Canada’s national co-op association honours Nunavut’s Bill Lyall

Bill Lyall, president of the board of directors of Cambridge Bay’s Ikaluktutiak Co-operative Ltd. and Arctic Co-operatives Ltd., shown here at a recent Kitikmeot Inuit Assoc. meeting, was presented with the Canadian Co-operative Achievement Award on June 28 in Halifax. (FILE PHOTO)

Bill Lyall, president of the board of directors of Cambridge Bay’s Ikaluktutiak Co-operative Ltd. and Arctic Co-operatives Ltd., received the Canadian Co-operative Achievement Award June 28 at the Canadian Co-operative Association’s annual meeting in Halifax.

The association, which represents co-operatives across Canada, presents this award to men and women who have contributed “outstanding efforts to the cause of co-operative enterprise.”

Nominees are recognized for their leadership, personal commitment and vision within the Canadian co-operative sector, an ACL news release said.

Since the late 1960’s, Lyall has been involved with the development of co-operatives in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

“His personal commitment to ensuring that the visions of the early co-op leaders are realized is an inspiration to everyone involved with the co-op system. Under Bill’s leadership, the co-op system across the North has steadily stabilized and grown,” the news release said.

Lyall first became an active member of Ikaluktutiak Co-op in the early 1970’s.

Since then, the co-op has expanded from a fishery co-op, into a multi-purpose, community-owned and controlled business that runs a store and hotel.

In 1979, Lyall was elected to the board of directors of Canadian Arctic Producers, known today as Arctic Co-operatives Limited. He was elected president of the federation in 1981 and remains in that position, leading 31 member co-ops across the Arctic that generated annual revenues of of more than $135 million in 2010.

Lyall also promoted the 1986 incorporation of the financial arm of the co-ops, the Arctic Co-operative Development Fund. Since 1986, ACDF has provided $490 million in financing to local co-ops in the Arctic.

Co-op businesses now employ more than 900 northerners and are the largest private sector employers of aboriginal people in Nunavut and the Northwest Territories, the ACL news release said.

“During his lifetime, Bill has created an endless list of his involvement with of all levels of governments, whether it be participating in numerous economic initiatives or sitting on various boards to ensure the positive benefits to the co-op system are heard, included and promoted,” the news release said.