The sqotesol (meaning “embers” or “live coals” in Wolastoqey) call attention to the need, or even the urgency, to act in order to prevent loss. But it also reminds us of the possibilities: “A single ember is all it takes” is the SQOTESOL slogan.
Its aim is to support, for the duration of the UNESCO’s International Decade of Indigenous Languages (2022-2032), the revitalization of the Wolastoqey language and the cultural resurgence of the Wolastoqiyik.
Its main goals are:
The team follows the standards of the Comité d’éthique de la recherche avec des êtres humains (Human Research Ethics Board) of the Université de Moncton, and acts in accordance with the principles of the
Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans – TCPS 2 (2018), in particular Chapter 9, “Research Involving the First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples of Canada”, which serves as “a framework for the ethical conduct of research involving Indigenous peoples” (TCPS 2, 2018).
SQOTESOL is committed to the Ownership, Control, Access, and Possession (OCAP®) principles of the First Nations Information Governance Centre.
A photograph of embers, representing the fire ready to be rekindled, was the inspiration for the SQOTESOL logo. Once transformed, simplified, and purified, the photograph influenced the color palette as well as the breaking of the image into angular shapes. These puzzle pieces form the background of the logo, referring to the challenge of revitalizing the Wolastoqey language.