A polar bear rummages through Paul Etungat’s garbage bin in Kinngait on Nov. 4. Etungat said his mother was smoking outside just before the bear appeared at 6 a.m. They heard noises coming from the bin, then Etungat used an air horn to scare the animal away. (Photo by Paul Etungat)
Air cadet Rachel Oyukuluk sells poppies at Iqaluit’s Northern store Saturday afternoon. The Royal Canadian Legion’s poppy campaign runs annually in the lead-up to Remembrance Day on Nov. 11. The campaign raises funds in support of veterans and their families. (Photo by Daron Letts)
Isis Qiyuk, 17, poses with her first caribou, harvested seven kilometres outside of Baker Lake, on Oct. 31. Her father Scott Qiyuk took her on the hunt. The meat from the catch was given away to community members, says her mother, Dody Qiyuk. The family plans to keep future harvests to make nipku, or dried caribou meat. (Photo courtesy of Dody Qiyuk)
Sanikiluaq’s Nolan Nakoolak, left, and Nista Crow play badminton during a doubles tournament in Winnipeg on Oct. 24. The match was part of the tryouts for next year’s Canada Winter Games, which is set to take place in Quebec City. Next month, the duo will head to Iqaluit for another round of tryouts. (Photo courtesy of Mike Kavik)
Education Minister David Akeeagok, left, and early childhood resources assistant Dorakelley Bolt pose with puppets Tuesday at the legislative assembly. Bolt had set out a display of books and toys available to child-care centres across Nunavut in the building’s foyer that afternoon. (Photo by Daron Letts)
Members of Aqsarniit Middle School’s environment club stand in front of their school with a sign that says “Free Hotdogs.” They began Saturday with exchanging hotdogs for non-alcoholic cans, which they are collecting to raise funds for their club. But they ended up handing out the dogs for free while raising awareness of their initiative instead. Pictured are Sarah Kunnuk, left, Ava Boudreau, Janice Oyukuluk, Maina Aola, Logan Wells, and Sophia Boschin. (Photo by Lilli Akpaleeapik)
Thrifty shoppers Matthew Williams, left, Della Drachenberg, Tristan Marion, and Matthew Trochta display treasures they found at Iqaluit’s Piviniit Thrift Store on Friday. They were part of the Nunavut Pride Society’s latest Transition Closet. The event is inspired by the experience of transgender people who change their wardrobe upon coming out of the proverbial closet. (Photo courtesy of Sandi Chan)
CBC broadcaster Teresa Qiatsuq accepts the 22nd annual Council of the Federation Literacy Award from Nunavut Premier John Main in the legislative assembly on Friday. The medallion honours excellence and innovation in literacy. Originally from Kinngait, Qiatsuq hosts the public broadcaster’s daily Inuktut news program “Igalaaq” in Iqaluit. (Photo by Daron Letts)
Judo Nunavut athletes Kimberly Gissing, left, Matilda Pinksen and Charlotte Smook pose with their bronze medals on Oct. 18, the final day of the Matsuru Ontario Open. Two coaches and four athletes travelled from Iqaluit to the Pan Am Sports Centre in Toronto to compete. “That’s a big honour to represent the territory at an event like this,” said Pinksen, who has been involved with Judo Nunavut since she was 8. (Photo courtesy of Matilda Pinksen)
Skaters gather at the Arctic Winter Games Arena Wednesday to enjoy the opening week of public skating. (Photo by Lilli Akpaleeapik)
Seven-year-old Tavonga Fambisai uses a washable marker to draw a grid on the window of Iqaluit’s Ampere Makerspace during the organization’s after-school program on Oct. 15. (Photo by Daron Letts)
Maisie MacDonald, left, and Klenam Djalogue compete in Iqaluit’s pumpkin carving contest on Oct. 11. The event, hosted at the curling rink, awarded prizes for scariest, funniest and cutest pumpkin.
Djalogue took home the prize for funniest pumpkin and MacDonald’s pumpkin was deemed cutest. (Photo by Akshay Achuth)
Sixteen-year-old Felix Suppa of Kuujjuaq harvests a caribou on Oct. 11, at the remote Mays Lake camp. He traveled there alongside hunters Jessie Mesher and Gus David, while his great-grandfather, Johnny May, piloted the plane. Asked how long Felix has been hunting, his mother, Alice Suppa, said “Since he could remember, I think.” (Photo courtesy of Alice Suppa)
Drummer and bassist MJ Dandeneau entertains a packed audience of students at Rankin Inlet’s Agnico Eagle Arena on Wednesday. She is backed by band leader Robb Nash, left, and guitarist Anthony Anderson of Winnipeg-based group The Robb Nash Project. Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. sponsored the band’s visit, during which the musicians sought to inspire youth to talk openly about suicide and depression. (Photo courtesy of Kathryn Devereaux/Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd.)
