Quebec English-rights group QCGN rebranding as TALQ
Posted June 3, 2025 10:42 am.
Last Updated June 3, 2025 5:10 pm.
An advocacy group for Quebec’s English-speaking communities is getting a new name and a new look.
The Quebec Community Groups Network is changing its name to TALQ (pronounced “talk”).
It coincides with the group’s 30-year anniversary.
“TALQ reflects our commitment to fostering open dialogue, amplifying diverse voices, and uniting communities across Quebec,” the group’s president Eva Ludvig said.
“Talking is as much about being heard as it is about listening. We want to expand a movement that people want to be a part of, one that is positive and inclusive – a conversation everyone is welcome to join.”
TALQ may not be an acronym, but the group’s slogan does fit nicely: “Talking. Advocating. Living in Québec.”
“It means what it says: We’re talking. We’re open for business,” said Sylvia Martin-Laforge, director-general of TALQ, formerly QCGN. “We’re talking, advocating, and living in Quebec, and so that’s what we plan to do for our community and with the majority community in Quebec.”
She says the name is a nod to Quebec culture.
“W added the accent to Quebec, we’re in blue,” she said. “The whole understanding of this word is outreaching to the majority community and so it’s going to be very important for our citizens in Quebec to understand that we’re working together to make a more prosperous Quebec, to make a more culturally active Quebec, and to have a cohesive Quebec.
The idea is to also reach out to the Francophone community as well, not just English speakers.
“We’re reaching out to Canadians across the land, to Quebecers, Francophones, cultural communities,” said Martin-Laforge. “We want to help people understand what the English-speaking community contributes to Quebec economically, culturally, and work together.”
As for the need to rebrand and change the name, the DG says QCGN was “a bit of a mouthful.”
“And QCGN talked about a network of groups,” she added. “We want to be more inclusive of individual Quebecers.”
The name change comes into effect Wednesday, with an official announcement being made at Maison Alcan with members, stakeholders and community leaders.
