Circumpolar Musings: Nunavik

Three Inuit women set to receive 2012 National Aboriginal Achievement Awards

Amanda Graham — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 20:38:13 GMT

(Nunatsiaq News, 23 November 2011) -- Three Inuit women will receive National Aboriginal Achievement Awards in 2012. The awards, which celebrate excellence in the country’s First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities, go to federal health minister and Nunavut MP Leona Aglukkaq in the field of politics, Nunatsiavut lawyer Violet Ford in law and justice, and Nunavik Regional Government negotiator Minnie Grey for her public service. ... The three Inuit recipients are among 14 winners announced for 2012. Recipients will receive their awards at a gala event to be hosted and televised in 2012.

Work on self-government for Nunavik will continue: Makivik

Amanda Graham — Sat, 30 Apr 2011 20:49:43 GMT

(Sarah Rogers/Nunatsiaq News, 29 April 2011) -- KUUJJUAQ - Nunavimmiut will continue to work towards self-government, despite saying a clear “no” to a proposed Nunavik Regional Government this week, says Makivik Corp. president Pita Aatami. The region’s April 27 referendum sunk a proposal to merge existing regional organizations and set up a new Nunavik Assembly, after two-thirds of voters said “no” to this plan. If the “yes” side had won, there would also have been further negotiations needed to give the NRG more powers, Aatami said. “We wouldn’t have been at a stage where we could say that we had our own government yet,” Aatami told Nunatsiaq News in an interview from Montreal. “We’ve been in discussions for over four years on this – what’s another few months or years? “There’s still a lot of work to do.” Aatami said the referendum result came as no surprise. The concerns that people raised about protecting the Inuit language and culture were legitimate, he said, because the content and direction of the second round of negotiations were “unknown.” But many people misunderstood the final agreement, or didn’t give themselves the time to absorb its contents, he said. “In no way were we even trying to give up rights that Inuit have under the James Bay agreement,” Aatami said. ‘We were very clear, form the beginning, that further negotiations would [determine our autonomy].” Aatami defended the process adopted by the negotiators. Aatami said Nunavimmiut had the chance to stay informed through the NRG website and could ask questions in person during a field trip to Nunavik communities this past February and March. Asked if the NRG Facebook group had anything to do with the “no” vote, Aatami said he was aware of resistance to the final agreement even before that group had formed. “I had an inkling, from all the people I was speaking to,” he said. Aatami said he was pleased to see Nunavimmiut participate in the referendum’s democratic process.

Quebec Inuit vote against self-government plan

Amanda Graham — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 21:21:17 GMT

(Eye on the Arctic/CBC News, 29 April 2011) -- Inuit in the Nunavik region of northern Quebec voted this week to reject a self-government plan that was proposed for the region. About 70 per cent of citizens who cast ballots in a referendum Wednesday voted against adopting a final agreement on the creation of a Nunavik regional government. The final agreement was drafted by the federal and Quebec governments along with Makivik Corp., which represents Nunavik Inuit as set out by the James Bay and Northern Quebec agreement. But of 4,242 valid ballots cast in Wednesday's referendum, 2,842 said No to the proposed agreement while 1,400 said Yes, according to Elections Quebec. "It's back to the drawing board," Makivik Corp. president Pita Aatami told CBC News on Thursday. The three parties agreed in December 2007 to work towards establishing new self-government powers in Nunavik, with the goal of empowering Inuit in the region to govern themselves. The agreement they developed proposed merging three existing public agencies in Nunavik, namely the regional municipal administration, school board, and health and social services board. ... Despite the outcome of the referendum, Aatami said the desire remains for self-government in Nunavik, a predominantly Inuit region in northern Quebec. Aatami said he just hopes negotiations with the federal and Quebec governments can continue. "I'd like to sit down with the two governments right away, but are they open to sitting down with us right away after ... the votes that were cast?" Aatami said. "But we won't give up," he added. "We're going to keep going and try and get some more control over the region."

Kuujjuaq bank branch destroyed by fire

Amanda Graham — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 21:11:51 GMT

(CBC News, 7 March 2011) -- CIBC customers in Kuujjuaq, Que., are temporarily without local service, after their bank branch was destroyed by fire over the weekend. The branch building burned down on Sunday morning, but firefighters salvaged the ABM, bank vault and cashiers' boxes from the rubble. The machine, vault and boxes have been removed and are stored in a secure location, according to bank officials. A CIBC representative is travelling to the remote northern Quebec village on Monday to help the local branch manager prepare to restore service. The bank will also make information available for customers who have questions about their accounts, according to officials.

Nunavik residents to vote April 27 on new regional government

Amanda Graham — Sun, 13 Feb 2011 21:57:57 GMT

(Nunatsiaq News, 12 February 2011) -- Nunavimmiut will vote April 27, 2011 on the creation of the Nunavik Regional Government. The final agreement, which spells out the proposed governance model for Nunavik, has been made public in time for a regional tour, which starts Feb. 14 in Kangiqsualujjuaq. The tour gathers negotiators from all three levels of government, regional, provincial and federal, who will visit each of the 14 communities in Nunavik to explain the agreement at public meetings and answer questions. That’s so Nunavimmiut have time to absorb the new model before the April referendum, when they will vote to either accept or reject the agreement. The Nunavik Regional Government, or NRG, would amalgamate existing regional bodies like the Kativik Regional Government, the Kativik School Board, and the Nunavik Regional Board of Health and Social Services, putting them under the authority of a new elected body called the Nunavik Assembly. The assembly would be made up of 20 members; a representative from each of the region’s 14 communities (elected locally), four executive council members and a leader (elected regionally) and one member from the Naskapi nation. Executive council members would hold full-time jobs.Nunavimmmiut will vote April 27, 2011 on the creation of the Nunavik Regional Government. The final agreement, which spells out the proposed governance model for Nunavik, has been made public in time for a regional tour, which starts Feb. 14 in Kangiqsualujjuaq. The tour gathers negotiators from all three levels of government, regional, provincial and federal, who will visit each of the 14 communities in Nunavik to explain the agreement at public meetings and answer questions. That’s so Nunavimmiut have time to absorb the new model before the April referendum, when they will vote to either accept or reject the agreement. The Nunavik Regional Government, or NRG, would amalgamate existing regional bodies like the Kativik Regional Government, the Kativik School Board, and the Nunavik Regional Board of Health and Social Services, putting them under the authority of a new elected body called the Nunavik Assembly. The assembly would be made up of 20 members; a representative from each of the region’s 14 communities (elected locally), four executive council members and a leader (elected regionally) and one member from the Naskapi nation. Executive council members would hold full-time jobs.

Lack of housing drives youth away from Nunavik

Amanda Graham — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 04:22:18 GMT

(Jane George/Nunatsiaq News, 10 November 2010) -- When Olivia Ikey Duncan spoke to visiting Parti Québécois politicians Nov. 8 in Kuujjuaq, she felt sweaty and nauseous: the 21-year-old Kuujjuaq woman isn’t used to public speaking. But Ikey Duncan overcame her fear because she wanted to tell the group from Quebec City, which included PQ leader Pauline Marois, Ungava MNA Luc Ferland and the party’s native affairs critic Alexandre Cloutier, how Nunavik’s lack of housing affects youth like her. When Ikey Duncan attended college in Montreal, she shared an apartment there with a roommate. “It was amazing, having your own kitchen. You can be a mess when you want to,” she told Nunatsiaq News. But now Ikey Duncan is back in Kuujjuaq where doesn’t have a home to call her own. Ikey Duncan first put her name on a waiting list for social housing in Kuujjuaq when she was 17. Then, earlier this year, when social housing officials decided to update the list of residents seeking social housing, she re-did her application, and returned it promptly to the Kativik Municipal Housing Bureau. But Ikey Duncan learned that she has little chance to ever get a unit because she doesn’t have any kids and the allocation of social housing in Nunavik is based on a point system, which favours people with children. ... The KMHB 2010 housing needs survey says Nunavik needs more than 1,000 one-bedroom units — the kind youth want — but these are also the least economic units to build, the study notes. Kuujjuaq’s social housing stock includes only 36 one-bedroom units. A friend who is 30 just got a small social housing unit after 12 years on the list — but Duncan says she won’t wait that long — “another nine years!” The departure of youth like Ikey Duncan may will start a brain drain from Nunavik, leaving organizations like Makivik Corp. with fewer educated Inuit to take over. “They’ll be left with all the people who dropped out, had kids and got housing,” she said.

