Above & Beyond | Canada's Arctic Journal 2015 | 02

A B O V E & B E Y O N D – C A N A D A’ S A R C T I C J O U R N A L 2015 | 02 • $5.95

What Happened to the Mary?

A Historic Site

Frozen Finds in the Alpine Artifacts of the Caribou Hunter

The Reindeer Philosopher A Culture with Purpose

Andrew Qappik Printmaker Extraordinaire

PM40050872

o www.arcticjournal.ca

Jobie Tukkiapik / JW bexW4

Brock Friesen / XÇ4 K‰n8

Dear Guest, First Air has had a great start to 2015! From giving our readers a new look to this flagship publication including more news about what First Air is up to and what partnerships we continue to make, we’re excited about the changes still to come your way this year.

Our partnership with carrier Cargojet is proving a resounding success. Beginning March 19, we will operate cargo flights with five weekly frequencies between Thunder Bay and Winnipeg using a “full-freighter” ATR 42.

A new Ottawa-Miami charter is flying twice weekly using our all-passenger Boeing 737-400 until April 19 and Summit Air is now flying First Air’s Edmonton to Yellowknife operations, using the modern and efficient 90-passenger Avro RJ85 jet.

These changes allow us to introduce our Boeing 737-400 combi to Winnipeg and Rankin Inlet providing better service, more seats and more cargo capacity to these markets and the entire Kivalliq region. Our all-passenger B737-400 will be operating Flight 860 on Mondays and Flight 861 on Fridays, almost doubling the seating capacity on these two peak flights where demand is high.

Fleet renewal is a significant priority for us and will allow greater opportunities while significantly reducing costs through increased efficiency and effectiveness. We have sold one of our Hercules freighter aircraft and our newer generation B737-400’s have been a great success. A comprehensive turbo prop fleet replacement study is nearing completion that will standardize our ATR aircraft with newer generation, more efficient aircraft.

We hope 2015 has been a good start for you as well.

Winter will soon be over and we can start to enjoy spring.

We are optimistic that 2015 will be yet another year of improvement and continue to actively pursue other business opportunities to grow our revenue and expand our business with additional flying while continuing to provide top quality, safe and reliable service for our customers that we are known for.

Thank you for flying with First Air, the Airline of the North!

Brock Friesen First Air President & CEO

ᑐᕌᖅᑐᑦ ᐃᑭᒪᔪᓄᑦ,

ᕘᔅᑦ ᐃᐊᒃᑯᑦ 2015 ᐊᑐᕆᐊᓵᕐᑎᓪᓗᒍ ᖃᖓᑕᓲᓕᕆᔨᖏᑦ ᓈᒻᒪᑦᑎᐊᖅᑐᒥᒃ ᐱᓕᕆᐊᕆᕙᒃᑕᒥᓐᓂ ᐃᖏᕐᕋᑦᑎᐊᕐᓂᖃᓚᐅᖅᐳᑦ! ᑐᓴᖅᑎᑦᑎᓯᒪᓕᕐᓂᑦᑎᒍᑦ ᓄᑖᑎᒍᑦ ᐅᖃᓕᒫᒐᒃᓴᐃᑦ ᑕᐅᑦᑐᖃᓕᖅᑎᑦᑎᓚᐅᕐᓂᑦᑎᓐᓂᑦ ᐃᓚᖃᕐᑎᑕᐅᓪᓗᑎᒃ ᐊᓯᒃᑲᓐᓂᖏᓂᒃ ᑐᓴᒐᒃᓴᖁᑎᒋᔭᖏᓂᒃ ᕘᔅᑦ ᐃᐊᒃᑯᑦ ᖃᖓᑕᓲᓕᕆᔨᖏᑦ ᓱᓕᕆᐊᖃᓕᕐᒪᖔᑕ ᐊᒻᒪᓗ ᖃᓄᐃᑦᑐᓂᒃ ᐱᓕᕆᐊᖃᖃᑎᒋᓂᐅᔪᓂᒃ ᐱᒋᐊᖅᑎᑦᑎᓯᒪᕙᓐᓂᕗᑦ ᑲᔪᓯᑎᑕᐅᓯᒪᑎᓪᓗᒋᑦ, ᖁᕕᐊᓱᓪᓚᕆᒃᑐᒍᑦ ᓱᓕᒃᑲᓐᓂᖅ ᐊᓯᔾᔩᓯᒪᕙᓪᓕᐊᓂᐊᕋᑦᑕ ᐊᕐᕌᒍᒋᔭᑦᑎᓐᓂ.

ᐃᑲᔪᖅᑎᒌᒃᖢᑕ ᐱᓕᕆᐊᖃᖃᑎᖃᕐᓂᕗᑦ ᐊᒃᔭᖅᑐᐃᔨᐅᓪᓗᓂ ᐱᖁᑎᓂᒃ ᑳᒃᑰᔨᐊᑦ ᖁᑦᑎᒃᑐᒻᒪᕆᖕᒥᒃ ᐃᖏᕐᕋᑦᑎᐊᕐᓂᖃᕐᐳᖅ. ᐱᒋᐊᕐᕕᖃᖅᑎᓪᓗᒍ ᒫᔾᔨ 19-ᒥ, ᐱᖁᑎᓂᒃ ᐊᒃᔭᖅᑐᐃᓗᑕ ᖃᖓᑕᖃᑦᑕᓕᕐᓂᐊᖅᐳᒍᑦ ᐱᓇᓱᐊᕈᓯᖅ ᑕᓪᓕᒪᐃᖅᑕᕐᓗᒍ ᓴᓐᑐᕐ ᐸᐃᒥᑦ ᒍᐃᓂᐲᒡᒧᑦ "ᑕᑕᖅᑑᓗᓂ ᐊᒃᔭᖅᑐᐃᔨᑦ" ᖃᖓᑕᓲᖓᓂᒃ XTR 42-ᒥᒃ. ᓄᑖᖑᓪᓗᓂ ᐋᑐᕙᒥᑦ-ᒪᐃᐋᒥᒧᑦ ᓵᑕᒃᑯᑦ ᐱᓇᓱᐊᕈᓯᖅ ᒪᕐᕈᐃᖅᐸᒃᓗᒍ ᐃᓄᖕᓂᒃ ᐃᓯᕙᒃᑑᓪᓗᓂ ᖃᖓᑕᓲᖁᑎᕗᑦ 737-400 ᖃᖓᑕᖃᑦᑕᕐᓂᐊᓕᕐᒥᔪᖅ ᑎᑭᓪᓗᒍ ᐊᐃᐱᕆ 19-ᒧᑦ ᐊᒻᒪᓗ ᖃᖓᑕᓲᖅ ᓴᒥᑦ ᐃᐊᕐ ᖃᖓᑕᖃᑦᑕᓕᕆᓪᓗᓂ ᕘᔅᑦ ᐃᐊᒃᑯᑦ ᖃᖓᑕᓂᕆᕙᒃᑕᖓᓂᒃ ᐃᐊᑦᒪᓐᑕᓐᒥᑦ ᔭᓗᓇᐃᒧᑦ ᖃᖓᑕᓂᕆᕙᒃᑕᖏᓂᒃ, ᐊᑐᕐᐸᒃᖢᑎᒃ ᓄᑖᖑᓪᓗᑎᒃ ᐊᒻᒪᓗ ᐊᔪᖖᒋᑦᑎᐊᖅᑑᓪᓗᓂ 90-ᓂᒃ ᐃᓄᖕᓂᒃ ᐅᓯᔪᖕᓇᖅᑐᖅ ᐋᕝᕉ RJ85ᖃᖓᑕᓲᒥ ᐊᑐᕐᐸᒃᓗᑎᒃ. ᑕᒪᒃᑯᑎᒎᓇᖅ ᐊᓯᔾᔩᓂᑦᑎᒍᑦ ᐱᒋᐊᖅᑎᑦᑎᔪᖕᓇᓚᐅᕋᑦᑕ ᓴᖅᑮᓯᒪᓕᕐᓂᒥᒃ ᐴᐃᖕ 737-400 ᖃᖓᑕᓲᑦ ᑲᑎᑕᐅᓪᓗᑎᒃ ᖃᖓᑕᕙᓕᕐᑎᑕᐅᓂᖏᓂᒃ ᒍᐃᓂᐲᒡᒧᑦ ᐊᒻᒪᓗ ᑲᖏᖅᖠᓂᕐᒧᑦ ᐱᐅᓂᖅᓴᐅᓪᓗᒍ ᐱᔨᑦᑎᕋᕈᖕᓇᓕᕈᑎᒋᓪᓗᑎᒍᑦ, ᐊᒥᓲᓂᖅᓴᐅᓕᕐᖢᑎᒃ ᐃᑭᒪᕝᕕᐅᔪᖕᓇᖅᑐᑦ ᐊᒻᒪᓗ ᐅᓯᔭᐅᔪᖕᓇᖅᑐᑦ ᐃᓂᖃᕐᓂᖅᓴᐅᓕᕐᖢᑎᒃ ᑕᒪᒃᑯᓄᖓ ᓂᐅᕝᕈᑎᖃᖃᑦᑕᕐᓂᐅᔪᓄᑦ ᐊᒻᒪᓗ ᑭᕙᓪᓕᐅᑉ ᐊᕕᒃᑐᖅᓯᒪᓂᓕᒫᖓᓄᑦ. ᐃᓄᖕᓂᒃ ᑭᓯᐊᓂ ᐅᓯᕙᒃᑑᓪᓗᓂ ᖃᖓᑕᓲᖅ B737-400 ᖃᖓᑕᖃᑦᑕᕐᓂᐊᓕᕐᑐᖅ ᐊᐅᓚᑕᐅᓂᖃᕐᓗᓂ ᖃᖓᑕᓲᖅ 860 ᖃᖓᑕᓂᕆᕙᒃᑕᖓᓂᒃ ᓴᓇᑦᑕᐃᓕᐅᕌᓂᒃᑳᖓᑦ ᐊᒻᒪᓗ ᖃᖓᑕᓲᖅ 861 ᖃᖓᑕᕙᖕᓂᐊᖅᑎᓪᓗᒍ ᑕᓪᓕᒪᖓᐅᑎᓪᓗᒍ, ᒪᕐᕈᐃᕈᖕᓇᑲᓴᒻᒪᓕᕆᕐᖢᑎᒃ ᐃᓂᖃᕐᕕᐅᔪᖕᓇᓕᖅᑐᑦ ᑖᒃᑯᖕᓇᕐᓂ ᒪᕐᕉᐃᖕᓂᒃ ᖃᖓᑕᕙᓕᕐᓂᐅᔪᓂᒃ ᐃᑭᒪᕝᕕᐅᔪᒪᓂᖅᐸᐅᕙᒃᑎᓪᓗᒍ ᑖᒃᑯᖕᓇᖕᓂ ᐅᑉᓗᖕᓂ.