Hand-sewn garments took centre stage at a fashion show in Gjoa Haven on Sunday. Aldena Porter, left, won first place, Mark Inurayuk, centre, took second and Jennifer Niptayuk placed third, for her kalikuk that three-year-old Belinda Ameralik, right, modelled. The event took place at the Nattilik Heritage Centre and during the ninth annual Umiyaqtut Festival, which celebrates the Franklin expedition shipwreck discoveries. (Photo courtesy of Sheridan Kamookak)
Melissa Haney has a new flower in her pilot’s cap. The Air Inuit captain received the Elsie MacGill Flight Operations award at a gala on Oct. 3. The honour, presented by
Northern Lights Aero Foundation, recognizes outstanding Canadian women in aviation and aerospace. Originally from Inukjuak, Haney went from being a flight attendant to a Boeing 737 captain and flight operations support manager. (Photo courtesy of Air Inuit)
Terry Nakoolak lies alongside a seal he caught Oct. 6 near Whale Cove. Nakoolak, who was hunting with two others, said the seal was about five feet, six inches long and took two shots to harvest. The meat was shared among the group. (Photo courtesy of Terry Nakoolak)
Rankin Inlet resident Tristan Misheralak prepares caribou meat from a recent hunting trip for storage on Sept. 27. Her husband, Johnny-Kook Misheralak, and her father travelled more than 400 miles by boat and harvested 13 caribou. The couple processed and froze the meat to stock their family’s freezer for the winter. (Photo by Johnny-Kook Misheralak, special to Nunatsiaq News)
Four-year-old Casie Siakuluq high-fives Northmart mascot Northy on Friday morning. The North West Co., which owns the grocery store, threw a grand opening to celebrate Northmart’s completed renovations. (Photo by Daron Letts)
Guy Uniuqsaraq carves a dancing bear from black marble in front of his Iqaluit residence in the early evening of Sept. 19. Daylight in Nunavut’s capital city dwindles by more than six minutes per day in September. (Photo by Daron Letts)
Pilitak Enterprises workers Mathieu Bonin, left, and Robin Goupil display the Maple Leaf they removed from the Qimugjuk Building on Saturday. The federal office building will be transferred to the territory when devolution takes effect on April 1, 2027. (Photo by Daron Letts)
Two-year-old Westen Makpah tests out a heavy equipment simulator as Nunavut Arctic College heavy equipment instructor Jeremiah Issaluk looks on. The simulator, which is used to teach college students how to operate construction equipment, was on display at the Kivalliq Trade Show in Rankin Inlet. The event at the Agnico Eagle Arena is open to the public on Wednesday afternoon. (Photo by Corey Larocque)
Rankin Inlet Mayor Harry Towtongie welcomes exhibitors to the Kivalliq Trade Show during a meet-and-greet reception for about 150 people Monday night in the hamlet’s community hall. The theme of the three-day business event is “Naalagit: Listen.” Speeches from Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. president Gloria Uluqsi and Nunavut Senator Nancy Karetak-Lindell are on Tuesday’s agenda, as well as the start of exhibits from regional businesses. The trade show runs until Wednesday. (Photo by Corey Larocque)
Martha Flaherty listens closely to the music as she plays Isaruit Inuit Arts’ new red Hohner accordion in Ottawa on Sept. 11. Flaherty, one of the four grandmothers who founded Isaruit, was chosen to be the first to play the nearly $3,000 accordion, which was purchased with donations from community supporters. Flaherty learned to play the accordion from her father Josepie Flaherty after their family was relocated to Grise Fiord from Inukjuak. “Accordion music is a big part of life in Northern Quebec because of families with Scottish roots,” she says. (Photo courtesy of Beverly Illauq)
Construction is underway for Quaqtaq’s new Isummasaqvik School. Set to be completed in 2030, it will replace the community’s existing school and serve 250 students. Community members and officials gathered at the site on Sept. 2 for a groundbreaking ceremony. (Photo courtesy of Jade Duchesneau-Bernier)