KSB plans “Nunavik Sivuniksavut” for Inuit youth

Amanda Graham — Tue, 02 Nov 2010 23:21:07 GMT

(Sarah Rogers/Nunatsiaq News, 2 November 2010) -- Nunavik high school graduates may soon get a made-in-Nunavik option to pursue post-secondary studies. The Kativik School Board is working towards a Nunavik version of the successful Nunavut Sivuniksavut, the college-level program for Inuit students, which is based in Ottawa. Nunavik’s students could benefit from a similar program based on their own region’s history, said Elias Moukannas, an academic advisor at Kativik School Board. “NS is about teaching leadership [to Inuit students], teaching them to express their opinions, to be independent and confident,” Moukannas said. “You have to be able to understand your culture in order to talk about it.” Those skills will help to nurture the future leaders in the region, he added. Nunavik Sivuniksavut, as the program would be called, could open its doors in the fall of 2012. The program will be based in Montreal because students have identified that they benefit from the independence gained in being away from home, Moukannas said. “Everyone’s in support of this,” Moukannas said. “It’s just about finding the funding.”

Overcrowdedness defines map of northern Canada

Amanda Graham — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 00:12:22 GMT

(Nunatsiaq News, 24 September 2010) -- The title of the map “Sleeping on the Couch” may sound almost whimsical, says the Conference Board of Canada, but the reality of overcrowded housing in Canada’s North is no laughing matter. Virtually all social and health problems increase dramatically when combined with overcrowded housing, says the organization in a Sept. 24 news release. “Almost all social and health problems increase dramatically when combined with overcrowded housing,” said Gilles Rhéaume, the Conference Board’s vice-president for public policy. “Crowded housing is an issue that clearly demonstrates a north-south divide in Canada.” In Statistics Canada’s Keewatin census division, which covers the Kivalliq region in Nunavut, 25 per cent of homes have six or more people living in them — the highest percentage of overcrowding in Canada. Close behind are regions in five provinces which also have census divisions showing that 10 per cent or more of the homes are overcrowded.

Melting permafrost threatens Arctic housing projects

Amanda Graham — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 02:54:39 GMT

(The Canadian Press via CTV, 20 June 2010) -- MONTREAL — An Arctic community that has seen its fire hall sink and roads buckle in the melting permafrost is now shifting future building projects away from town. The effect of vanishing permafrost -- soil normally frozen year round -- is now being felt across Canada's North, and the Quebec village of Salluit is just one of many Arctic towns trying to adapt to an increasingly warmer climate. Rising temperatures are being blamed for natural disturbances in the North, such as the rapidly eroding coastline of Tuktoyaktuk, N.W.T., and unprecedented floods that knocked out two bridges in Pangnirtung, Nunavut. Salluit even considered relocating the whole town. One of Quebec's northernmost communities, Salluit saw its local fire station sink into the softening ground a year after it opened. Across town, paved roads have crumpled, foundations of buildings have cracked and now even summertime grave-digging isn't what it used to be. A few years ago, it took considerable effort just to dig a foot into what was once ice-solid earth, says one resident of the Nunavik village. "We used to need hammers and all that because it was frozen solid all the way through," said Noah Tayara, a local representative for Makivik Corp., northern Quebec's governing body. "(Today), we don't need those. We can shovel to six feet without having to go through the permafrost." For years, the people of Salluit, shielded by a bunker-like valley on Sugluk Inlet off the Hudson Strait, faced the prospect of uprooting their town to move away from the defrosting turf. Following two years of scientific studies, experts have concluded the village can stay put. But the community's much-needed expansion will have to go elsewhere and follow specific construction guidelines. "We can safely say that there's no relocation of houses that are sitting permanently right now," said Michael Cameron, a Salluit municipal councillor. Instead, he said the village hopes to secure government funding to build up to 500 two-bedroom homes at several chosen sites within a few kilometres of the community. Cameron noted the shift to outlying areas is partly due to a lack of space in the town of 1,100. The new housing developments, which aim to ease overcrowding that often sees three generations living under one roof, will be constructed in sturdier areas that feature a mix of bedrock, clay, sand, gravel and permafrost. The plans were presented at a public meeting two weeks ago, helping calm fears the town was under the threat of mudslides. "There is permafrost beneath us and it's changing, but they said it's not so big a problem that we would . . . suffer a landslide into the sea," said Paul Okituk, general manager of Qaqqalik Landholding Corp. in Salluit.

Inuit leader wants apology for dog deaths

Amanda Graham — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 18:54:58 GMT

(CBC News, 23 March 2010) -- A Quebec Inuit leader wants the provincial and federal governments to apologize for the slaughter of more than 1,000 sled dogs more than half a century ago. Makivik Corp. president Pita Aatami made the remark after the release of a report from retired Quebec judge Jean-Jacques Croteau, who said Ottawa and Quebec owe the Inuit of northern Quebec — a territory now known as Nunavik — an apology and compensation for turning a blind eye to the mass dog deaths. Croteau's final report, released last week, found that Quebec provincial police shot or gassed more than 1,000 sled dogs in most of Nunavik's 14 communities between 1950 and 1970, without considering their essential role in traditional Inuit lives. Aatami told CBC News he will meet with federal Indian and Northern Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl this week to discuss the report. As well, Makivik officials are making plans with the Quebec government to discuss Croteau's recommendations. "What I've been searching for all these years is an apology," Aatami said Monday. "I hope we're a step closer to getting that apology from the Quebec government, and hopefully the federal government, for the wrong that was done to the Inuit."

Judge: Quebec, Ottawa owe apology, compensation for Nunavik Inuit dog-killings

Amanda Graham — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 19:24:12 GMT

(Jane George/Nunatsiaq News, 7 March 2010) -- Jean-Jacques Croteau, a retired Quebec superior court judge, recommends that the governments of Quebec and Canada owe an apology plus compensation to the Inuit of Nunavik for the killing of sled dogs between 1950 and 1970. Croteau’s final, French-language report on the alleged slaughter of Inuit sled dogs from 1950 to 1970 in Nunavik is now in the hands of Pierre Corbeil, the provincial native affairs minister, and Pita Aatami , the president of Makivik Corp.. Croteau was mandated in 2007 by Quebec to look into the issue. He delivered his final report to Corbeil and Aatami on March 3. The federal and provincial governments owe compensation and an apology to the Inuit of Nunavik, Croteau said in his report. He said the whole of Nunavik society suffered damaging consequences from the actions, attitudes and mistakes of bureaucrats, agents and representatives of the two governments, who killed at least 1,000 dogs in Nunavik during the 1950s and 1960s. And Croteau said he trusts that Ottawa and Quebec will make amends. “They will settle with the representatives of Makivik,” Croteau said.