ᖃᖓᑕᓲᖁᑎᒋᔭᑦᑕ ᓄᑕᐅᓕᕆᐊᖅᑎᑕᐅᓂᒃᓴᖏᑦ ᐱᒻᒪᕆᐅᓗᐊᖅᑎᓪᖢᑎᒍ ᓯᕗᓪᓕᖅᐸᐅᑎᑕᒃᓴᖁᑎᒋᒐᑦᑎᒍ ᐱᓕᕆᐊᒃᓴᑦᑎᓐᓄᑦ ᐊᒻᒪᓗ ᐊᖏᓂᖅᓴᐅᔪᒥᒃ ᐱᓕᕆᕝᕕᐅᓕᕈᖕᓇᕋᔭᕐᖢᓂ ᐃᓚᖃᖅᑎᓪᓗᒍ ᐊᑭᒋᔭᐅᕙᒃᑐᓄᑦ ᒥᑭᓪᓕᒋᐊᕈᑎᐅᓗᓂ ᐊᐅᓚᑦᓯᔾᔪᑎᒃᓴᕆᕙᒃᑕᑦᑎᓐᓄᑦ ᐊᖏᓪᓕᒋᐊᖅᑎᑕᐅᓂᖏᑎᒍᑦ ᐊᔪᖖᒋᑦᑎᐊᖅᑑᔭᕆᐊᖃᕐᓂᖏᑦ ᐊᒻᒪᓗ ᐊᑐᕐᓂᖃᑦᑎᐊᖅᑑᓇᔭᕐᓂᖏᑦ. ᐃᓚᖓᓐᓂᒃ ᕼᐆᑯᓖᔅ ᐅᓯᑲᖃᕈᑎᐅᕙᒃᖢᓂ ᖃᖓᑕᓲᑦᑎᓐᓂᒃ ᓂᐅᕝᕈᑎᖃᓚᐅᕋᑦᑕ ᐊᒻᒪᓗ ᓄᑕᐅᓂᖅᓴᐅᔪᖅ ᖃᖓᑕᓲᕆᓕᖅᑕᕗᑦ ᖃᖓᑕᓲᖅ B737-400 ᐃᖏᕐᕋᑦᑎᐊᕐᓂᖃᒻᒪᕆᓕᖅᓯᒪᓪᓗᓂ. ᓱᐴᔫᑦ ᖃᖓᑕᓲᖁᑎᑦᑕ ᐃᓇᖏᖅᑕᐅᓯᒪᓕᕋᔭᖅᐸᑕ ᖃᐅᔨᓴᕐᓂᐅᔪᑦ ᐱᔭᕇᑲᐅᑎᒋᓂᐊᓕᕐᒪᑕ ᓄᑕᐅᓕᕆᐊᕈᑎᐅᓂᐊᕐᖢᑎᒃ ATRᓄᑦ ᖃᖓᑕᓲᒧᑦ ᓄᑖᖑᓂᖅᓴᓂᒃ, ᐊᑐᕐᓂᖃᕐᓂᖅᓴᐅᓗᑎᒃᓗ ᖃᖓᑕᓲᖑᓕᕐᓂᐊᖅᑐᒧᑦ.

2015 ᐅᑭᐅᖓ ᐃᓕᑦᓯᓐᓄᑦᑕᐅᖅ ᐊᑐᕆᐊᕐᓂᖃᑦᑎᐊᖅᑑᖁᒋᕙᖅᐳᑦ. ᐅᑭᐅᖑᔪᖕᓃᑲᐅᑎᒋᓂᐊᓕᕐᒥᒻᒪᑦ ᐅᐱᕐᖓᒃᑖᖑᓕᕐᒥᓗᓂ. ᓂᕆᐅᖕᓂᖃᑦᑎᐊᖅᐳᒍᑦ 2015 ᐅᑭᐅᖓᓂ ᐱᐅᓯᒋᐊᖅᑎᑦᑎᓯᒪᓕᕈᖕᓇᕐᓂᐊᕋᑦᑕ ᐊᒻᒪᓗ ᑲᔪᓯᑎᓯᒪᔪᖕᓇᕐᓗᑎᒍᑦ ᐊᓯᖏᑦ ᐱᓕᕆᓂᑦᑎᓐᓂ ᐱᓕᕆᐊᖑᓕᕈᖕᓇᖅᑐᑦ ᐱᕈᖅᓴᐃᔾᔪᑕᐅᓕᕐᓗᑎᒃ ᐅᑎᖅᑐᒃᓴᖁᑎᒋᕙᒃᑕᑦᑎᓐᓂᒃ ᐊᒻᒪᓗ ᐊᖏᒡᓕᒋᐊᖅᑎᓪᓗᑎᒍ ᐱᓕᕆᐊᖃᕐᓂᕆᔭᕗᑦ ᐊᒥᓱᖖᒍᕆᐊᖅᑎᓯᒪᓕᕐᓗᑎᒍ ᖃᖓᑕᕙᖕᓂᕗᑦ ᐊᑕᐅᑦᑎᒃᑰᕐᑎᑕᐅᓗᑎᒃ ᐱᖁᓂᖅᓴᐅᔪᒥᒃ, ᖃᓄᐃᖖᒋᑦᑎᐊᕐᓇᖅᑐᒥᒃ ᐊᒻᒪᓗ ᖁᓚᕐᓇᖖᒋᑦᑐᒥᒃ ᐱᔨᑦᑎᕋᕈᑎᖃᖅᑎᓪᓗᑕ ᖃᖓᑕᕙᒃᑐᖁᑎᑦᑎᓐᓄᑦ ᑕᐃᒪᓐᓇ ᖃᐅᔨᒪᔭᐅᑦᑎᐊᕋᑦᑕᑎᑐᑦ.

ᖁᔭᓐᓇᒦᓕᖅᐸᑦᓯ ᕘᔅᑦ ᐃᐊᒃᑯᑦ ᖃᖓᑕᓲᖓᓂ ᐃᑭᒪᔪᖕᓇᓚᐅᕐᓂᑦᓯᓐᓄᑦ, ᐅᑭᐅᖅᑕᖅᑐᒥᐅᑦ ᖃᖓᑕᓲᖁᑎᖓᓂ!

ᐸᕌᒃ ᕗᕇᓴᓐ ᕘᔅᑎᐊᒃᑯᓐᓄᑦ ᐊᖓᔪᖅᑳᖅ & ᐊᐅᓚᑦᑎᔨᒻᒪᕆᒃ

President, Makivik Corporation & Chairman, First Air xzJ6√6, mr=F4 fxS‰nzk5 x7m w4y?sb6, {5 wsf8k5 Président, Société Makivik et président du conseil, First Air

Chers invités, First Air connaît un excellent début en 2015! Nous sommes ravis des changements qui viendront s’y ajouter cette année, qu’il s’agisse de la nouvelle présentation de cette publication vedette pour nos lecteurs, y compris plus de nouvelles sur ce que First Air envisage de faire ou des partenariats qu’il continue d’établir.

Notre partenariat avec le transporteur Cargojet est un succès retentissant. À compter du 19 mars, nos vols cargo seront exploités cinq fois par semaine entre Thunder Bay et Winnipeg au moyen de l’aéronef tout-cargo ATR 42.

Un nouveau vol affrété Ottawa-Miami a lieu deux fois par semaine jusqu’au 19 avril par notre Boeing 737-400 tout-passager, tandis que Summit Air s’occupe maintenant des vols de First Air entre Edmonton et Yellowknife par le jet moderne et efficace Avro RJ85 qui peut accueillir 90 passagers.

Ces changements nous permettent d’introduire notre Boeing 737-400 mixte à Winnipeg et Rankin Inlet, et par le fait même de fournir un meilleur service, plus de sièges et de capacité de chargement à ces marchés et à l’ensemble de la région de Kivalliq. Notre B737-400 tout-passager servira à exploiter le vol 860 le lundi et le vol 861 le vendredi, doublant presque le nombre de sièges sur ces deux vols de pointe où la demande est élevée.

Le renouvellement de la flotte est pour nous une importante priorité car il offre davantage de possibilités tout en réduisant considérablement les coûts, grâce à l’amélioration de l’efficacité et de l’efficience. Nous avons vendu l’un de nos avions-cargos Hercules et notre nouvelle génération de B737-400 a connu un grand succès. Nous avons presque terminé une étude approfondie sur le remplacement de la flotte à turbopropulseur en vue d’uniformiser nos aéronefs ATR avec une nouvelle génération d’aéronefs plus efficaces.

Nous espérons que l’année 2015 a bien débuté pour vous aussi. L’hiver finira bientôt et nous pourrons commencer à profiter du printemps. Nous avons bon espoir que 2015 sera encore une autre année d’améliorations et que nous poursuivrons activement d’autres possibilités d'affaires pour accroître nos revenus et développer nos activités par des vols supplémentaires tout en continuant de fournir à nos clients des services de haute qualité, sécuritaires et fiables pour lesquels nous sommes réputés.

Merci d’avoir choisi First Air, la Ligne aérienne du Nord!

Brock Friesen Président-directeur général de First Air

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We value your support and thank you for making First Air The Airline of the North.

Nous apprécions votre soutien et vous remercions de votre appui à First Air la ligne aérienne du Nord.

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Book online at firstair.ca or call 1 800 267 1247

In the News SSupporting The North’s Potential F Air is an integral partner and supporter of initiatives that foster sound economic development, real social First p progress, and the realization of opportunities for Canada’s Arctic regions and their people.

FFind out how northerners and others are exploring the true potential of the North to build on and develop new and b better opportunities right now and into the future at the ARCTICAGE Conference in Ottawa, March 17, 2015.

Celebrating northern culture C F Air is proud to be the official airline and an event sponsor to First w what’s described as Ottawa’s most highly anticipated and exciting ccultural event of the year, Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami’s exceptionally popular, A Taste of the Arctic being held at the National Arts Centre, March 10.

G Great food, great culture and great airfares too! A Taste of the Arctic, n nothing could be more delicious.

Proud P d SSponsor Live, from the stands in Rankin Inlet — that’s the best way to take in the First Air Avataq Cup. All the skills, the speed, the good-natured competitiveness and the heart-stopping excitement of the “ping” of the puck ringing off the goal post are yours to enjoy. Be there with our special fares to one of the North’s premier hockey events.

Book online @firstair.ca

by March 15, 2015

Long John Jamboree Later in March, why not put on your long johns (red is preferred but hey, we like plaid and polka dot too) and make the most of our special fares to hop on to attend Yellowknife’s premier and more than just a bit zany “celebration on ice,” the Long John Jamboree, March 27-29, 2015.

Travel Convenience, Deals and Savings Packages With other airlines charging for each piece of baggage these days, did you know that First Air allows your first 2 pieces of baggage on board FREE (Maximum 32 kgs/70 lbs per piece)? It’s true! Have more than two?

Not to worry. Take advantage of our new call-ahead on excess baggage fees service and SAVE! Your First Air destination not your last stop? Our online trip continuation services are now your route to booking the best ground transport options and savings with our partners, VIA Rail and Car Trawler at: www.firstair.ca/viarail/ and www.firstair/car-trawler/

So why wait? Save today and join in the revelry and fun at A Taste of the Arctic and the Long John Jamboree. Like us on Facebook. Visit our page for booking details and promo codes too.

www.facebook.com/firstair

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Book online at firstair.ca or call 1 800 267 1247

A B O V E & B E Y O N D – C A N A D A’ S A R C T I C J O U R N A L 2015 | 02 • $5.95

What Happened to the Mary?

A Historic Site

Frozen Finds in the Alpine Ar facts of the Caribou Hunter

The Reindeer Philosopher A Culture with Purpose

Andrew Qappik

Contents

Printmaker Extraordinaire

PM40050872

o www.arcticjournal.ca

Detail: Pause (Polar Bears), 2002 stencil on paper, 31/70 51 x 64.5 cm Collection of the Winnipeg Art Gallery Given by the Council for Canadian American Relations through the generosity of H.G. Jones, 2006-323 Photographer credit: Leif Norman, Winnipeg Art Gallery

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Features

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Andrew Qappik Printmaker Extraordinaire

Qappik drew everywhere and everything.

And so began his life as an artist.

— Season Osborne

7 15 21

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What Happened to the Mary?

A historic site ravaged through time

22 35

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Frozen Finds in the Alpine Artifacts of the Caribou Hunter

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The mast and a few boards are all that’s left of the 12-ton yacht Mary, left at Beechey Island in 1853.

— Season Osborne

As long as caribou have been gathering at ice patches in Alaska, Yukon, and the Northwest Territories for over 9,000 years, people armed with sturdy moccasins and stone-tipped weapons have followed them.

