Roger Turenne

Born in Manitoba, Roger Turenne served for 14 years as a Foreign Service Officer in Canada’s External Affairs department, with assignments in Ottawa, in Paris as Deputy Permanent Delegate of Canada to UNESCO, and in Kinshasa and Stockholm where he headed the political sections of the Canadian embassies in the those countries.  

He returned to Manitoba in 1981 to become Senior Adviser on French language services to the Premiers of Manitoba, and was the architect of the language policies of both the Pawley and the Filmon administrations. Since 1991, he has volunteered his time with conservation groups in Manitoba, and has been a driving force in the move to establish protected areas in the Interlake region of the province. 

He is the author of a book on the French community in Manitoba, entitled “Mon pays noir sur blanc, regards sur le Manitoba francais”, and has written numerous magazine and newspaper articles, in both English and French, on conservation and political issues in Manitoba. He has also been a political analyst for Radio-Canada. With a passion for photography and wilderness travel, he has led numerous nature-related trips from Alaska to Florida.