Quebec pitches Plan Nord to Cree

Amanda Graham — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 04:42:42 GMT

(CBC News, 12 January 2010) -- Quebec ministers met with Cree leaders on Monday to discuss the province's ambitious Plan Nord, a long-term road map for economic development in its farthest geographic reaches. The province is keen to allay fears among First Nations leaders that the far-reaching resource development project will affect existing treaties, and impede aboriginal sovereignty over land use. Deputy minister Nathalie Normandeau told some 100 Cree leaders gathered in Mistissini that the plan hatched by Jean Charest's Liberal government will be adjusted to reflect existing treaties with First Nations in Quebec. The Cree are signatories to two treaties: the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement land claim settlement; and the Paix des Braves, which provides for revenue sharing and joint management of mining, forestry and hydroelectric resources on Cree land. Normandeau and her colleague Indian Affairs Minister Pierre Corbeil said they hope to work in partnership with northern communities when the Plan Nord project gets underway. The plan includes $19 billion in new energy projects, which would add 3,500 megawatts to Hydro-Québec's grid by 2035 — enough to power roughly 600,000 homes. A significant portion of those megawatts would come from damming the Romaine River. Premier Jean Charest has said the project could generate as many as 2,000 jobs per year between 2012 and 2016. But some aboriginal groups who say the Plan Nord will raze their traditional way of life have resisted meeting with the Quebec government to discuss the project. Five Innu communities boycotted a closed-door meeting with Normandeau late last year. Chief Ghislain Picard, who heads the Assembly of First Nations of Quebec and Labrador, has called on Prime Minister Stephen Harper to intervene in the project.

Web resource: New website a showcase for Nunavik

Amanda Graham — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 06:48:02 GMT

(Sarah Rogers/Nunatsiaq News, 6 January 2010) -- KANGIQSUJUAQ - Nunavik’s heritage is at your fingertips, with an eye-catching website, called “Nunavik: A Land, Its People,” the latest reference for newbies and residents alike. The newly launched site, produced by Montreal researcher and photographer Luc Bouvrette, is now one of over 500 virtual exhibits funded through the Virtual Museum of Canada. Bouvrette first came to Nunavik on business five years ago — then a place about which he knew little. Taken by its rich past and present, Bouvrette said he wanted to give the region the credit it deserves. “My first impressions were twofold; there were the people that I met,” he said. “Even having the smallest contacts by talking with people at the co-op, I felt very at home. And then there was the natural beauty.” That beauty is captured in Bouvrette’s many photographs, creating a rich visual display on the website at bit.ly/8piUAT. Limited by time and money, Bouvrette has spent his time in four villages, Tasiujaq, Kangiqsujuaq, Puvirnituq and Kuujjuaq. Based on these visits, Bouvrette offers a colourful introduction to Inuit culture that takes the visitor beyond the well-worn icons of igloos and dog sled teams. The website’s culture section provides a sensory experience, including audio of a trio of women from Kangiqsujuaq performing different styles of throat-singing. Viewers can also scroll through a gallery of drawings by students at Arsaniq school. In another section, readers can enjoy accounts from Nunavimmiut elders and youth.

Future of Nunavik begins with a three-letter acronym

Amanda Graham — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 00:40:13 GMT

(Jane George/Nunatsiaq News Online, 3 December 2009) -- KUUJJUAQ - The future government of Nunavik now has its own acronym: NRG. The Nunavik regional government, which may come into effect in April 2013, just needs money, a new building and the support of government and Nunavimmiut to become reality. Negotiations with officials in Ottawa and Quebec City on the region’s final self-government agreement are in their “final stretch,” says Minnie Grey, Nunavik’s chief negotiator for self-government, who spoke at last week’s meeting of the Kativik Regional Government in Kuujjuaq. Grey promised to deliver a “very simple” and “very clear” self-government deal to Nunavimmiut by next March. Under the NRG, Nunavik’s regional organizations, the Nunavik regional health board, Kativik School Board and KRG, will amalgamate into one new, large Nunavik government organization, but no one would lose jobs or benefits in the changeover, Grey said. Asked whether the NRG would be able to make progress in tackling Nunavik’s drug and alcohol-caused social problems, Grey was less sure, telling councillors that the government would not be able to solve every problem

Discover Nunavik through a virtual exhibit

Amanda Graham — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 20:23:21 GMT

(Université de Montréal Nouvelles (alerted by The Circumpolar Blog), 1 December 2009) -- Luc Bouvrette, a Université de Montréal professor, has created something unique to enable people from around the world to discover Nunavik – a virtual exhibit called A Land, Its People. The exhibit is available in French, English and Inuktitut and features magnificent photographs, stories and legends. The virtual show also includes Inuktitut throat-singing recordings that audiences can perform along with thanks to a karaoke application. A Land, Its People is financed by The Virtual Museum of Canada. On the Web: A Land, Its People; About the Forum en clips report; About the Forum.

Quilt craze has Kangiqsujuaq in stitches

Amanda Graham — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 20:05:16 GMT

(Sarah Rogers/Nunatsiaq News, 19 November 2009) -- KANGIQSUJUAQ - A one-of-a-kind raffle prize at a recent festival in Nunavik drew oohs and ahs from the crowd. But when Mary Pilurtuut, the mayor of Kangiqsujuaq, saw the decorative quilt up for grabs she had only one thought:” we have to bring those blankets to this community.” In the end, Pilurtuut brought the means to create quilts in Kangiqsujuaq. Thanks to a teacher in her community whose mother is an active quilter in Ontario, Pilurtuut located two quilting instructors who were eager to teach an old southern tradition to Kangiqsujuaq’s many seamstresses. And that’s how Yvette Fournier and Gail Gallow recently spent nearly two weeks in Kangiqsujuaq helping a group of keen sewers learn the basic techniques of quilting. “I wanted to learn how to make my own blankets,” said one the workshop’s younger participants Maali Tukirqi, adding she had never used hand-made bedcovers at home before. In the past, some in the community had made blankets, but not with the same detailed stitching that characterizes quilting. The two instructors showed Kangiqsujuaq’s novice quilters how to work with patterns, letting the sewers chose their own fabrics from several boxes of donated material.

Music: Where the north wind meets the south

Amanda Graham — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 16:55:56 GMT

(Catherine Solyom/The Gazette, 17 November 2009) -- MONTREAL - Anyone can whistle like the wind, but few do it with as much conviction as award-winning singer, songwriter and filmmaker Elisapie Isaac, whose rendition of a blustering storm carries you clean across the Arctic landscape. Isaac, born in Salluit, Nunavik—the second-most-northern Inuit community in Quebec, population 1,200—moved to Montreal 10 years ago and has since seduced audiences around the world, first with her documentaries, and now with songs that bridge the great divide between north and south, traditional and new, with a voice that warms the soul. In 2000, just one year into a journalism degree from John Abbott College, she became host of a documentary called Peoples of the Circumpolar, that had her leaving her new home to return to the snowscapes of Canada, Alaska, Greenland, Norway and Siberia. Within three years she had produced her own film, If the Weather Permits, on the precarious future of Inuit culture. For that she won the Claude Jutra prize for most promising filmmaker, among a handful of other awards. But it is her music, first with the duo Taima, which won a Juno in 2005, and now on her own, with the release in September of There Will Be Stars, that has earned Isaac the critical acclaim of her friends in Nunavik and strangers abroad. With songs in Inuktitut, English and French, the album is rhythmic and sensuous, light and luminous. Think Polar Pop, or Abba meets Buffy Sainte Marie under the aurora borealis. Or just pure Elisapie, freckles and all.