— Todd Kristensen, Tom Andrews and Darryl Bereziuk

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Arctic Change — above&beyond Living Above&Beyond Inuit Forum — Terry Audla Resources Arts, Culture & Education The Reindeer Philosopher — Zoe Ho Politics Choosing a QIA President — Teevi Mackay Tourism NWT at Winterlude Sound Tracks — Trent Walthers Preview The Right to Be Cold — Sheila Watt-Cloutier Bookshelf Guest Editorial — The Honourable Leona Aglukkaq 5

ARCTIC CHANGE

Arctic Age: Our Northern Future

On March 17, 2015 Ottawa is host to an inaugural one-day conference titled, Arctic Age: Our Northern Future.

The conference, as part of an international City Age strategies for the future initiative, will bring together key

stakeholder organizations and top-of-their-fields speakers and leaders in academia, government, business and

industry to provide a forum for the exchange of ideas that will help define and tackle the major issues and challenges faced by peoples around the globe in social development, transportation, technologies, etc. The ultimate aim is to

help chart better ways forward for societies to move in public policy development areas beyond the socio-economic and cultural landscapes of today in the face of uncertain economic times, social need, growing infra-structure requirements, and the competitive factors and trends involuntarily injected into our lives through globalization.

Still very much awhirl with the rapid pace of change the Arctic has already experienced in the last 50 years or

more in terms of climate, cultural renaissances and reaffirmations, new alliances and the discovery of vast resource potentials and more, forums such as Arctic Age will become all the more significant going forward as one means

to bring all aspects and challenges (some might say truths) to the forefront and to more respectfully engage those societies and cultures most affected to ensure that opportunities are made the most of for all and that no one is left behind.

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2015 | 02

Andrew Qappik Pr i n t m a k e r E x t r a o rd i n a i re It started with a cowboy. When he

was little, Andrew Qappik’s uncle

By Season Osborne

drew a cowboy wearing a Stetson, vest, chaps, and toting a pistol,

then asked if he could draw the same thing. Qappik did. And so

A

began his life as an artist.

ndrew Qappik was born in 1964 in a camp outside the east Baffin community of Pangnirtung. His family moved into

Pangnirtung a few years later. ey didn’t have a TV, but Qappik had comic books, stacks of them. He started sketching comics.

“Paper was quite hard to come by,” says Qappik. “It was only in school. But at home I’d use anything — cardboard — and start drawing. I drew pretty much from Marvel comic books: Batman, Superman, Shazam... all the comic book heroes.”

Qappik drew everywhere and everything. Even students in his class became his models.

“While everyone was studying or doing their schoolwork, I would be making portraits of them,” he says. “One teacher would let us try to see who could do math the fastest. I got pretty fast, so I could finish math and have time to do my drawing.”

John Houston was technical arts advisor to the Uqqurmiut Inuit Artists Association in Pangnirtung in the mid 1970s. He recalls Andrew as a young 11-year-old who’d come to the print shop to watch his printmaker uncles Solomon and Imoona Karpik work.

“Andrew would get off school and come straight to the print shop,” says Houston. “He was just observing. He was the perfect fellow to have around — friendly, easygoing, and quiet.”

A B OV E & B E YO N D — C A N A DA’ S A RC T I C J O U R N A L

The artist with his brushes after a stencilling workshop with passengers aboard an Adventure Canada cruise through the Northwest Passage, September 2014. © Season Osborne

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When he was in elementary school, there was a drawing

One person who bought all five prints was Dr. H.G. Jones, a history professor at Duke

contest for all the schools in the Baffin region. Qappik

University in North Carolina. He was interested in Inuit art and visited Pangnirtung.

entered and his drawing won first place. e prize was a huge

e young art prodigy intrigued Jones. Qappik recalls the school principal telling him

trampoline for the school, which introduced gymnastics to

he had the aernoon off to go to the Auyuittuq lodge to meet Dr. Jones. Over the next

the students.

31 years, Jones came almost every year to Pangnirtung. He became Qappik’s patron,

A few years later, the Pangnirtung print shop had an art contest. irteen-year-old Qappik entered the contest and came in second. Five of his drawings were made into prints and included in the 1978 collection. His prints sold out.

purchasing every one of his prints, created using etchings, stone cuts, lithographs, and linocuts.

By the time he was 16, Qappik had completed 11 prints. He had no formal artistic training but he had talent in spades. At 17, Qappik knew he wanted to be a printmaker and approached the print shop about working there. He had one more year of high school, and the printmakers suggested he come work there aer he graduated. His parents agreed, but Qappik’s argument was irrefutable. “What’s the point? I’m going to be an artist. I’m going to be a printmaker. Why don’t I start now?”

In the end, there was no reasoning him out of it, so Qappik became apprenticed to

Fishing at Ingalik, 1996 stencil on paper, 20/50 39.2 x 64.5 cm Collection of the Winnipeg Art Gallery Given by the Council for Canadian American Relations through the generosity of H.G. Jones, 2006-292 Photographer credit: Leif Norman, Winnipeg Art Gallery

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the Pangnirtung print shop, sweeping the floor and cleaning the printmakers’ brushes.

Eventually, he was allowed to do the sky or the water part of the stencil, while the experienced printmakers did the rest of the print. en, he was allowed to cut stencils.

In time, he started doing his own drawings, all the while keeping up his work, making prints for other artists. Qappik’s own images proved very popular, and gradually he earned respect not only as a printer but as an artist.

2015 | 02

Favourite Place to Be, 1993 stencil on paper, 34/50 50.7 x 43.7 cm Collection of the Winnipeg Art Gallery Given by the Council for Canadian American Relations through the generosity of H.G. Jones, 2006-279 Photographer credit: Ernest Mayer, Winnipeg Art Gallery

A B OV E & B E YO N D — C A N A DA’ S A RC T I C J O U R N A L

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Pause (Polar Bears), 2002 stencil on paper, 31/70 51 x 64.5 cm Collection of the Winnipeg Art Gallery Given by the Council for Canadian American Relations through the generosity of H.G. Jones, 2006-323 Photographer credit: Leif Norman, Winnipeg Art Gallery

When Nunavut was being created, a Canada-wide contest was held for design submissions for the new territory’s flag and coat of arms. Qappik started thinking about designs, and prayed for a vision: a flag vision. In July 1998, he went to the Great Northern Arts Festival in Inuvik. On his way back, he stayed in Yellowknife and drew sketches in his hotel room.

“I kept drawing the inukshuk. All I could draw was that,” says Qappik. “I tried something else, it didn’t work out. I kept going back. I used four or five of the different aspects of inukshuk.”

Finally satisfied with his design, on his way home to Pangnirtung, he went to the Nunavut commissioner’s in Iqaluit and handed in his entry.

Representatives from the Governor General’s Heraldry flew to Pangnirtung and told Qappik that his art had been chosen out of 800 entries. He was invited to be the chief designer of the Nunavut flag and coat of arms at Heraldry in Ottawa. e final version

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2015 | 02

Andrew Qappik (Self-Portrait in Printshop), 2002 drypoint on paper, Artist’s Proof IV/V 35.5 x 41.3 cm Collection of the Winnipeg Art Gallery Given by the Council for Canadian American Relations through the generosity of H.G. Jones, 2006-326 Photographer credit: Ernest Mayer, Winnipeg Art Gallery

Darlene Wight, curator of Inuit art at the WAG, says, “Andrew’s use of perspective is unique. He started off with action figures from comics, so he puts action into his figures. ey are not static.”

Qappik’s depiction of wildlife is unique too. His work is filled with caribou, fish, whales, and polar bears. He has great respect for animals and captures the quality of the animals, masterfully giving them personality.

When Qappik first started making art, he was criticized.

It didn’t look Inuit because he was so adept at using threepoint perspective and techniques attributed to western art.

For instance, his paintings of ice fishing show the person on top of the ice and the fish below it.

“He loves to play around with perspective,” says Wight.

“Andrew is a master printer because he is able to get these wonderfully, transparent veils of colour that almost shimmer. ey’re translucent.”

Andrew Qappik is a role model for younger artists. But he is also a widely respected member of the Pangnirtung of these was officially accepted by the Governor General and Queen Elizabeth II. e

community. He and his wife, Annie, have three daughters,

flag was officially raised when Nunavut became a territory on April 1, 1999.

a son, and 11 grandchildren. His faith is very important to

Designing a flag where every colour has significance is not something every artist can do.

him. Qappik was a deacon at Pangnirtung’s Anglican Church for 12 years. For the last three, he has been co-pastor, leading

“ere is a technical aspect to it that is not necessarily creative,” says Houston. “It

the congregation, at Full Gospel Church. He offers spiritual

combines artistry in abundance, but requires a designer mind, which is quite a bit more

leadership and lends encouragement and support to families

pragmatic than the strictly artistic mind.”

going through difficult times.

Weavers in Pangnirtung have also used Qappik’s drawings in tapestries. In 2011, he

Qappik’s positive influence is felt in his community. But his

designed a coin, featuring a woman with a baby in her amauti. Qappik’s art has taken

optimism, so apparent in his art, has a far-reaching influence

him many places. He visited Jones in North Carolina and spoke to students at the Inuit

with art lovers.

studies program at Duke University. He has also travelled across the Arctic as an

As Wight says, “He is a virtuoso.”

invaluable staff member on Arctic cruise ships with Adventure Canada and Students on Ice. As artist and culturalist, Qappik quietly shares his artistic talents and gives passengers insights into Inuit life in the Arctic.

In 2006, Dr. H.G. Jones wanted his collection of 140 of Qappik’s catalogued and uncatalogued prints to have a permanent home in Canada. e Winnipeg Art Gallery (WAG), which has the largest collection of Inuit art in the world with 13,000 pieces, was the logical choice for Jones’ collection. In 2010, the WAG had an exhibit showcasing 32 of Qappik’s prints. It was Qappik’s first solo art show.

A B OV E & B E YO N D — C A N A DA’ S A RC T I C J O U R N A L

Season Osborne has a passion for Arctic history, and is the author of In the Shadow of the Pole: An Early History of Arctic Expeditions, 1871-1912. She lives and writes in Ottawa, Ontario.

Images of Qappik’s prints are part of the Winnipeg Art Gallery collection, given by the Council for Canadian American Relations through the generosity of H.G. Jones.

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2015 | 02

LIVING ABOVE & BEYOND

Bluenose East caribou herd. © B. Tracz, ENR, GNWT

Managing the North’s caribou

Nunavut government’s interim moratorium on hunting caribou on and around

The GNWT territorial government has set up a no-hunting zone to

Baffin Island, which took effect January 1, will help give the Baffin Island

protect the Bathurst caribou herd and is tracking the herd’s core with collars

March 11 and 12 on a caribou management plan. Until further notice, hunting

The government will allow hunting of 15 Bathurst bulls for community

caribou population time to recover. The Wildlife board will hold hearings caribou on Baffin Island could result in fines and charges for illegal hunting.

Nunavut’s environment department will move ahead with a project

to collar caribou in the Dolphin and Union herd around Cambridge Bay

in April 2015. The three-year collaring project is intended to collect new

information on the population numbers of the caribou, their migrations

and will put out weekly updates on the location of the protected zone.

ceremonial harvests but aboriginal groups have to apply to the government beforehand. Hunting of the Bluenose East caribou herd is limited

to 1,500. These measures will be reviewed after aerial surveys of the Bathurst herd and the Bluenose East herd are conducted this spring.

and their habitat.

A B OV E & B E YO N D — C A N A DA’ S A RC T I C J O U R N A L

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LIVING ABOVE & BEYOND Grade 5/6 students from St. Gabriel School in Ottawa try out the giant Arctic map during a launch at the Canadian Museum of Nature.

Jessica Finn © Canadian Geographic

Eiderdown factory to re-open

© a&b_files/MayJune2012/People of a Feather/Joel Heath

Eider ducks have long been a source of food

and clothing on the Belcher Islands. A study has determined there is enough eiderdown to

restart the eiderdown factory in Sanikiluaq, Nunavut.

