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Mary Simon asks Canadians to commit to kindness

by Ainsley Ingram

Ottawa –

Governor Mary Simon calls on Canadians to commit to kindness in her annual year-end message.

The Governor General says 2023 brought challenges caused by climate change and global conflicts.

But she says Canada has also made “important progress in reconciliation” and marked new chapters in history.

In her speech, Simon alternates between English, her native language Inuktitut and French – which she is still learning.

She says people adapt to change in different ways, including with kindness.

And she says that over the past year she has honored people who have turned challenges into opportunities.

Her stories should serve as an example of the “Inuktitut word ajuinnata,” which means “never give up,” she says.

It is the same word with which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky ended his address to parliament in September, saying Simon had told him when they met.

Simon ends her New Year’s address by calling on Canadians to “commit to action and kindness, no matter how daunting the situation” and to face the challenges of the coming year “with a renewed sense of unity.”


This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 29, 2023.

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