Natives want PM to screen northern Quebec projects

Amanda Graham — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 08:08:34 GMT

(CBC News, 6 November 2009) -- What has been called Canada's largest construction project came under fire from aboriginal groups Friday, who called on Prime Minister Stephen Harper to protect their treaty rights in the face of a Quebec government plan to develop the province's north. The skirmish threatens to end an era of amiable relations between the province and aboriginal groups in a return to old feuds that dominated hydroelectric power discussions in the past. Premier Jean Charest's Plan Nord, a showpiece project that was announced with great fanfare during last year's provincial election, is part of the government's goal for massive resource development in the north. The plan includes $19 billion in new energy projects, which would add 3,500 megawatts to Hydro-Québec's grid by 2035—enough to power roughly 600,000 homes. But some aboriginal groups contend it will bulldoze their traditional way of life and steamroller their treaty rights. Five Innu communities boycotted a closed-door meeting hosted by Quebec Natural Resources Minister Nathalie Normandeau in Quebec City on Friday to discuss the project. But about 200 people from northern Quebec did attend the gathering. Chief Ghislain Picard, head of the powerful Assembly of First Nations of Quebec and Labrador, called on Harper to intervene. ... Environment groups have criticized the project, saying it would create significant problems in the forest land slated to be flooded. The Innu are threatening to use all legal means to throw a wrench into the plan if their ancestral rights are not respected, although no timetable was given Friday. Those rights include historical and modern treaties and the right to self-government.

Nunavik poet dies suddenly in Montreal

Amanda Graham — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 05:55:54 GMT

(Emanuel Lowi/Nunatsiaq News, 18 October 2009) -- Born near Puvirnituq, Emily Novalinga suffered a heart attack in her sleep Oct. 10. At the time of her death she was staying at the home of her daughter Caroline in the Montreal suburb of Dorval. Novalinga was 55. Last month, Novalinga was chosen winner of Nunavik’s first Aumaaggiivik grant for literature, in recognition for her work as a poet and storyteller. The grant, awarded from the Nunavik Arts Secretariat’s Fund for Arts and Literature, was established by Kativik Regional Government and Avataq Cultural Institute in January 2009. Novalinga was scheduled to travel next week to Kuujjuaraapik, Inukjuak and Puvirnituq on a tour of storytelling and poetry readings for children. “She was very happy and proud about her upcoming trip,” said Brigitte Lebrasseur, a nurse in Puvirnituq who was Emily’s friend. [See the video embedded in the original story page.]

Phone service in Nunavik about to go walkabout

Amanda Graham — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 17:12:50 GMT

(Nunatsiaq News Online, 28 September 2009) -- KUUJJUAQ - Makivik Corp. and Lynx Mobility, a subsidiary of a Canadian telecommunications company, OmniGlobe, plan to start bringing cell phone technology to Nunavik. Kuujjuaq will be the first community to receive cell phone service, which will be managed by a new Makivik subsidiary. The cellular service should be available in Kuujjuaq by the end of this year, confirmed Balgovind Pande, Lynx Mobility’s vice-president for customer relations. Cell phones won’t replace CB radios on the land, because their range in Kuujjuaq will probably extend no further than 15 kilometres, depending on the geography, time of the year and whether additional relay stations are put up. The new Kuujjuaq system will use CDMA, short for “Code-Division Multiple Access,” which is also used by Bell Mobility. Rogers, the other big wireless provider in Canada, uses GSMC or Global System for Mobile Communications. The GSMC protocol is far more common outside North America. OmniGlobe already supplies cellular services to the Naskapi community of Kawawachikamach, located to the south of Kuujjuaq, and to the twin Cree-Inuit communities of Whapmagoostui and Kuujjuaraapik.

Priceless Nunavik artifacts safe and sound in Montreal

Amanda Graham — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 05:14:52 GMT

(Nunatsiaq Online, 22 September 2009) -- MONTREAL — Much of Nunavik’s rich historical legacy is cocooned within a sturdy brick building on Peel Street in downtown Montreal, where it’s kept safe for future generations. No one would imagine that amautiit worn by Nunavik women, seal-hunting harpoons, carvings and thousands of photos are locked away in this storage facility behind a series of airtight entrances protected by a guard and security cameras. These artifacts, works of art and archives from or about Nunavik lie safely in drawers and on shelves where the temperature stays at 20.5°C and the humidity level never rises above 50 per cent. But that’s the idea — to safeguard these priceless items in a controlled, secure environment, staff with Nunavik’s Avataq Cultural Institute say. Avataq now runs the new facility. Until earlier this year, Avataq’s art collection was stored in bundles and boxes at the Canadian Conservation Institute near Ottawa. The new storage facility has an indoor garage, which means these precious objects are never exposed to sunlight when they are moved in or out of the building, which also houses other Quebec museum collections. Until recently Avataq curators weren’t even sure what the collection included. But since April, Avataq staff members, assisted by students from a Quebec college museum program, managed to unpack countless archeological materials, photos, papers, artifacts and art works and arrange them in custom-designed shelves and drawers. Most items were photographed and the images put into a digital data base. There you can view 360-degree images of many items, such as this polar bear carving. And, while it may seen odd to keep these precious bits of the Nunavik’s past in Montreal, a secure, climate-controlled facility like this one would be too expensive to build and maintain in the North, Avataq curator Louis Gagnon said. But Avataq’s intent isn’t to bring materials down from the North unless they need special conservation, he said. Avataq simply wants to preserve its existing collection in a safe place. From there, items can travel to institutions for exhibition, researchers can come in to consult materials, and — above all — Avataq’s collection will remain in good condition for many generations, he said. ... Avataq’s collection is open to all Nunavimmiut, and anyone interested in visiting the facility should contact Avataq first (http://avataq.qc.ca) to make an appointment.

Outfitter leaves clients howling for their money

Amanda Graham — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 18:35:28 GMT

(Jane George/Nunatsiaq News, 10 September 2009) -- KUUJJUAQ - Tuttulik, an Inuit-owned outfitting firm based in Umiujaq, has dealt a serious blow to the reputation of Nunavik’s annual caribou sports hunt. Tuttulik suddenly ceased operations in September of 2008, depriving nearly 300 clients from the United States of the one-week hunting trips for which they paid up to $5,000 US in advance. The hunters, who never got their money back, have now taken to the internet, where their furious complaints are posted on hunting and fishing forums, outdoor magazine websites, and small-town newspapers websites across North America. “This has happened before in Quebec and undoubtedly will happen again. Save your money and hunt in the good old U.S.A,” counsels a post from a Tuttulik client on the wildoutdoors.com website. Nunavik’s caribou sports hunt brings in about $15 to $20 million a year in revenues. [See also Advocatus diaboli blog, "The best kind of sordid boondoggle: an instructive one," 10 September 2009.]

Judge: No systematic dog slaughter in Nunavik

Amanda Graham — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 06:17:51 GMT

(Jane George/Nunatsiaq Online, 6 July 2009) -- There was no systematic elimination of sled dogs during the 1950s and 1960s in Nunavik, a new report says. “Nothing in the file leads me to believe that it occurred,” said retired judge Jean-Jacques Croteau in his 22-page interim report on the allegations concerning the slaughter of sled dogs, which was prepared for Makivik Corp. and Quebec. But Croteau does blame the federal and provincial governments for misusing an agricultural law to justify the killing of sled dogs and then leaving Inuit to deal with the loss of their means of transportation. Croteau found that officials were wrong when they used the agricultural law that forbid loose dogs to justify the killings. “I do not see how a stray sled dog in the Arctic territory of northern Quebec (now Nunavik) could be injurious to agriculture,” he said. “The evidence indicates that northern Quebec Inuit were never consulted regarding the application of the Agricultural Abuses Act, a law totally inappropriate for them and in no manner supporting the exercise of their aboriginal rights.” About 1,000 dogs were killed and 75 hunters affected by the governments’ actions in the 1950s and 60s, the report finds.