Eiderdown is considered one of the best

natural insulants in the world and it commands

a good price. The factory could also produce vests or mittens.

Collecting the down doesn’t harm the ducks

since the down is taken from the nests.

Giant map teaches students about the Arctic

In collaboration with Canadian Geographic, the Canadian Museum of Nature has created a giant Arctic floor map to help teach students about the Arctic.

The national educational project allows students from Kindergarten to Grade 12 to explore

the natural diversity of Canada’s North: plants, animals, fossils and minerals. The map includes

10 curriculum-linked activities for teachers and a trunk of real Arctic specimens that encourage students to challenge their perceptions about the diversity and geography of Canada’s Arctic.

Schools or teachers can reserve the map and associated activities at canadiangeographic.ca.

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2015 | 02

LIVING ABOVE & BEYOND (Front: L to R): Tagak Curley, the founder of Inuit Tapirisat of Canada (now Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami) with Senator Charlie Watt who was the leader in the JBNQA negotiations with William Tagoona, now Makivik Senior Communications Officer. Curley and Watt were filmed in Ottawa at Parliament Hill for the documentary. In the back (L to R): director Ole Gjerstad, cameraman Alex Margineau and producer Bernard Lajoie. © Jean-Marie Comeau

The JBNQA documentary

The James Bay and Northern Québec Agreement (JBNQA) was the first

Film production started in March 2014 at the Makivik Annual General

modern land claims agreement signed in Canada’s Arctic. The Pascal

Meeting (AGM) where the majority of the signatories of the JBNQA were

facts, events and stories of the negotiations that led to the JBNQA. The

beneficiaries about their shared history. A short preview will be screened

Blais Studio is producing a documentary that will underline the history,

Makivik Corporation — mandated to protect the rights, interests and financial compensation provided by this 1975 agreement — is advising the production team.

present. This documentary will serve as a tool to educate Nunavik at the upcoming Makivik AGM in March, while the film is expected to be completed in late spring 2015.

Farming in the NWT

The Northern Farm Training Institute (NFTI) in

Hay River, NWT, has become Canada’s first Savory Institute training hub. The Savory Institute is an international non-profit organization that promotes preservation and restoration of the

world’s grasslands through holistic management of livestock. A Savory Hub serves as a training centre to help spread the organization’s techniques and philosophies worldwide.

The NFTI is also developing a site that will

include a teaching facility to house 15 or more

students, a state-of-the-art barn, yurts for student accommodations and a large yurt to be used as a classroom.

Instructor Jackie Milne describes how to care for carrots to students from around the Northwest Territories during a Midseason Garden Maintenance and Marketing workshop. © Caroline Lafontaine

NFTI’s programming covers subjects such as

seed selection, planting, wild harvesting and how to apply for funding support. By teaching

A B OV E & B E YO N D — C A N A DA’ S A RC T I C J O U R N A L

people to farm their own food, NFTI can help transform the food system North of 60.

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LIVING ABOVE & BEYOND Makivik Corporation President Jobie Tukkiapik presents the Parnasimautik Consultation Report at the Nunavik Forum held in Kuujjuaq in November. © Robert Fréchette

The Parnasimautik report

Makivik Corporation, along with other Nunavik organizations, has completed the Parnasimautik Consultation Report after extensive consultation with Nunavik Inuit. Parnasimautik is an unprecedented exercise in regional and local mobilization and unity that began in 2013 at workshops

organized in every Nunavik community with local committees, associations, groups and residents.

This report gives Nunavik Inuit one voice and calls for governments to commit to a comprehensive, integrated, sustainable and equitable approach for improving Nunavik Inuit lives and communities. The full report is available at www.parnasimautik.com along with the “What Was Said” community bulletins.

Native North America features tracks produced

by Aboriginal artists in the 1960s, 70s and 80s. © Light in the Attic

New CD features Inuit musicians

Attic Records has recently released a new CD,

Native North America Vol 1: Aboriginal Folk, Rock and Country 1966-1985.

Native North America features Inuit musicians

from across the North, including folk singer John Angaiak; a Yup’ik from Nightmute, Alaska; Willie Thrasher, an Inuk singer-songwriter from

Inuvik, Northwest Territories; the Sugluk band; Kuujjuaq musician and retired CBC host William Tagoona; Puvirnituq’s Sikumiut, headed by the

late, great singer-songwriter Charlie Adams; and Baker Lake’s Alexis Utatnaq.

The album represents the fusion of shifting

global popular culture and a reawakening of

Aboriginal spirituality and expression. The songs speak of joy but also tell of real tragedy and

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strife.

2015 | 02

LIVING ABOVE & BEYOND The elders in residence group at the exhibit opening. L to R: Annie Atigihioyak, Mabel Etegik, Mary Avalak, Mary Kilaodluk, and Pam Gross (Program Manager). © Brendan Griebel/KHS

NU fisheries to be studied

Federal Environment Minister Leona Aglukkaq

has announced funding of more than $7 million for research on new and developing fisheries in Nunavut.

Research will include:

• studying how existing turbot harvests can

Showcasing Cambridge Bay culture

The May Hakongak Community Library and

of years ago alongside tools still used today.

opened its new Inuinnauyugut exhibit. The

traditions between generations through new

and include carvings, paintings, clothing, pelts,

an Elders’s Mentorship program and a summer

Cultural Centre in Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, has exhibits number more than a dozen artifacts and photos as well as artifacts from hundreds

The cultural centre also plans to pass on

programs, including a qulliq-making workshop, camping trip to Perry River.

be expanded and whether new locations

can be added as well as doing surveys to help manage the stock;

• surveying and sustainability research on northern shrimp;

• investigating the feasibility of having a commercial clam industry near Qikiqtarjuaq, and

• deciding whether Nunavut’s small Arctic char fishery can be expanded.

KIKIAK

CONTRACTING LTD.

General contractors serving the North since 1999 Inuit owned and operated General construction, remediation work, plumbing and heating, heavy equipment rental and service, earthworks, vehicle service and rental, expediting, ice road construction, cat train work

#56 Kugluktuk Dr., Kugluktuk, NU Ph: 867-982-4713 F : 867-982-4718 Email: kikiak_gn@netkaster.ca A B OV E & B E YO N D — C A N A DA’ S A RC T I C J O U R N A L

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INUIT FORUM

Click “Donate” to Create Lasting Change When footage of Inuit

Lillian Elias of Inuvik describes the elements of her language during a forum to discuss a unified writing system for Inuktut. The work is being funded by the Counselling Foundation of Canada. © ITK (2)

feeding their families

with food from local dumps made it to the evening news a short while ago, the issue of

food security suddenly

became real for many

Canadians living in the south. In the days

that followed, many Canadians joined online

discussion groups to learn more about the issue. Some formed a network to send food

packages directly to food banks and families in need. Interestingly, a number of others clicked the donate button at www.itk.ca to help us develop Inuit-driven solutions to social policy needs.

The economic reality of the 21st century

is that government is not funding Aboriginal policy development in the way it has through-

out much of ITK’s history. Notably, ITK’s federal funding has declined nearly 50 per cent since

Frank G. Lawson, a stockbroker who was com-

we must diversify our funding sources, adding

helped establish what is now the United Way.

2011-12. To continue doing the work that we do, new productive alliances. In the non-profit world, funding must come not just from government

but also from charitable foundations, private individuals and corporations.

mitted to developing human potential and

people, and ITK is working to become self-

We’re proud to work with the Lawson family

future plans, we hope to motivate private

and we’re proud of the work that we’re doing with their support.

Similarly, we have been fortunate to partner

ITK is entering this new fiscal future with a

with the estate of a lifelong community volunteer

to investigate the feasibility of a unified writing

libraries. The bequest has helped support an

strong base of partnership successes. Our work system for Inuktut has been funded since 2011 by the Counselling Foundation of Canada, a family-run organization established in 1959 by

Inuit have historically been a self-reliant

and social worker with a deep commitment to online resource collection of Inuit early child-

hood education materials allowing educators across Inuit Nunangat to share limited resources.

A B OV E & B E YO N D — C A N A DA’ S A RC T I C J O U R N A L

reliant as well. By outlining our programs and

donors to invest, encourage volunteers and

even re-energize ourselves. Ultimately, we know that long-term change for Inuit must be led by Inuit, and this is as true in policy development

addressing food security, access to health care

and wildlife management practices as it is for creating a culture of philanthropy.

Terry Audla

President, Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami

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RESOURCES

NUNAVUT

Agnico Eagle’s explorations continue

Agnico Eagle’s explorations for their IVR zones

have expanded so the entire project has been

renamed “Amaruq,” an Inuktitut word meaning “large wolf”. The environmental baseline data for Amaruq had begun and could be used for the eventual permitting of the project.

The permitting team has been evaluating

the possibility of an all-weather road between

the Meadowbank mine and Amaruq, including making a water crossing assessment, fish surveys

and a gravel quarry. The road would be used for the transport of fuel, equipment and personnel.

An expansion is underway to accommodate 60 workers by spring 2015. However, the Nunavut

Impact Review Board is reassessing the Meadowbank gold mine’s project certificate following the proposal to expand operations.

Meanwhile, the federal government has

accepted the Nunavut Impact Review Board’s

recommendations to approve the Meliadine

gold mine. Agnico Eagle has yet to make a final decision on building the mine and still operates

the site as an advanced exploration project. The company must also finish negotiating with the

Diamond explorations to begin on Boothia Peninsula

Arctic Star Exploration Corp, has announced the acquisition of the Stein Diamond Property,

associated with copper, gold and other metals

hectares on the Boothia Peninsula. Extensive regional heavy mineral sampling has revealed diamond indicator minerals.

Arctic Star will begin explorations on the

property this spring and summer, with work culminating towards a drill program.

NWT

NWT government to study potential all-season roads

The Northwest Territories government is looking into the possibility of turning the first 150 kilo-

metres of the ice road to the diamond mines

into an all-weather road. It would provide for more certainty with re-supply and would facilitate development of other mineral properties in the area. Another option would see the all-

weather road go to Nunavut, near the Lupin gold mine.

The NWT government is also studying the

Valley to the Arctic Ocean from the end of the

uranium mine, located about 80 km west of

Baker Lake. Areva plans to mine four ore deposits

using the open pit method and one deposit using underground mining methods. The company

roundtable discussions related to the Kiggavik uranium project in March in Baker Lake.

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New drill targets sought at Triceratops site

Arctic Star Exploration Corp. has acquired the “Triceratops Property” in the Slave Craton

of the Northwest Territories. The property covers six historical kimberlite discoveries and

consists of 62 contiguous claims with an area of

46,840 hectares located 31 km NW of the Ekati diamond mine.

Arctic Star plans to use heli-borne gravity

and other modern diamond exploration methods to generate new drill targets on the property.

Mine to develop fourth diamond pipe

Development of a fourth diamond pipe at the

Diavik diamond mine will begin soon. The mine is located 300 kilometres northeast of Yellowknife.

Rio Tinto, the majority owner of the mine,

workers.

on the ice road at Lockhart Lake. An all-season

the pipe will require about 177 construction

road here could reduce the risk of the ice road

closing due to warm temperatures and could

potentially extend the seasonal life of the entire ice road to three months from two months.

(DEMCo) 2014 exploration program has revealed

scheduled technical presentations and community

mapping and prospecting is also planned.

Ingraham Trail in Yellowknife to the first rest stop

once it’s closed.

The Nunavut Impact Review Board has

underground. Additional drill core re-sampling,

says building the 2.2-kilometre dike to access

to four years of construction prior to that and

10 years of decommissioning and monitoring

intended to outline any magnetic anomalies

transportation corridor” along the Mackenzie

Mineral deposits found in the Sahtu

expects to run the mine for 14 years, with three

DEMCo plans to continue exploring at

prospecting permits covering an area of 105,637

of Taloyoak and consists of four contiguous

licensing process with the Nunavut Water Board.

