and organisations from both Newfoundland and Ireland shared challenges and solutions for Cultural and Tourism development.

Marine Institute of Memorial University and the Irish Sea
Fisheries Board 

The Marine Institute has secured a number of projects with the Irish Sea Fisheries Board, including a $25,000 contract to develop a fisheries course and a gear technology workshop to be delivered by distance. In addition, it is working with the University of Cork to deliver a pilot marine engineering course via distance delivery in Ireland and to develop an elective course for Memorial’s Master Marine Studies program. It has also partnered with the Cork Institute of Technology on a Canada-European Community Program for Cooperation in Higher Education and Training. Each institute has secured $200,000 in funding for the period of October 2003 to October 2006 to develop a virtual Centre for International Maritime Education and Training. Funding on this side was provided through the federal Department of Human Resources Development Canada.

                                            Last updated: September 9, 2008