N.B. filmmaker wins Commonwealth Vision Award for short about Arctic life

Amanda Graham — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 18:06:40 GMT

(CBC News, 25 June 2009) -- New Brunswick filmmaker Greg Hemmings, of Hemmings House Pictures in Saint John, has won first place in this year's Commonwealth Vision Awards. Hemmings was in London, England, on Wednesday evening to receive the honour from Lord David Putnam, who produced films such as Chariots of Fire, The Killing Fields and The Mission. Hemmings won for Papikatuk, a short film shot in the Arctic community of Kangiksujuaq, Nunavik. "So it was a really neat story about a young, eight-year-old Inuit boy, hanging out with his grandfather — his grandfather teaching him the ways of Inuit life, and his grandfather also a little bit nervous about teaching him the right things about the future because everything is changing so quickly in the Arctic," Hemmings told CBC News. The boy's name is Papikatuk, and he narrates the film, which highlights the way global warming is affecting life in Arctic communities. The theme of this year's Vision Awards, jointly organized by the Royal Commonwealth Society and the Commonwealth Broadcasting Association, was global change. A high commendation and second place went to Pooja Pottenkulam of India and Ambjorn Elder of Sweden for The Boy Who Spoke Moomoo, about the disappearances of native languages.

North urged to throw off federal shackles

Amanda Graham — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 05:25:09 GMT

(Jane George/Nunatsiaq News, 5 June 2009) -- OTTAWA - The North should break free of the federal government, create its own governance models and keep the revenues from resource development, says Stephen Kakfwi, former premier of the Northwest Territories. That was Kakfwi's advice to delegates at the 2030 North national planning conference, where delegates mulled over such issues as climate change, governance, research and security between June 1 and June 4 in Ottawa. Kakfwi said it's time to throw off the "shackles" of the federal government, which have hobbled progress in the North. While northerners worked towards changing the map of Canada's North, the federal department of Indian and northern affairs was hanging on to their ankles and "fighting us every inch of the way," he said. "If we're going to do something positive for the Arctic, we can't let Ottawa be in charge again," he said.

Inuit communities receive $6.8 million in profit-sharing from Xstrata Nickel's Raglan Mine

Amanda Graham — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 04:23:07 GMT

(Xstrata Nickel press release via Marketwire, 4 June 2009) -- MONTREAL, QUEBEC - Xstrata Nickel is pleased to announce that it has presented a cheque in the amount of Cdn$6.8 million to the Makivik Corporation, representing its share of the profits generated in 2008 by the Raglan nickel mine operation, located in the Nunavik Territory of Northern Quebec. Pita Ataami, President of the Makivik Corporation, said "Once again, this year's profit sharing will benefit Nunavimmiut with much needed assistance. These payments are appreciated considering that Nunavik has one of the highest costs of living in Canada." Yearly profit-sharing is part of the Raglan Agreement, a comprehensive agreement signed in 1995 by the Raglan operation and Makivik and local Inuit communities. The agreement supports the harmonized relations and fostering of opportunities between Xstrata Nickel and local populations and their representatives in areas such as training, hiring of local businesses and environmental management. To date, Raglan has delivered more than Cdn$65.4 million back to the community.

Watt-Cloutier tells the world about life up here

Amanda Graham — Sat, 30 May 2009 19:21:31 GMT

When Siila Watt-Cloutier—the activist formerly known as Sheila—delivers her LaFontaine-Baldwin lecture tonight at Inuksuk High School in Iqaluit, she will have her largest Canadian audience ever, she says. The lecture series, established by Canadian novelist and essayist John Ralston Saul, is one of the most prominent lectures in the country on issues related to the public good. It receives major media attention and coverage across the country, and Watt-Cloutier's 8 p.m. address—and a follow-up roundtable discussion on Saturday from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.—will both be broadcast live online to the world by Pond-Inlet-based Isuma TV. Special guests for the two events will include Governor General Michaëlle Jean, Former governor General Adrienne Clarkson, Saul, who is also Clarkson's husband and co-chair with her of the Institute for Canadian Citizenship, filmmaker Zacharias Kunuk and actor Martha Burns. Both events take place at the high school, and are free and open to the public. So Watt-Cloutier, a Nobel Peace Prize nominee in 2007, wants to do her utmost to show her listeners how the struggle against global climate change is about more than just ice and snow.

ICC urges stronger Inuit voice in sovereignty

Amanda Graham — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 23:57:24 GMT

(Jane George/Nunatsiaq News, 14 November 2008) -- KUUJJUAQ - Inuit must have more direct input into how circumpolar nations divide up the resource-rich Arctic Ocean, say delegates at last week's Inuit Circumpolar Council summit on Arctic sovereignty. Inuit aren't saying they're the sole owners of the Arctic, said Duane Smith, Canada's ICC president. But he said Inuit want to be a party to all international discussions on sovereignty. Arctic governments must "include Inuit as equal partners in any future talks regarding Arctic sovereignty," reads a statement issued after the two-day ICC meeting in Kuujjuaq. "They are obligated under various legal instruments—both national and international—to include Inuit in meaningful and direct ways in all and any discussions of sovereignty over lands and seas we have lived on for thousands of years." Jurisdiction over the Arctic Ocean and its underwater cache of oil, gas, gold, nickel and diamonds is increasingly the object of international discussions. That's because the five nations with Arctic seacoasts—Canada, Denmark, Norway, the Russian Federation and the United States—are staking claims over these Arctic waters. ... Officials from Inuit-elected governments largely ignored last week's meeting in Kuujjuaq. There were no elected politicians or non-elected bureaucrats from the Government of Nunavut, although Nunavut premier Paul Okalik was supposed to attend. No observers from the federal government or Quebec were present. Hans Enoksen, the premier of Greenland, also cancelled at the last minute. Greenland is holding a referendum Nov. 25 to approve a plan that would give Greenland more independence from Denmark. The Kuujjuaq meeting also approved a resolution supporting the right of Greenlanders to determine their future as a people. The Nov. 7 meeting coincided with "International Inuit Day," declared at the 2006 ICC general assembly in Barrow. ICC plans to hold similar get-togethers among Inuit leaders every year on Nov. 7 to promote Inuit concerns.

Inuit leaders to work on Arctic rights declaration

Amanda Graham — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 20:34:54 GMT

(CBC News, 10 November 2008) -- Inuit representatives concerned about Arctic sovereignty and other issues affecting the North plan to draft a declaration on the rights of Arctic peoples that they will present to the United Nations. At an Inuit summit late last week in Kuujjuaq, Que., Inuit leaders from Canada, the United States and Greenland said world governments are fighting over control of the Arctic without consulting the indigenous Inuit who live there. "We need to be at the tables where those decisions and discussions are taking place," Patricia Cochran, the Alaska-based chair of the Inuit Circumpolar Council, told CBC News on Friday. Canada, the U.S., Denmark and Russia are among a number of nations vying to own more of the Arctic seafloor under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, in the hopes of tapping into resources such as oil and gas. Inuit representatives also expressed concern about the opening of the Northwest Passage to international interests, especially as melting ice and snow uncovers more mineral wealth. Inuit demand to be more fully involved in Arctic issues, said Mary Simon, president of the Canadian Inuit organization Inuit Tapiirit Kanatami. "Well, if it doesn't happen right now, it will happen at another time," Simon said. "We're not the type of people that give up easily, and our culture and our history shows that we don't give up at all." Leaders at the summit agreed to draw up the declaration over the next six months, then present it to the United Nations and the Arctic Council.