Areva is proposing to open Nunavut’s first

high potential for copper and gold in the area.

Camsell River, starting with a gravity survey

potential for an “energy, communications and

Uranium mine to be discussed

much larger, undiscovered deposits, including a

in Nunavut. The property is located 85 km NW

Kivalliq Inuit Association on an Inuit impact and

benefits agreement, as well as go through a

taken at the property point to the possibility of

The Denendeh Exploration and Mining Co. evidence of extensive gold and copper deposits, along with lead, zinc, cobalt, silver and bismuth

at the Camsell River property, an old silver mine near Great Bear Lake in the Sahtu. Samples

2015 | 02

What happened to the Mary?

A historic site ravaged through time

By Season Osborne

A long grey timber lies across the snow-covered beach, pointing at Erebus Bay. It is a ship’s mast. The mast and a few boards are all that’s left of the 12-ton yacht Mary, left at Beechey Island in 1853 for use by expeditions searching for Sir John Franklin and his men.

But her keel never felt the sea again.

Mast of the yacht Mary lying on the beach at Beechey Island, September 2014 © S.L. Osborne

A B OV E & B E YO N D — C A N A DA’ S A RC T I C J O U R N A L

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“T

his was not a pleasure ‘yacht’ as we think of the term today, but a small, swi

sailing boat used by navy ships,” says Capt. Patrick Toomey, retired Canadian

Coastguard captain and ice master aboard Arctic and Antarctic cruise ships. “Yachts were used for communicating with other distant vessels comprising a fleet, for hydro graphic surveys in unknown waters, and as a dispatch-vessel for landing mail ashore when ships were not coming into port. e yacht would be carried on board the ship, or towed astern.” e Mary was towed astern. e mahogany boat was owned by19th century British naval officer and Arctic explorer Sir John Ross. Ross was determined to lead a search expedition for his friend John Franklin who, in 1845, sailed into the Arctic with two ships and 129 men to find the Northwest Passage. eir countrymen never saw them again. Hearing nothing of the expedition by 1848, the British Admiralty sent search parties, which returned in 1849 with no news of the missing expedition.

In a January 14, 1850 letter to the Admiralty, Ross offered his services. He would take his own yacht, the Mary, and proceed as far west as Bank’s and Melville islands.

He wrote, “e retreat vessel Mary should be hauled up at Winter Harbour, and le with nine months’ provision, fuel and ammunition, which would secure the ultimate safety, both of our crew and any that may be found alive of the missing expedition.” e Admiralty had its own plans that did not include Ross. However, the Hudson’s Bay Company financed his expedition, and he le Scotland on May 23, aboard the The Mary, taken by the photographer on Allen Young’s 1875 Arctic expedition aboard the Pandora, had been on Beechey Island for two decades and was still in good seagoing condition.

Courtesy of S.L. Osborne

90-ton Felix, with the unmanned Mary in tow. He arrived at Beechey Island in the central Arctic Archipelago on August 27, shortly aer Franklin’s 1845-46 over wintering spot was discovered there by British search expeditions. Ice blocked any westward progress, so Ross wintered at Beechey. He le the Mary hauled up on the beach at Cape Spencer in Union Bay, on the other side of Beechey, and returned to England in October 1851.

He informed the Admiralty that the Mary had been supplied with provisions and fuel for use by any future expedition parties needing them. He asked the Lordships to compensate him £190 sterling for the loss of his vessel. e Admiralty agreed and Ross was reimbursed in full.

In 1852, the Admiralty sent a search squadron of five ships under the command of Sir Edward Belcher. ey set up a base camp at Beechey Island. Four ships, Resolute, Intrepid, Pioneer and Assistance, commenced search operations, leaving the depot ship

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Mrs. JD Craig and RCMP Insp. C.E. Wilcox stand in the hulk of the Mary, 1927. The two were members of the first Eastern Arctic Patrol to visit the historic Beechey Island.

Library and Archives Canada, PA-186867

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RCMP officers of the 1928 Eastern Arctic Patrol at the Mary. (L to R: RCMP officer, Captain F. Faulk of Beothic, crewmember, Richard Finnie, RCMP officer.)

National Museums of Canada # 70971 Courtesy of David Gray

North Star stationed in Erebus Bay. e North Star’s Commander W.J.S. Pullen had a storehouse (Northumberland House), a forge and a carpenter’s workshop built on the southeast side of the island. Pullen planned to visit Port Leopold on Somerset Island to the south, and figuring the little yacht “would be well adapted for the service” rowed the three miles over to Cape Spencer with three men to fetch the Mary.

Moving the vessel proved a difficult task, as she was frozen solid to the icy beach.

Aer strenuous hours of hacking away ice and using a luff tackle, they succeeded in finally floating the Mary and towed her back to Erebus Bay, an ordeal that took 24 hours. e boat was fitted out and kept in readiness, but remained at anchor. e following summer of 1854, Belcher ordered the ships abandoned. Before returning to England, the men hauled the Mary onto the beach near Northumberland House. ere she remained for the next 160 years.

In 1858, Francis Leopold McClintock arrived in Erebus Bay aboard the Fox. He deposited the large marble slab from Lady Franklin, inscribed as a tribute to Franklin and his men, at Belcher’s wooden monument on the terrace above Northumberland House. McClintock then headed south to King William Island where he found evidence of the fate of the Franklin expedition.

Allen Young, the sailing master on McClintock’s expedition, decided to search for Franklin’s missing written records, and returned to Beechey Island in August 1875 aboard the Pandora. He noted the place hadn’t been visited by humans since the Fox’s visit 17 years earlier. Polar bears had smashed open the barrels of provisions in Northumberland House, but the Mary was still in good shape sitting upright on the beach. Young wrote in Cruise of the Pandora, “I should consider that the Mary might be made available for a retreating party in about four or five days with the resources of Northumberland House.”

In 1902, when Norwegian Otto Sverdrup was about to face his fourth winter on

Sgt Henry Larsen (left) and special RCMP constables Diplock and McKenzie with pieces of the Mary’s planking and her keel aboard the St. Roch after arriving in Vancouver from the Arctic, 1944.

Courtesy of Doreen Riedel

Ellesmere Island, three of his men went to Beechey by dogsled to adjust their chronometers, required to accurately determine latitude and longitude. Beechey’s geographic coordinates had been accurately determined by Franklin search expeditions.

Sverdrup also wondered about the state of the Mary. He contemplated sailing to Greenland to send word home that all was well. However, his men found the mast and decking had been sawn off and the zinc sheathing damaged, possibly by whalers. Mary was not fit for long voyages, and she stayed on the beach.

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A year later, Roald Amundsen stopped at Beechey Island on his Northwest Passage voyage to pick up provisions le for him by a Scottish whaler. He attached a tin with a record that the Gjoa was proceeding down Peel Sound to Belcher’s wooden monument.

On August 15, 1904, Albert Peter Low, commander of the first Canadian expedition to the High Arctic aboard the Neptune, landed at Beechey and found Amundsen’s record. Low brought it back to Ottawa, and it was eventually forwarded to the Norwegian government. e crewmembers explored the site and picked up little souvenirs. Dr. Lorris Borden, the ship’s surgeon, took photos and a piece of the Mary.

Borden wrote in his journal, “e portion I got for a curio was from the cabin of the sloop of Sir John Franklin. It was mahogany and was made into a picture frame for one of the photographs by the carpenter, Mr. Ryan, of the Neptune.”

On the second Canadian expedition to the Arctic in 1906, Capt. Joseph-Elzéar Bernier also landed on the island. His men cemented the marble slab le by McClintock to the base of the monument. ey also moved the Mary to higher ground closer to the base of the cliff, so she would not be “destroyed by the sea” and still be of service in the event of a shipwreck in the area. Bernier assessed the boat as being in useable condition.

However, when the RCMP Eastern Arctic Patrol ship, Arctic, landed at Beechey in the summer of 1923, the Mary was not in as good shape. e Arctic was resupplying RCMP posts set up in the Eastern Arctic, and also carried a judicial party for a murder Planking of the Mary lying on the gravel beach in 2010. © David Gray

trial in Pond Inlet. e Arctic made a detour to the historic Beechey Island. ey found the Mary lying on her side in the gravel. RCMP Inspector C.E. Wilcox and Mrs. Craig, wife of the expedition commander, had their picture taken standing in the hull of the Mary.

Beechey Island became an annual stop on the annual Eastern Arctic Patrols. Sometimes the patrols carried more than just RCMP officers. In 1927, artist A.Y. Jackson, founding member of the Group of Seven, travelled to the Arctic with the Eastern Arctic Patrol.

“She was more or less a hulk, with her deck and a good deal of her timbers broken or washed away, as far back as the late 1920s, when she was sketched by A.Y. Jackson,” says Dr. Russell Potter, Professor at Rhode Island College, and a Franklin expedition expert. “at’s now nearly ninety years ago, so I expect that natural forces must have done the rest, though it’s possible that souvenir-hunters or scavengers accelerated the process.”

Potter is likely correct in this assumption. Dr. Borden’s mahogany picture frame is one example of this. It was a habit of early Canadian expeditions to bring back relics of past expeditions for the Victoria Memorial Museum in Ottawa.

In August 1944, the RCMP vessel St. Roch called in at Beechey on her epic voyage west through the Northwest Passage. Ship’s captain, Sgt. Henry Larsen, found the Mary’s mast standing, planted in the beach. Her keel, stern and pieces of planking were all that was le lying on the beach.

In his 1944 expedition report, he wrote, “It seems strange that it should have been destroyed and the wreckage scattered along the beach, with the mast still standing.”

Larsen brought part of the keel and other pieces onboard. ey are now in the Vancouver Maritime Museum collection.

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“ere was not much then aer nearly a century,” says James P. Delgado, former director of the Vancouver Maritime Museum, which houses the St. Roch. “Larsen’s souvenirs in the museum’s collection speaks to what happened.... slowly picked apart and taken away, or deteriorated and gone, thanks to bears, weather, and fascinated visitors.”

Except that when Larsen found the Mary, she had already been dismantled and the mast stuck in the beach. is destruction happened between 1928, when she was visited by the Eastern Arctic Patrol and still relatively intact, and 1944. Larsen himself was surprised to find the Mary’s much deteriorated condition. Surprisingly, 70 years later not much has changed, except that the mast has fallen and is lying on the beach amongst bits of planking.

In 1993, Beechey Island was designated one of Canada’s National Historic sites by Parks Canada, though the Nunavut government is responsible for it. Removing artefacts from historic sites is prohibited. However, Beechey Island is an extremely remote site,

The hulk of the Mary devoid of decking and mast, 1923.

Library and Archives Canada, P1120520

so difficult to regularly patrol. Since 1984, passenger cruises through Canada’s Arctic have become possible. Beechey Island is always a tour highlight.

“I would guess that there are about 1,000 visitors to Beechey Island in any given year,” says Capt. Toomey, calculating that cruise ships typically have 100 to 300 passengers, and smaller numbers of tourists arrive by private vessels and small aircra that can land on the beach. e Association of Arctic Expedition Cruise Operators enforces strict rules for landing at cultural and historic places like Beechey. Nothing can be picked up or rearranged. ere are no fences around the historic site, and only good conscience keeps visitors from removing articles of interest.

One is inclined to say that weather, time, and souvenir seekers are slowly vanquishing this historic site. But with regards to the yacht Mary, the damage was done to her long before cruise ship passengers landed on Beechey’s shore.

