The Canada-Mediterranean Centre (CMC), N706 Ross Building, is a resource centre officially and academically linked to the Département d’Études françaises. Its principal aim is to promote dialogue between the north and south of the Mediterranean, as well as between Canada and the Mediterranean. It conducts bilingual and interdisciplinary research. It was created by a generous gift from University Professor Emeritus Hédi Bouraoui, who also donated all of his books and journals dedicated to Francophone literatures of the Maghreb and of French Canada, in addition to collections in the areas of Sub Saharan Africa, the Caribbean, Québec, and Acadia. This Centre of research and of bibliographical sources is the only one of its kind in Canada. Its mandate consists of:
- Conducting bilingual and intercultural research in Mediterranean, Maghrebian, Franco-Ontarian, and general Canadian Literatures and Cultures.
- Updating the collection of books and journals through new acquisitions.
- Offering every year the Hédi Bouraoui Scholarship in Mediterranean Studies with Emphasis on the Maghreb, to a graduate or undergraduate student who presents an essay in Mediterranean Studies with Emphasis on the Maghreb, or an excellent research proposal.
The Centre encourages the development and logistic support of courses in Maghrebian and Franco-Ontarian literatures. It invites to the Centre Professors, researchers and/or writers from North America, Europe, and the Maghreb.
The CMC organizes colloquia and conferences in order to attract professors, researchers, and students. The International Colloquium, “Hédi Bouraoui devant la critique,” took place May 26-28, 2005. Perspectives critiques sur l’œuvre d’Hédi Bouraoui, the Proceedings of the Colloquium, was published in 2007 (Laurentian U, Sudbury: Human Sciences Monograph Series). The second International Colloquium, “Pluri-Culture and Migrant Writings,” took place May 17-20, 2012, with the support of SSHRC/CRSH. Pluri-Culture and Migrant Writings, the Proceedings of the Colloquium, was published in 2014 (Sudbury: Human Sciences Monograph Series).
The Centre publishes the online Revue CMC Review, which is bilingual and interdisciplinary, twice a year. With the help of York University Printing Services, it publishes books on Mediterranean, Maghrebian, and Canadian literatures and cultures.
For further information, please contact the CMC (cmc@yorku.ca) or the Département d’Études françaises (lapsfren@yorku.ca).