Stats show Nunavik residents not doing well

Amanda Graham — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 05:54:16 GMT

(Jane George/Nunatsiaq News, 10 October 2008) -- KUUJJUAQ - Nunavik has achieved progress in several areas over the past 20 years, but many challenges remain, Gèrard Duhaime, a Laval university researcher, told the recent meeting of Kativik Regional Government councilors in Kuujjuaq. Duhaime said some of findings from the Nunavik 2008 socio-economic profile are "very surprising and shocking." The profile includes a series of simple graphs showing how Nunavik compares to Quebec with respect to its basic statistics on population, education, workforce, jobs, housing and health. These show Nunavik's population has doubled since 1986, there are more high school students and the number of full-time jobs has increased dramatically. The Inuttitut language remains strong. But life expectancy has fallen, tobacco-related deaths are up, housing is overcrowded and levels of violence are still high. And housing is more overcrowded in Nunavik than in other Inuit regions in the Canadian Arctic, with one in three households living in overcrowded conditions, Duhaime said. The region's housing is also much more in need of repairs than housing in the rest of Quebec. Duhaime said overall Nunavik presents a "very, very different" profile than Quebec, due to its high birth rate, which is more than two times higher, and its lower life expectancy, which about 20 years less.

Dear Federal Party Leaders... The ITK has questions

Amanda Graham — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 22:44:28 GMT

(Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, open letter, 11 September 2008)** -- Dear Federal Party Leaders, As President of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, and national leader for Inuit in Canada I am writing to seek clarification from the federal political parties, during this election campaign, with respect to a number of issues important to Canadian Inuit and the four Arctic regions (the Nunatsiavut region of Labrador, Nunavut, the Nunavik region of Quebec, the Inuvialuit region of the Northwest Territories) that form the Inuit homeland in Canada. Specifically, I am seeking a response from all parties to the questions that are set out in the annex to this letter. Your responses to these questions will no doubt assist all Canadians in evaluating the policies put forward by federal parties, and by candidates on behalf of parties, during this election. Inuit are the large majority of eligible voters in one federal riding and a significant minority in a number of others. In addition, the views of Inuit, as the majority people of the Canadian Arctic, have an importance that transcends our numbers both at home and in the eyes of the international community. It is our intention to publicize the responses for the benefit of the Inuit public and the wider Canadian public. In order to facilitate our doing so, and to ensure that the views of your party are fairly presented alongside those of others, I would seek your responses no later than October 1st. I would also request that responses be kept as succinct as possible. In order to facilitate our communications in relation to this request, I would encourage you to identify someone from your office or party as a principal contact point. Yours sincerely, Mary Simon, President [Liberal Party responses are posted; follow the title link]

New Canadian vessel delivers hope for Arctic

Amanda Graham — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 23:09:04 GMT

(Nunavut Eastern Arctic Shipping press release via CNW Telbec, 2 July 2008) -- IQALUIT, NT - Nunavut Eastern Arctic Shipping Inc. (www.NEAS.ca) is pleased to announce that its newest vessel, the MV Qamutik, arrived safely in Canada on Canada Day. "At NEAS, we deliver more than just sealift services. We deliver hope," said Michael Gordon, President of NEAS. "The MV Qamutik and the hope it offers for sustainable economic development is our Canada Day gift for our communities." After its official inauguration ceremony on July 7th, the MV Qamutik sets sail for Canada's Eastern Arctic. The NEAS fleet of Canadian vessels provide reliable, cost-effective and enhanced sealift services for local communities across the Nunavik region of northern Quebec, and the Baffin and Kivalliq regions of Nunavut. "There is a difference with NEAS," confirmed Brock Junkin, CEO of Sakku Investments and NEAS director. "We are investing in Canadian flag, duty paid vessels, and we are investing in marine training and employment opportunities for local Inuit." The MV Qamutik will proudly service the Eastern Arctic under Canadian flag with a Canadian crew, including specially trained local Inuit.

Signing of an Agreement-In-Principle on the Nunavik Regional Government

Amanda Graham — Sat, 08 Dec 2007 23:53:14 GMT

(CPIN, 5 December 2007) -- Québec - The government of Québec, the government of Canada and Makivik Corporation have just taken an unprecedented step by signing the agreement-in-principle on the creation of the Nunavik Regional Government. Giving tangible form to Inuit aspirations, the agreement-in-principle marks a move towards the assumption of greater responsibility by the Inuit communities. This agreement-in-principle builds on the James Bay and Northern Québec Agreement.

Canadian Inuit leaders discussing Arctic cruise business

Amanda Graham — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 05:03:37 GMT

(OK Society Radio Briefs, 29 October 2007) -- Inuit Leaders from Nunavut, Nunavik and Nunatsiavut are discussing the creation of an Arctic cruise business. Pita Atami is President of Nunavik. He says although negotiations have not started yet the three Inuit regions would have a strong position if they worked together to form partnerships in the adventure cruise business. He says there is too many cruise ships in our region today and the Inuit are not participants. If an agreement were worked out Atami says the 3 groups could share profits on an equal basis. Inuit have a lot to offer in terms of showcasing their traditions and cultures to tourists. Atami says he's written a letter to Nunatsiavut inviting them to enter negotiations on this possibility. And he's not received a response yet.

KRG developing ice safety systems

Amanda Graham — Sun, 16 Sep 2007 06:11:21 GMT

(Jane George/Nunatsiaq News, 14 September 2007) -- Wouldn't it be useful if Nunavik hunters could know exactly when it's safe to travel on the sea ice? That's not possible yet, but the Kativik Regional Government's Silaup Asijjipallianinga project hopes to develop a reliable way to tell when the ice is thick enough to withstand the weight of a loaded snowmobile. Then, weather forecasts for the region would include an "ice condition indicator"—similar to Environment Canada's wind chill forecast or the Weather Network's bug forecast—but this indicator would show the safety of the ice for travel. The KRG's climate project, known in English as "Climate change in Nunavik: access to land and resources," is looking at how climate change affects traditional travel routes. The search for an ice safety indicator is part of this project, which is intended to come up with ways for people to go out hunting or fishing without putting their lives at risk. Since 2005, five Nunavik communities, Umiujaq, Akulivik, Ivujivik, Kangiqsujuaq and Kangiqsualujjuaq, and the Naspaki village of Kawawachikamach have been monitored by researchers from the communities, the KRG, Trent University, Université Laval, Consortium Ouranos, ArcticNet and the University of Manitoba. Project researchers have tried to determine how many days of below-zero temperatures are needed to build up thick ice on lakes and on the waters of the Hudson and Ungava bays. They're searching for patterns in ice conditions and temperatures, which could be used to predict whether the ice has formed and it's safe for travel.

Emaciated polar bear spotted far from usual range

Amanda Graham — Sun, 16 Sep 2007 04:12:00 GMT

(Jane George/Nunatsiaq News, 14 September 2007) -- Nunavik Tourism executive director Allen Gordon, photographer Heiko Wittenborn and Wye Yoshida were traveling by jet boat Sept. 4 on the Caniapiscau River to Manitou Gorge, in search of new fishing spots for Nunavik Tourism, when they spotted a polar bear on the shore. The polar bear was an unexpected sight 160 kilometres inland from Ungava Bay, an area usually known as black bear country. The polar bear was visibly malnourished, with its fur hanging from its bones [see the photograph on the Nunatsiaq News page]. "The moment we saw it just standing near the shore of the river we knew right away that it was unusually very thin and bony. The polar bear is a powerful, majestic symbol of the Arctic, and this one was in a real sad state of starvation," Gordon said. he polar bear appeared to be following the scent of a porcupine, which had retreated to the safety of a nearby tree. "The bear looked very weak, standing still for some time just looking at us and then laid down to rest," Gordon said. Three years ago, a polar bear with two cubs hung around Gordon's outfitting camp, Gordon Lake Hunting Camp, located about 150 km west of Kuujjuaq for a few weeks, feeding off caribou carcasses in the area. But Gordon said he had never seen a polar bear that far south before.