A B OV E & B E YO N D — C A N A DA’ S A RC T I C J O U R N A L

Mast of the yacht Mary lying on the beach at Beechey Island, September 2014. © S.L. Osborne

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Lake area where people camped before ascending to the ice patches for hunting expeditions. © Todd Kristensen, University of Alberta

Frozen finds in the Alpine Artifacts of the caribou hunter

By Todd Kristensen, Tom Andrews and Darryl Bereziuk

T

he winds bode well for a small group of climbers high in the alpine on an August aernoon. ey are peering down below at unsuspecting caribou that

have clustered on a patch of ice to stay cool. e stench of caribou dung le by thousands of animals that have returned to this area over thousands of years is a nasal reminder of how caribou are set in their ways. On a daily basis during the summer months, the animals migrate upslope to colder heights during the hottest time of day only to return to the valleys at night. is ancient habit makes the caribou predictable. And so, as long as caribou have been gathering at ice patches in Alaska, Yukon, and the Northwest Territories for over 9,000 years, people armed with sturdy moccasins and stone-tipped weapons have followed them.

A B OV E & B E YO N D — C A N A DA’ S A RC T I C J O U R N A L

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Caribou gather on the upland ice features to stay cool in the midday heat. © Todd Kristensen, University of Alberta

Archaeological research from Alaska’s Wrangell-St. Elias Ranges to the Mackenzie Mountains in the NWT has revealed rare and delicate tools preserved in high altitude ice that document a deep human history in some of the most remote alpine habitats on the continent. ese artifacts were lost by ancient people such as the hunters described above, and have since been encased in a barrier of ice that climate change has recently unlocked. A race is now on to find frozen relics from the past before they, and the icy archives that house them, disappear forever. Also fading are the memories of this traditional practice among local indigenous groups. Elders still remember an age old mantra passed down for generations that may just as well describe the strategy of modern hikers: “Climb high and stay high”. e important point was to approach game from above.

Mountains. e find was reported to local archaeologists who realized that it was a wooden tool lost on the ice thousands of years ago. Indigenous people across the North still remember stories of life in the alpine, but until that lucky Yukon find, archaeologists didn’t expect that much physical evidence of old activities would preserve in the harsh high altitude conditions. It is very rare to find intact wooden tools that are thousands of years old, so the artefact triggered a series of research programs that focused the eyes of archaeologists upwards on loy peaks where they eventually found themselves down to their knees in slippery caribou dung.

A suite of research techniques is helping to uncover the technologies used by alpine climbers while radiocarbon dates are indicating when different weapons were used. e flurry of scientific methods in alpine research is an avalanche of acronyms to Ice patches in the Selwyn Mountains of NWT. © Tom Andrews, Government of NWT

the uninitiated: GPR (ground penetrating radar), SEM-EDS (scanning electron

Archaeology and traditional knowledge combine to tell an

This stone dart is over 2,000 years old and is preserved in its original wooden shaft.

Courtesy of Greg Hare, Government of Yukon

amazing story of mountain climbs in ancient times. e story of prehistoric alpine hunters owes its existence to modern biologists in the Yukon who discovered an odd piece of wood above the tree line in the Coast

Profile of ascent from lakeshore camp to high altitude kill zones. © Todd Kristensen, University of Alberta

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Modern science is pin-pointing the materials used in ancient weapons. © Todd Kristensen, University of Alberta

Around 1,200 years ago, the atlatl and dart were replaced by the bow and arrow. Broken bow fragments from the ice patches tell of failed hunting expeditions while frozen arrows tell of near misses that were lost in the snow. e benefit of the bow and arrow was that hunters could stand still while firing as opposed to the running launch of the atlatl dart. Less hunter movement meant that animals didn’t notice their two-legged predators until too late. e bows were made of maple and willow wood (bendy but durable) while arrow/dart shas were made of birch, spruce, and saskatoon. A traditional indigenous name of the saskatoon plant is ‘arrow berry,’ which reflects the ancient roots of a raw material used over 2,000 years ago.

Stone arrowheads were coated in thick, sticky spruce sap that glued the arrowhead in place on the arrow sha. It

microscopy-energy dispersive spectrometry), and our own invention HUMT-FT (hiking up mountains to find things). Scientists also rely on caribou radio-collar data, ancient DNA research, mountain range satellite imagery, and snow indices. e result is an impressive library of information about alpine life in the days before hiking boots, crampons, and Gor-Tex. Archaeologists have learned that Indigenous people used three major weapons to kill caribou, sheep, ptarmigan, small mammals, and even bison in high altitude areas. e first and oldest is the atlatl and dart system (or spear thrower). Picture a lacrosse stick but instead of a basket on the end, a little spur or hole served as the seat of a small wooden spear. e spear or ‘dart’ was launched from the wooden stick like a javelin.

When compared to a basic spear, the atlatl increased the length of the thrower’s arm and in turn increased the power, which drove the dart deeper into the target’s body.

Caribou rest on ice and snow features to keep cool and escape insects. © Tom Andrews, Government of NWT

was then tied tight with thread or “sinew” made from caribou back tissue. Sinew was also used to tie neatly clipped bird feathers to the ends of arrows. is is called ‘fletching’ and helped create drag that kept the arrows flying straight. Just as every old village in Europe had a blacksmith, every village had an arrow-maker, which explains the now common North American surnames of ‘Smith’ and ‘Fletcher’. Arrowmaker is also a common indigenous family name for this same reason. e ideal feathers for arrows were from hawks, owls, and eagles because it was hoped that their silent aerial hunting skills would be passed on to the flying weapons.

The perfect ice patch borders a round top that enables hunters to lurk from above undetected. © Todd Kristensen, University of Alberta

A B OV E & B E YO N D — C A N A DA’ S A RC T I C J O U R N A L

e last weapon system found in the high altitude ice was used to capture the notoriously ferocious ground

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This moccasin held the foot of an alpine climber over a thousand years ago.

Courtesy of Greg Hare, Government of Yukon

squirrel and marmot. Rodent snares have been found in the Selwyn Mountains of Northwest Territories that are made of leather loops that were triggered by wooden trip pegs set outside burrows. Indigenous stories tell us that ground squirrel skins were stitched together to form beautiful robes and that up to 200 snares in a single alpine area could produce enough food to last for months. Add the supply of caribou, sheep, ptarmigan, and berries and alpine life from late summer to early fall was good. e collection of preserved alpine tools in northern ice patches is truly unique in North America and they are broadening our understanding of prehistoric ways. For example, a 1,400-year-old moccasin from the Yukon Plateau region represents one of the oldest pieces of footwear found in northern North America. e moccasin was

Over time, the caribou have seen it all, from atlatls to snares and bows and arrows to muskets (a musket ball was found on a Yukon ice patch). In addition to all that technological change, the caribou are now watching a novel impact of human industry, one that is having bigger effects on caribou populations than prehistoric hunting.

Warming temperatures are eating away at the ice patches that caribou rely on to beat the heat. For an animal adapted to surviving frigid Arctic winters, it is the hot summers that may prove more dangerous to survival. Now, archaeologists and caribou are meeting eye-to-eye along the vanishing edges of alpine ice patches. While archaeologists eagerly recover ancient artifacts, caribou reluctantly clamour for pockets of cool snow. ey are now laying on totally melted ice patches out of instinct, which is bad news because the Selwyn Mountain landscape below ice patches. © Todd Kristensen, University of Alberta

exposed dark dung bands absorb solar radiation and drive up caribou body temperature.

likely replaced by spares that hunters carried with them

Jennifer Galloway of the Geological Survey of Canada studies changes in northern

while hiking over hard and rocky mountains. As modern

plant communities by inspecting ancient pollen and her research helps uncover the

climbers know, the right gear (in this case new shoes) can

rate, magnitude, and direction of climate change over the last 10,000 years. She’s

be a matter of life and death. Moving around in the alpine

detected dramatic changes in the recent past and hopes to use that information to

was a critical thing, which is strongly echoed in indigenous

understand how regions like the mountains of the NWT may experience future changes

stories. Living in the alpine meant knowing how to move

if the climate continues to warm.

ey are returning to cool down at ancestral resting spots that no longer exist.

Ice patches that lasted for over four millennia have vanished in the last 50 years.

through it, and, more importantly, how to properly treat a

e causes of global warming are debated but the alpine effects are clear. It is ironic

landscape that held the fate of one’s own life. People would

that as the ice melts it unlocks a story of prehistoric hunting while exposing those very

regularly “pay the water” (offer gis to spirits at water

clues of the ancient past to destructive high altitude weather. A book is opening and

bodies), properly dispose of animal remains (to make sure

quickly closing. Much remains to be learned. If modern climbers find old bones, wood,

the spirits could be re-incarnated), and “dream animals”

or a potential artefact, please leave them in place and contact the authors with some

(listen to the omens of alpine spirits that communicated

photographs or map coordinates so we can continue to learn about the deep past of

to people through dreams). All of this helped maintain a

life in the alpine.

healthy balance in which people took care of the land and the land took care of the people.

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A R T S , C U LT U R E & E D U C AT I O N The magnificent Reindeer Crossing.

Community members from Inuvik, Aklavik and Tuktoyaktuk came out in force to watch the reindeer during their annual crossing. © David Stewart

The Reindeer Philosopher

A culture with purpose

I am standing in my mukluks on the frozen and slippery Mackenzie River for an hour, squinting through the viewfinder of my camera into an expansive Arctic tundra, my frostbitten finger like an icicle ready for the shot. I know this is the moment of a lifetime. Today 3,000 reindeer will make their annual crossing at Swimming Point, from their wintering grounds at Jimmy Lake to their calving grounds at Richards Island.

There are about 150 people, more people

wearing a gakti, the Sami traditional clothing

Swimming Point, 20 minutes southwest of

Gleeful with excitement, the spectators

than I have ever seen gathered together at

for reindeer herders, complete with a lasso.

Tuktoyaktuk and one and a half hours north of

break out of their trance as the reindeer drift

through the ice road. Anticipation is building

Sami herder, returns to embrace his wife,

Inuvik. Most are from communities connected

with murmurings about the reindeer’s imminent arrival.

A fine line of dots break through the vast

out of sight. Minutes later, Henrik Seva, the Anna, before jumping back on his skidoo to follow the reindeer.

The photos and videos my husband and I

whiteness in the distance.

posted went viral; it seemed the rest of Canada

one exclaims as we run across the ice road.

to meet Henrik at the reindeer calving grounds

“They are coming! They are coming!” EveryThen with the grace of ink spilled and

spreading gently on paper, the dots grow

was just as interested, so we wrangled a chance the following week.

There are no words to describe the awe and

Anna Johansson visits her husband Henrik Seva at the reindeer calving grounds. The couple found true love despite vast cultural differences. © Zoe Ho

Henrik spoke in a lilting, soft voice with a

bigger, joining up. Moving in synergy, the rein-

sense of immense fortune to be surrounded by

tinge of Inuvialuit accent. When Henrik arrived

up a cloud of snow dust. The magnificent

Arctic sundog. They were grazing in scattered

elder David Nasogaluak taught him English

deer billow forward, their furious legs kicking spectacle is oddly quiet for its size. The 3,000

reindeer move with purpose, flowing past us

as one dark amoeba over the banks and up the hills with the herder guiding by skidoo. He is

reindeer in their natural habitat under a bright groups across the hilltop, and it was surreal to

have them edge closer as we sat by the fire

making pie-iron grilled cheese sandwiches. Our curiosity was mutual.

A B OV E & B E YO N D — C A N A DA’ S A RC T I C J O U R N A L

in Tuktoyaktuk 14 years ago, he was 49. An with guessing games.

“Tuk is an indigenous community. Sure I felt

some connection but it was a different culture, a different way to live,” he says.

