Supporting young professionals on Parliament Hill
June 21, 2021
CADA is a strong supporter and sponsor of the Parliamentary Internship Programme, which has been around since 1970 and welcomes 10 young professionals to Parliament Hill from September through June.
Part of the association’s support includes hosting an annual event to provide the interns with information on the role that CADA plays around parliament, in addition to answering questions. This year the event was virtual due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and took place on June 9, 2021.
“We tell them about the work that we currently do on Parliament Hill for the association,” said Huw Williams, Director of Public Affairs. “And there are other organizations that support and sponsor the program as well, so it is a nice involvement with the community and a great opportunity for CADA to be connected to these young talents.”
As part of the Parliamentary Internship Programme, a group of graduates from universities across Canada are selected to work on Parliament Hill for one year. They are considered paid, non-partisan interns and are selected through a national competition.
“This is a group of bright, young Canadian leaders in their community that aim to acquire elementary experience in the field,” said Williams. “Each intern will work full-time for both an opposition and government Member of Parliament (MP), and meet with a range of people—including senior policymakers, diplomats, journalists, politicians, and more.”
Williams said the association has long been a supporter of the program, and enjoys answering the many questions from the interns.
For the 2020-2021 year, he said the interns are Somaya Amiri (BC), Amélie Cossette (QC), Gabrielle Feldmann (ON), Valere Gaspard (ON), Olga Goulet Doyon (QC), Hanna Hughes (BC), Daniel Lukac (BC), Samuel Maclennan (AB), Tristan Masson (MB), and Christelle Tessono (QC).