Inuit leaders discuss forming Arctic cruise venture

Amanda Graham — Sat, 08 Sep 2007 20:47:22 GMT

(CBC News, 7 September 2007) -- Inuit from Nunavut, northern Quebec and northern Labrador are in negotiations to create a major Arctic cruise ship business. The talks among leaders from the three regions were spearheaded by Makivik Corp., which represent Inuit interests in Quebec's Nunavik region. Makivik currently owns Cruise North Expeditions, which offers summer cruises through Nunavik and Nunavut. Leaders from the Inuit regions, who are currently on a cruise through the High Arctic at Cruise North's invitation, say they want to ensure Inuit beneficiaries can cash in on growing interest in Arctic tourism. "There's all kinds of cruise boats coming up north more and more," Makivik president Pita Aatami told CBC News on Saturday, before the leaders joined nearly 100 other passengers in Resolute Bay, Nunavut, to kick off the cruise line's last sailing of the season. "So by partnering with the people from Nunavut and Labrador, it'll show that we can work together as one people." Makivik is looking to do a three-way joint venture with Inuit in Nunavut and Nunatsiavut to operate Cruise North. Aatami said if the three Inuit groups pool their resources, they could expand Cruise North's business, buy their own ship or lease an additional vessel.

Inuit leaders identify 'brain drain' in Nunavik

Amanda Graham — Thu, 30 Aug 2007 18:39:59 GMT

(CBC News, 30 August 2007) -- The lure of urban life and more jobs is creating a slow migration of people in northern Quebec, from small communities to larger centres such as Kuujjuaq, Inuit leaders say. The notion of a "brain drain"—in which residents of rural communities flock to jobs in cities—is familiar in other Canadian jurisdictions, both in the North and in the southern provinces. Officials with Makivik Corp., which represents Inuit in Quebec's Nunavik region, say they're concerned that such a migration of people to the hub community of Kuujjuaq will threaten smaller communities. "Although Kuujjuaq is a rural town, it's the capital, or it is the hub, of Nunavik," said George Berthe, Makivik's corporate secretary. "We're getting a lot of people from outside Kuujjuaq, a lot of Inuit." Berthe said the many talented and qualified people moving to Kuujjuaq, a village of about 2,130, are coming for work, as a lot of small Nunavik communities lack job and career opportunities. "The bigger centres such as Kuujjuaq are getting these professional champions of the community," he said. "So yeah, the brain drain is happening [in] the rural areas."

Inuit poised to gain control of large territory in Quebec

Amanda Graham — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 22:50:46 GMT

(CBC News, 13 August 2007)** -- A vast swath of mineral-rich land in northern Quebec is en route to become a self-governed region run by the province's 11,000 Inuit, officials said Monday. The territory, representing about one-third of Quebec's land, would have the power to collect its own taxes, make its own laws and run its own services, including its own hospitals, schools, child services and airports. It would be governed by an assembly of 21 members, including an elected leader and a cabinet of five elected officials. The assembly would oversee the territory's 14 villages, with the village of Kuujjuaq as the capital. Plans for the territory, known as Nunavik, are laid out in an agreement in principle drafted by negotiators for the governments of Quebec and Canada, and the Makivik Corp., which oversees Inuit institutions. The agreement is expected to be in place by 2009. Jean-François Arteau, a lawyer for Makivik, is encouraged that an agreement has emerged after 30 years of negotiations. "It's a big step in the right direction," he told CBC News, noting that the governments of Canada and Quebec, as well as the Makivik people, still need to give final approval to deal.

Actor Neeson adds star power to Nunavik with fishing trip

Amanda Graham — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 23:25:45 GMT

(CBC News, 1 August 2007) -- Tourism in the Nunavik region of northern Quebec is getting a celebrity boost from Irish-born actor Liam Neeson, who is visiting the area on a fly-fishing trip. Neeson, best known for his roles in the films Schindler's List and Rob Roy, has been in the area since Friday, shooting a television program on fly fishing on the George River. He is scheduled to leave later this week. Nunavik Tourism executive director Allen Gordon told CBC News that he and Neeson have already cast their lines on a stream near Kuujjuaq, Que. It was there that Neeson caught a trout on his first cast—part of an overall amazing experience, the actor said. "I have to flatter myself and say I caught nine brook trout. I hasten to add, I practise catch and release, so all of these trout were successfully released back into the river," Neeson told CBC News in an interview. "The biggest I caught, I think, was about three pounds. Beautiful."

Nunavik children and youth in trouble, says Quebec Human Rights Commission

Amanda Graham — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 05:17:04 GMT

(CBC News, 28 June 2007) -- Inuit children in Northern Quebec are living in constant crisis because they can't get the health and social services they need, the Quebec Human Rights Commission says in a new report published Wednesday. More than half of Nunavik's children live in homes with an alcoholic or drug addict, and they are exposed to domestic violence at rates 10 times higher than the average Canadian population, conditions the report describes as disastrous. But young people can't access help outside the home because services are overtaxed or don't exist, the report said. The commission is urging residents of Nunavik — a region in northern Quebec where the Inuit are negotiating self-government with Quebec and Ottawa — to rally around their younger generation, who make up more than half of the community's population. The commission is also calling on Quebec Premier Jean Charest to get personally involved to ensure the community gets health and community services guaranteed under the law. The report examined 139 cases of children who were referred to youth protection services.

Nunavik could get financial services centre

Amanda Graham — Sat, 23 Jun 2007 18:15:39 GMT

(Jane George/Nunatsiaq News, 22 June 2007) -- KANGIQSUALUJJUAQ - It's a madhouse around the co-op manager's window at the end of the month, as Kangiqsualujjuaq members line up to cash cheques, pay balances on outstanding accounts and head home with a pocketful of bills. But there's a problem. The co-op store's supply of cash quickly runs out. The cashier struggles to explain to an elder why she can't cash his old age pension cheque. She manages to convince other clients to deposit cheques against their co-op accounts, and then she sticks up a sign saying "No more cash" to discourage clients. Cash often runs out in Nunavik communities where there's no bank, little use of credit or bank cards and cash is used to pay for everything from food to less essential purchases such as drugs, booze and bingo cards. But Kangiqsualujjuaq's cash-strapped days may be over this November when a credit union branch opens at the co-op store. Credit union branches will also open later this year at co-op stores in Puvirnituq, Akulivik, Salluit and Kangiqsualujjuaq. Right now, the only full-service bank in Nunavik is the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce branch in Kuujjuaq. The Fédération des cooperatives du Nouveau-Québec is spearheading the drive to bring credit unions to Nunavik, working with the sixth largest bank in Canada, Quebec's powerful Desjardins credit union. To offer similar banking services in every Nunavik community, the FCNQ is seeking the support of Nunavik's other major organizations.

Nunavik getting shorter winters

Amanda Graham — Sun, 27 May 2007 04:38:23 GMT

(Jane George/Nunatsiaq News, 25 May 2007) -- Snow that blankets Nunavik has melted one week earlier every decade for the last 30 years, and scientists suspect this rate may be speeding up. During winter there is also six per cent less snow in Nunavik than 30 years ago, Alain Royer, a researcher from Sherbrooke university, told a recent International Polar Year community consultation in Kuujjuaq. Recent years’ March snowfalls register as the lowest since weather record-taking began in Nunavik. While there is less snow during the winter, Nunavik has experienced greater snowfalls in April and May than before. Next February, an aircraft, heading north from Schefferville, will start to criss-cross Nunavik, measuring snow cover with special airborne instruments. This information will be combined with existing information from the ground, satellite data and images to provide a better picture of what’s happening in the region. Similar fly-overs will be taking place over the other parts of the Canadian Arctic as part of the larger IPY project on variability and change in Canada’s snow and ice cover since 1957, when the last IPY occurred.