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A R T S , C U LT U R E & E D U C AT I O N Henrik Seva, Sami herder, guides reindeer over the frozen MacKenzie River by skidoo. © David Stewart

Herding in Tuk was especially challenging

food sources. Back in the day, herders patrolled

Kitkiojarvi near the Swedish-Finnish border

up with the reindeer. During the summer

on exposed tundra, unlike where he herded in

above the tree line. Henrik carries a Swedish

passport but prefers to say he is a Sami from Sapmi. He was born near Muonionalusta, an island in the river that separates Sweden from Finland.

The reindeer herd was first brought to the

Mackenzie Delta area via Alaska almost 80 years ago, when caribou numbers dwindled

and the government sought to supplement

on skis, travelling 20 to 30 miles a day to keep

dad. We have all been reindeer herders. It’s a lifestyle. It’s not work,” says Henrik.

The Sami calendar is broken into eight

months the reindeer are left on Richard Islands

seasons, based on life cycles and migration

the reindeer. He has been with the reindeer

season, and the herder was consumed with

to range freely. It is Henrik’s 11th winter with longer than some of their owners. For seven

months of the year, he carries on his Sami traditions in this Canadian setting, mostly alone.

“Reindeer is my life. I have grown up with

the reindeer, so did my dad, so did my grand-

An ancient connection

Reindeer herding is when people in a limited area herd reindeer. Currently, reindeer are the only semi-domesticated animal that naturally belongs to the north. Reindeer herding is conducted in nine countries: Norway, Finland, Sweden, Russia, Greenland, Alaska, Mongolia,

patterns of the reindeer. We were in spring ensuring the fawns arrive healthy and safe. “Even

you are not out on the land, your mind is there and you think about what is best and what to do

to help the reindeer. I try to take care of reindeer best as I can and that’s my purpose. When I feel I’ve done what I can, I feel good,” he says.

Henrik is happiest when he is looking after the reindeer. © Zoe Ho

China and Canada. A small herd is also maintained in Scotland. There are about 30 reindeer

herding peoples in the world and 3.4 million semi-domesticated reindeer. The intimate connection between humans and animals is perhaps best embodied by this relationship as

reindeer husbandry represents a connection ancient in origin and practiced almost identically wherever it is found.

Reindeer herding in Sweden is now divided into 51 Sami communities, from Karesuando

in the north to Idre in the south. Each Sami community has an east-west geographical grazing

area (50 to 200 kilometres in length) divided into summer, spring, autumn, and winter grazing lands. Agreement on population totals for the Sami in Sweden vary, but it is estimated that

there are between 15,000 and 20,000 Sami living in Sweden, 900 active reindeer herders, and approximately 3,000 people who can exercise special Sami resource rights. It is estimated that there are approximately 300,000 reindeer in the Swedish territories.

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A R T S , C U LT U R E & E D U C AT I O N

“My priority is herding. You are like a living

fence. You have to know where the reindeer are and bring them back. It can be difficult when

alone with the reindeer has made him one

into Henrik’s life. She came to the Northwest

“Usually the reindeer come much closer.

dog sled tours for Arctic Chalet. Three years

with nature, completely at ease in just being.

wolves chase them. I’ve lots of help with the

The relationship is built on trust. I used to yoik.

take care of the wolves. Skinning and butchering

recognize my voice,” he laughs. “They are not

Inuvialuit here. They are good hunters and they the meat is part of the job too,” he says.

“When you stay in a cabin like I do, you can

It’s our singing style and to make sure they fussy, even if they are 3,000.”

Anna knew Henrik was “the one”.

“Everything is great about Henrik. He’s very

Henrik’s voice lowers, “and that's how Anna

laugh a lot. He’s very unique, very special, very

sometimes for days in complete silence, with

came into my life.”

Spending so much of his time on the land

plan tours, and by the end of that weekend calm and very happy, and very wise and he puts

would be nice to have somebody close to you,”

only the company of your journal.

ago her boss sent her up to Henrik’s cabin to

“Part of the time I felt alone too and it

spend weeks by yourself.” In a typical season

of reindeer herding, you carry on the traditions

Territories to become a Kennel Master, guiding

Anna Johansson lived in Montreal and had

an equestrian background. She literally skijored

Traditional Inuit art captures the beauty, truth and spirit of Canada’s Arctic

up with me and my plans and my projects and we supportive and the coolest dude. He’s handsome, with the curly boots and the knives and the big belts,” Anna gushes.

“Bear Mother and Child”

by Norman Quamautuq, Pangnirtung Nunavut.

northern images A Division of Arctic Co-operatives Ltd.

Yellowknife 867-873-5944

Visit Our Website www.northernimages.ca A B OV E & B E YO N D — C A N A DA’ S A RC T I C J O U R N A L

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A R T S , C U LT U R E & E D U C AT I O N Reindeer herders go up the hill to the reindeer calving grounds with the 3,000 strong herd at Swimming Point last spring. © David Stewart

harvests in a traditional Sami way with a lot of

respect to the animals. He makes sure they

have a really good life, a really quick painless death, and then he skins them so beautifully. I

have made exceptions to my vegetarianism and

I will eat reindeer meat that Henrik harvests.

It’s important for him that I respect his way of

life and he’s never asked me to eat the meat,” she says.

Henrik smiles, “I knew there were people

“He did say his mother was married to a

reindeer herder and all of the women who are

married to reindeer herders have a hard life

because their men are always with the reindeer,

confidence that he is doing the right thing, and

it gives him an energy... he knows who he is, what he does and he’s really good at it.

Anna has been a vegetarian for over 30

always thinking about the reindeer. And it’s

years but she and Henrik do not find that to be

because it’s so amazing to be with somebody

horses and dogs and donkeys and cows and

hard but I think you marry a reindeer herder whose day-to-day life is perfectly aligned with

their purpose. It gives him this wonderful

38

who were vegetarians, but I had not been involved with people like that before. But sure

I can respect that everyone has their choices and it’s fine with me. Let all the blooms bloom.”

“It’s a beautiful Swedish proverb. Basically

a discordant point. “I grew up on a farm with

you have to let everybody blossom and bloom.

you just can’t eat your friends. So it was easy

Anna.

for me to stop eating meat. Henrik, however,

And that’s the way Henrik lives his life,” says

Zoe Ho

2015 | 02

POLITICS

“My vote counted”

Choosing a QIA president

Two votes. That was all it took to win the Presidency of QIA (Qikiqtani Inuit Association) for PJ (Pauloosie) Akeeagok. QIA is the designated Inuit organization for the Eastern/Baffin region of Nunavut, or more appropriately, the Qikiqtani region, set out by the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement.

Well, that is not all it took, but the two votes certainly counted.

I’m fortunate to know what it feels like to

election, can say “my vote counted” and any

experience.

Any voter, who actually did vote in this

eligible Nunavut beneficiary could have easily

discounted this, especially with the low turnout of 31 per cent.

Akeeagok says that this was part of his

campaign, letting all beneficiaries know that,

lose,” Akeeagok says, speaking humbly of the “At the end of the day that proved right, in

terms of every vote counting,” says Akeeagok, and added that he received about 50 messages from Inuit saying, “My vote counted.”

“It was my first time putting myself out

yes, their vote counts, and it was strikingly and

there: it’s a lot harder than it looks. I could say

unofficial results on December 8, Akeeagok

have a vision… That was the most challenging

evidently so for this election. After the first unofficially lost with 755 votes while Mikidjuk

Akavak led with 758 votes. With the recount on December 14, Akeeagok officially won with PJ Akeeagok. © Teevi Mackay

“I lost and won in the same election and

756 votes. Akavak closely trailed with 754 votes, two votes away from a tie and three votes away from winning.

A B OV E & B E YO N D — C A N A DA’ S A RC T I C J O U R N A L

that now: having to convince people that you

and rewarding part with people saying, ‘you know what, I believe you’ and people saying,

‘you know, I’m voting for the first time’.”

Akeeagok felt humbled to learn that many have confidence and hope in him.

Iqaluit, January 2015. © Teevi Mackay

39

Proud to be given the opportunity to serve QIA beneficiaries in his new role. January 2015. © Teevi Mackay

shaping of Nunavut. These leading negotiators worked really hard to get to where we are and

it’s one of those things you want to keep pushing on, what they’ve started.”

“My upbringing gives me that positive out-

look as well. There are so many good things

around us that we should always be thankful for: family, being able to go hunting, and what’s important — being able to speak Inuktitut. You

have be optimistic — there’s always two different

ways to see a situation. I’m always a positive thinker… if it’s not working, let’s make it better instead of complaining.”

Cooking and happy when out on the land.

Photo courtesy PJ (Pauloosie) Akeeagok

From the smallest Nunavut town to the biggest political Qikiqtani job

has grounded him. He merits his grounded

A vision of unity for now QIA President Akeeagok

town of Nunavut, (and most Northern nationally)

approach today being married with two young

heard from Nunavummiut. He says that Inuit

Grise Fiord, the smallest and most Northern

with a population of approximately 120 people

is where Akeeagok calls home. Like Grise Fiord being unique in its own right, Akeeagok resonates that through uniquely and impressively being the youngest ever elected QIA President.

“It doesn’t matter where you’re from; it’s

how hard you work to get to where you want to go,” says Akeeagok.

40

Akeeagok’s foundation is family and this

nature to his parents. Akeeagok has the same children.

Some of Akeeagok’s experience and outlook

“I was fortunate to talk to many of the people

who made the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement

a reality, through helping produce Staking the Claim, a documentary about the building and

During Akeeagok’s campaign he visited and feel that QIA is not connected with Inuit.

Akeeagok’s goal as President, he says, are the goals of those he serves, Inuit, and first and

foremost—children—or early childhood devel-

opment in order to set the foundation for their future, Nunavut’s future.

Akeeagok would also like to be accountable

to Inuit through consultations and aims to

2015 | 02

POLITICS

PJ enjoys a day at home with his children, Ryan (left) and Jazmine, after a hunting trip, 2013.

Photo courtesy PJ (Pauloosie) Akeeagok

communicate more with Inuit about QIA’s work. Also, part of his platform is sustainable

resource development to give Inuit more opportunities economically and to enable more social development.

“It comes right down to making sure they

(Inuit) are informed: what are you doing (QIA), what are you going to do and what the plan is.

To me that information is going to be very key

for accountability because I’m representing Inuit in our region. In order to make very good

decisions, you have to be informed and Inuit have to be informed of what QIA is, what roles

it’s the people’s interests… I’m there for them,” says Akeeagok.

do and what we’ve done.” And to sum up ac-

What else keeps Akeeagok grounded besides family?

number one thing I’m going to work towards.”

feeling when you’re hunting or going camping

and responsibilities it has, what we’re going to

countability, he says, “Communication is the “People really want someone who will listen

to them. People want to have someone represent them who will not look at their own interests;

yourself more, and I think that’s what really holds me together: being able to go hunting.

When you’re hunting you get to speak more Inuktitut, too.”

That is what it comes down to for QIA

“Hunting keeps me grounded. It’s a different

President Akeeagok — his identity, which he is

with family; that’s the precious moments that

him to the people he serves, Inuit.

I always look forward to every time. You not only get connected with the land but with

A B OV E & B E YO N D — C A N A DA’ S A RC T I C J O U R N A L

very connected to and that, in turn, connects

Teevi Mackay

41

42

2015 | 02

TOuRiSm

From the top counterclockwise: Popular NWT singer Leela Gilday performs; Hmm...I wonder, do they...? ; Storyteller and song-writer Pat Braden warms a cold crowd with his music and stories of living North.; The GNWT Pavilion put the territory on display.

Photos courtesy: Lynn Feasey

The Northwest Territories wow Ottawa’s famed Winterlude Festival For three days, Ottawa and visitors to the Nation’s Capital enjoyed a taste of The Spectacular Northwest Territories during the opening weekend of Ottawa’s most well known winter festival,

Winterlude. NWT Days presented a series of free public events housed within a beautifully designed cultural pavilion at the Shaw Centre, on the Rideau Canal where over 8,000 visitors were treated to programming that included live performances, Arctic games demonstrations, a visual

arts gallery, interactive technology and educational exhibits, NWT wildlife, a career fair, traditional knowledge and craft demonstrations, and a dynamic NWT film festival.

