Inuvialuit Statement on Climate Change
“Inuvialuit of all ages and from all walks of life share a deep connection to the land and waters within the Inuvialuit Settlement Region (ISR)” – Chair and CEO Duane Ningaqsiq Smith.
Climate change presents a sustained threat to the relationship Inuvialuit have with the environment. Inuvialuit beneficiaries, including community leadership and Traditional Knowledge holders, have directly voiced their concerns about climate change’s impact in the ISR. Our communities bear a disproportionate burden of the effects of climate change, despite being minor contributors to greenhouse gas emissions.
As a result, the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation released the Inuvialuit Settlement Region Climate Change Strategy (the Strategy) on February 11, 2022. The Strategy, at the direction of our beneficiaries, is an exercise in climate-focused self-determination. It summarizes a wide range of climate change impacts that the ISR is facing, provides policy direction for governments and organizations, and bridges Western science with Inuvialuit Traditional Knowledge for the development of climate change solutions.
The Strategy presents goals and actions across eight thematic areas:
- Food & Wellbeing
- Safety
- Housing & Infrastructure
- Education & Awareness
- Ecosystems health & diversity
- Energy
- Mental Health and Wellness
- Inuvialuit Culture
All climate initiatives in the ISR are to be Inuvialuit-led, in accordance with the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation Climate Change Strategy. We will work directly with all Governments and academia to achieve the goals presented within the Strategy. We are calling on the federal government to be close partners in the implementation of our Strategy as articulated in Canada’s Climate Actions for a Healthy Environment and a Healthy Economy and apply an Inuit Nunangat approach as outlined in the newly minted Inuit Nunangat Policy.
The Inuvialuit Regional Corporation Climate Change Strategy can be downloaded at: ISR Climate Change Strategy
For more information, please contact the Innovation, Inuvialuit Science, and Climate Change Department, Roxanne Springer, Climate Change Coordinator at 867-777-7052 or rspringer@inuvialuit.com.
For media inquiries, please contact Communications, Alexandrea Gordon at 867-620-0857 or communications@inuvialuit.com.
About the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation
Established in 1984 to manage the settlement outlined in the Inuvialuit Final Agreement (IFA), Inuvialuit Regional Corporation (IRC) represents the collective interests of Inuvialuit in and beyond the Inuvialuit Settlement Region (ISR). The IRC works to continually improve the economic, social, and cultural well-being of the Inuvialuit through the implementation of the IFA and by all other available means.