Nunavik co-op federation celebrates 40 years

Amanda Graham — Thu, 24 May 2007 02:00:59 GMT

(CBC News, 23 May 2007) -- A federation of Inuit co-operatives in northern Quebec is marking its 40th anniversary this year with a celebration and some prize draws for members. La Fédération des Coopératives du Nouveau-Québec was formed in 1967 after five of Nunavik's 14 communities had established co-ops, with Kangiqsualujjuaq being the first community in 1959. In the years following the FCNQ's introduction, all 14 communities set up co-ops in northern Quebec. Aliva Tulugak, the federation's vice-president for the Hudson Coast, said Tuesday that more than 300 co-op federation members from across Nunavik gathered in Montreal over the weekend for 40th-anniversary celebrations. Individual members were recognized for their efforts to make the co-ops successful, he said. Tulugak added that members will also be eligible for a draw Aug. 31 to win snowmobiles and all-terrain vehicles. The co-operatives offer a variety of businesses and services.... Speaking in Inuktitut, federation president Mark Uhitok Amamatuak of Salluit said the co-ops started operating out of small buildings, but the vision of their early directors was anything but small.

Nunavik elder and author to be remembered

Amanda Graham — Thu, 03 May 2007 21:59:09 GMT

(CBC News, 3 May 2007) -- Funeral services are to be held Thursday in northern Quebec for a respected Nunavik elder, author and teacher who was known for her efforts to preserve and share Inuit language and culture. Mitiarjuk Nappaaluk died at her home in Kangirsujuaq early Monday morning after a long illness. She was 78. Born in 1931 near Kangirsujuaq, Nappaaluk became a teacher and writer as a young woman after teaching missionaries her language and learning to write in syllabic script. Nappaaluk is credited with writing Sanaaq, the first published novel in Inuktitut, during the 1950s and '60s. Set in the 1920s, Sanaaq chronicles the story of a young woman leading a traditional life with her family on the tundra. In addition, she translated the Roman Catholic Book of Prayer into Inuktitut, as well as authored 22 books on traditional language and culture for use in local schools. For the latter work, she received an honorary doctorate from McGill University. She was a member of Nunavik's Inuttitut Language Commission and a longtime consultant with the Kativik School Board. Mitiarjuk has received numerous awards and honours for her work, including a national Aboriginal Achievement Award in 1999. She was named a member to the Order of Canada in 2004.

Report: Inuit Social Trends Series - Knowledge and Use of Inuktitut Among Inuit in Canada, 1981-2001

Amanda Graham — Fri, 30 Mar 2007 21:08:57 GMT

(Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, 29 March 2007) -- This report is the fifth in a series that looks at some of the social, demographic and economic changes experienced by Inuit in Canada over the past 20 years. Based on census information, it provides information on the knowledge and use of Inuktitut among those of Inuit ancestry from 1981 to 2001. This report is based on research initially carried out by Jeremy Hull (2002) and has been developed by the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami in collaboration with the Strategic Research and Analysis Directorate (SRAD) of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC). See Inuit Social Trends Series - Knowledge and Use of Inuktitut Among Inuit in Canada, 1981-2001 (PDF 58 Kb) in PDF format.

Travel: An unforgettable glimpse of Arctic's magic and majesty

Amanda Graham — Sun, 25 Mar 2007 06:53:36 GMT

(Catherine George/The Toronto Star, 24 March 2007) -- AKPATOK ISLAND, UNGAVA BAY - Could there have been a worse time for the outboard to stall? Jason Annahatak, our guide, had been manoeuvring the Zodiac (motorized rubber raft) beneath the 50-storey cliffs on Akpatok Island when we came on a rare sight. Four polar bears, two of them cubs, feasting on thick-billed murres that had fallen from the cliffs. Ambling toward us, across the narrow beach, was one big granddaddy of a bear, weighing maybe 400 kilograms. He'd heard the noise of the outboard and was curious, or, more likely, furious, preparing to defend should we get too close to his space. Jason idled the craft at a safe distance while camera shutters clicked. Then the outboard sputtered and stalled. Excitement turned to silence when the swell began to carry us towards the huge predator, its front feet now planted in the water, sniffing the air in anticipation of the Gore-Tex-wrapped smorgasbord drifting toward him. There was much relief when Jason got the outboard restarted and we retreated to a respectable distance. We'd count eight more polar bear sightings before heading back to mother ship, but the close encounter with the fearless Nanook of the North had been enough adventure for that day. Mother ship was the 122-passenger Lyubov Orlova, named for a Russian actress. It's leased by the Makivik Corp., an investment company owned by the Inuit of Nunavik (not to be confused with Nunavut) territory in northern Quebec. Operating as Cruise North for three years, the company's aim is to educate passengers about the vast Arctic region and the importance of its ecology and conservation. As much as possible, time is spent ashore visiting Inuit communities, exploring national parks and archeological sites, spotting wildlife and generally giving visitors a sense of the spirit of Canada's North.

Dispute flares up again over Quebec-Labrador border

Amanda Graham — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 17:19:20 GMT

(CBC News, 22 January 2007) -- A decades-old border dispute involving Quebec and Labrador has resurfaced, this time over the management of wildlife. The Quebec government's website features a map illustrating some of the results of a program tracking hundreds of migrating caribou [see the page]. The program was a joint monitoring project between the governments of Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador. However, a map attached to survey results — posted on the website of Quebec's Natural Resources Department — shows large parts of southern Labrador as being inside the Quebec boundary. John Ottenheimer, Newfoundland and Labrador's minister of intergovernmental affairs, said the map is the latest in a line of claims that Quebec has made about its boundary and Labrador. "We don't like it," Ottenheimer told CBC News. "We've seen this over the years — it happens time and time again."

Killer whale sightings increase in Arctic

Amanda Graham — Sat, 13 Jan 2007 18:40:21 GMT

(John Thompson/Nunatsiaq News, 12 January 2007) -- As the Arctic sea ice shrinks, the number of killer whales spotted in Arctic waters has dramatically increased over the past six years. That could be bad news for anyone who enjoys the taste of beluga, narwhal or bowhead whales. That’s because killer whales love eating these sea mammals, too, and they have quite the appetite, consuming on average more than 226 kilograms of food a day. In particular, the number of killer whale sightings in the Hudson Bay has increased to 30 over the last six years, compared to only six sightings throughout the entire 1990s. The 1980s only had six sightings as well. Before then, reported sightings per decade were even lower. These figures come from research conducted by a group called Orcas in the Canadian Arctic, which began in September 2005, as a collaboration between researchers from University of Manitoba, the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans, and the Government of Nunavut. It’s not clear if killer whale populations are increasing, or if the whales are simply moving to new locations, says Jeff Higdon, a PhD student with the University of Manitoba who is involved with the project. But a relationship does seem to exist between shrinking sea ice levels in the Hudson Strait, and a big increase in the number of killer whale sightings in Hudson Bay.

Hills sink into Arctic's melting ground

Amanda Graham — Fri, 15 Dec 2006 21:23:18 GMT

(Margaret Munro, CanWest News Service via Canada.com, 15 December 2006) -- VICTORIA - Permafrost is thawing at a remarkable rate and transforming a huge swath of landscape east of Hudson Bay as thousands of frozen hills turn into lakes and ponds. "When it melts it's just like pea soup," says researcher Michel Allard of Laval University, whose team is documenting the thaw of the long-frozen ground in northern Quebec. Melting permafrost in many parts of the North is playing havoc with building foundations, roads and runways, but Allard says some of the "most spectacular" change is occurring in an area about 50 kilometres wide and running couple of hundred kilometers along the east coast of Hudson Bay north of Kuujjuarapik. Fifty-one per cent the permafrost mounds in the area have disappeared in the last 50 years, says Allard, who presented the team's findings here Thursday at the annual scientific meeting of ArcticNet, a consortium of researchers studying the accelerating meltdown in Canada's North. He says metres-thick layers of permafrost mounds, known as palsas, covered 12 per cent of the land in 1957, but shrank to cover only 5.8 per cent by 2005 as the mounds melted and sank into the ground. "It's really striking," says Allard.