This year, the NWT was given an opportunity to program the Winterlude Stage at Crystal Gardens

in Confederation Park for ‘Spectacular NWT Night’. NWT Days Creative Director Lynn Feasey was thrilled at the opportunity to produce a show with northern performers that gave audiences a unique audio-visual glimpse into life in Canada’s remote NWT.

© Pavel Cheiko / Fotolia.com

A B OV E & B E YO N D — C A N A DA’ S A RC T i C J O u R N A L

43

44

2015 | 02

SOUND TRACKS

Courtesy Thelma Cheechoo (2)

Stay

Thelma Cheechoo

Available for download at iTunes, and from

Cheechoo’s musical maturity and understanding

surprisingly sumptuous disc featuring original

deliver the plaintive plea so huge in country

independent online music store, Stay, a songs (all except one) written and performed

by northern Ontario born, Cree artist, Thelma Cheechoo, channeled my ear buds recently.

of the elements required to nail a love song, or

music make for an easy-listening fusion of indigenous folk, country, and pop.

Recorded in Los Angeles, this disc is beauti-

Listed under “Alternative Folk” at iTunes,

fully produced, dishing rich harmonic layers of

weaving a rare, seamless tonal artistry that

studio musicians driving instrumentals that

Stay is really born of different origins, with tracks

doesn’t let up. Each cut, in its own way pays

homage to form and craft steeped in tradition.

voice, over-dub harmonies and outstanding are in perfect compliment to Cheechoo’s songwriting skill and tender vocal range.

Listening to Stay, leaves no doubt whatso-

ever that talent and music are in Cheechoo’s DNA. She’s come by her art honestly, call it an inher-

itance of sorts that’s undeniably embedded in

her heart and soul too. Evocative of life’s intrinsic longings and her natural desire to reconnect to

a simpler time and place, Stay, is equally great to listen to on a candle-lit Saturday night, or a

cozy, lazy Sunday afternoon or, both. Definitely!

The official commercial release date for Thelma

Cheechoo’s, Stay, was February 2015.

Trent Walthers

A B OV E & B E YO N D — C A N A DA’ S A RC T I C J O U R N A L

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PREvIEW

The Right to Be Cold Sheila Watt-Cloutier

“Sheila Watt-Cloutier is one of the world’s most recognized environmental and human rights advocates. In 2007, she was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for her advocacy work in showing the impact global climate change has on human rights, especially in the Arctic. In addition to her Nobel nomination, Watt-Cloutier has been awarded the Aboriginal Achievement Award, the UN Champion of the Earth Award, and the prestigious Norwegian Sophie Prize. She is also an officer of the Order of Canada. From 1995 to 2002, she served as the elected Canadian president of the Inuit Circumpolar Council (ICC), and in 2002, she was elected international chair of the council. Under her leadership, the world’s first international legal action on climate change was launched with a petition to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.”

—Penguin Canada, a division of Penguin Random House Canada Limited above&beyond Canada’s Arctic Journal and Inflight publication for First Air, is proud to have permission to present this brief excerpt from the author’s Introduction of this highly anticipated release.

The world I was born into has changed forever.

the intense joy as we gathered together as

only by dog team. As the youngest child of four

same animal in a communal meal.To live in a

For the first ten years of my life, I travelled

on our family hunting and ice-fishing trips, I

boundless landscape and a close-knit culture in

in a box tied safely on top of the qamutiik, the

connected is a kind of magic. Like generations

would be snuggled into warm blankets and fur

dogsled. I would view the vast expanses of

Arctic sky and feel the crunching of the snow

of Inuit, I bonded with the ice and snow.

Those idyllic moments of my childhood seem

very far away these days. Today, while dog teams,

across the frozen land. I remember just as vividly

used to move out onto the Arctic land and water,

the Arctic summer scenes that slipped by as I sat in the canoe on the way to our hunting and fishing grounds. The world was blue and white

and rocky, and defined by the things that had

an immediate bearing on us — the people who helped and cared for us, the dogs that gave

us their strength, the water and land that

nurtured us. The Arctic may seem cold and dark to those who don’t know it well, but for us

a day of hunting or fishing brought the most

succulent, nutritious food. Then there would be

46

which everything matters and everything is

and the ice below me as our dogs, led by my

brothers, Charlie and Elijah, carried us safely

The Right to Be Cold Sheila Watt-Cloutier 978-0-670-06710-7 / 352 pages / $32.95 Publication date: March 17, 2015 An Allen Lane hardcover

family and friends, sharing and partaking of the

qajaqs (kayaks) and canoes are at times still snow machines are more common than dogs,

and the hum of fast-moving powerboats is now

heard on Arctic waters. All of our communities now have airports, medical clinics and schools, with some having hospitals, television stations, daycares and colleges. Our people still hunt and fish, sew and bead, but they are also nurses, lawyers, teachers, business people and

politicians.The Arctic is a different place than it

was when I was a child. And while many of the changes are positive, the journey into the

2015 | 02

PREvIEW

From The Right to Be Cold by Sheila Watt-Cloutier.

Copyright © Sheila Watt-Cloutier, 2015. Reprinted by permission of Penguin Canada, a division of Penguin Random House Canada Limited.

modern world was not an easy one — and it

metaphors have already become a very literal

In a sense, Inuit of my generation have lived

warms several times faster at the poles. While

has left its scars.

in both the ice age and the space age. The

modern world arrived slowly in some places in the world, and quickly in others. But in the Arctic, it appeared in a single generation. Like

everyone I grew up with, I have seen ancient traditions give way to southern habits. I have

seen communities broken apart or transformed

dramatically by government policies. I have seen Inuit traditional wisdom supplanted by southern programs and institutions. And

most shockingly, like all my fellow Inuit, I have

seen what seemed permanent begin to melt away.

The Arctic ice and snow, the frozen terrain

that Inuit life has depended on for millennia, is now diminishing in front of our eyes.

We are all accustomed to the dire meta-

phors used to evoke the havoc of climate

change, but in many parts of the Arctic the

reality. For a number of reasons, the planet climate experts warn that an increase of two

degrees in the global average temperature is

the threshold of disaster, in the Arctic we

have already seen nearly double that. As the permafrost melts, roads and airport runways

buckle. Homes and buildings along the coast sink into the ground and fall into the sea. The

natural ice cellars that are used for food

storage are no longer cold. Glaciers are melting so fast that they now create dangerous torrents.

The world becomes focused and horrified only by haunting images of polar bears struggling to

“This is a moving and passionate story from a committed woman who has bridged the ice age to the digital age. Her sophisticated views on the environment and the way the world works from her engaged involvement are brilliant and convincing.”

— The Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson

find ice, but hunters too are finding that the once reliable ice can be deadly. The land that

is such an important part of our spirit, our culture, and our physical and economic wellbeing is becoming an often unpredictable and precarious place for us.

A B Ov E & B E YO N D — C A N A DA’ S A RC T I C J O U R N A L

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2015 | 02

BOOKSHELF

Helping Ourselves by Helping Each Other: The Life Story of William Lyall

Edited by Louis McComber Nunavut Research Institute November 2014

Today’s co-ops reflect how people lived many years ago. In Helping Ourselves by Helping Each Other, William Lyall tells the story of the co-operative movement in

the Arctic. It is a tribute to the dedication and community mindedness that the co-op movement represents to Canada’s North and will be a good reference tool to help promote careers within the Arctic co-op movement. The book is published as part of a series on Inuit Leadership and Governance.

Remember the Promise Kinds of Winter: Four Solo Journeys by Dogteam in Canada’s Northwest Territories

Sahtú Renewable Resources Board (SRRB) Jean Polfus, Illustrator November 2014

Recognizing the special relationship Dene people have with the land, a new book, Remember the Promise, offers ideas for how Dene communities can help protect species

at risk in their region. Based on stories by Sahtú elders, the story starts with ancient

times when wildlife were giants and made their own laws, and describes how Dene and other living things agreed to live together and take care of each other. The book includes

a glossary and terminology list, and information about the Species At Risk (NWT)

Act. Remember the Promise is a partnership project of the GNWT departments of Environment and Natural Resources and Education, Culture and Employment and the SRRB. A learning module for schools based on the book is being developed in

partnership with ENR and Ecology North. www.srrb.nt.ca

Dave Olesen Wilfrid Laurier University Press November 2014

After a fifteen-year career as a sled dog racer, musher Dave Olesen fulfilled a lifelong dream by dog sledding over four winters away from his home in the Northwest Territories on long journeys heading south, east, north,

and west before arriving home again to Hoarfrost River.

Having lived and travelled in the boreal outback for over thirty years, his book about his adventures is filled with

details not only about how to accomplish these journeys but also on winter camping and the care of the dogs.

It is a unique blend of armchair adventure, personal memoir and self-reflection.

A B OV E & B E YO N D — C A N A DA’ S A RC T I C J O U R N A L

49

GUEST EDITORIAL

Development for the people of the North

When I became Minister for the Arctic Council in

The Honourable Leona Aglukkaq speaks about the strength of Canada’s wildlife management regime at the 2013 Meeting of Polar Bear Range States. There, Canada and four states agreed to include, for the first time, “traditional ecological knowledge” from indigenous Arctic peoples in the 1973 International Agreement on the Conservation of Polar Bears. © Joel Koczwarski

August 2012, I consulted with Northerners from

across the Arctic and their message was clear: The well-being and prosperity of the people living in the North must be our top priority.

For this reason, Canada’s Arctic Council

Chairmanship has operated under the theme “Development for the People of the North.”

Over the course of our two-year Chairmanship,

we have made important strides to improve the lives of Northerners and foster environmentally

responsible development throughout the Arctic,

most notably through the establishment of the Arctic Economic Council (AEC) last year.

In the North, we face many of the same

economic and social challenges, including high

costs of living, skilled labour shortages and extreme weather. So we have much to learn

Within the broader mandate of the Arctic

how Canada has benefited from the inclusion

priorities for the North, including climate change,

including wildlife management, the protection

from each other, and it only makes sense that we

Council, we have also advanced other important

advance sustainable development for Northern

biodiversity conservation, mental wellness and

should work together to share best practices and communities.

The AEC facilitates this Arctic-to-Arctic

collaboration by providing a forum to discuss

common economic challenges and discover new business opportunities to develop and

shipping safety. These actions range from developing a framework to reduce black carbon

of traditional knowledge in several initiatives, of migratory birds and the recovery of species at risk.

As we move towards the end of our Chair-

and methane emissions in the Arctic to a new

manship, we are working closely with our

Another key priority of Canada’s Chairman-

States, to advance our shared priorities for the

action plan to enhance oil pollution prevention.

neighbour and the incoming Chair, the United

benefit the North.

ship has been to incorporate traditional and local

on the AEC, which ensures that those living in the

ongoing work. This knowledge, which has helped

Council partners to Iqaluit in April for the ninth

serve in the development of better, more

our accomplishments, and chart a path for the

Additionally, Arctic Indigenous peoples serve

North are active participants in decisions affecting their local economies and communities.

Since its inaugural meeting in September

2014, the AEC has forged ahead in its work by

establishing working groups on responsible resource development, maritime transportation and stewardship in the Arctic.

50

knowledge more effectively into the Council’s Indigenous peoples survive for millennia, can

representative policies for the North. To support

this and to promote the importance of traditional knowledge I recently hosted a discussion with

international leaders and decision makers. At

this meeting I took the opportunity to share

Arctic region.

I look forward to welcoming our Arctic

Ministerial Meeting, where we will highlight next two years and beyond.

The Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, P.C., M.P. Minister for the Arctic Council

2015 | 02

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