Business leaders, artists, trainers to gather in central Nunavut

Olivia Tagalik, of Arviat’s Inuit Creative Expressions, was a presenter at the 2013 Kivalliq Trade Show. (PHOTO BY DOUG MCLARTY/ARCTECH DESIGN AND SERVICES)

From it’s rag-tag beginning five years ago, the Kivalliq Trade Show, seen here in 2013, has grown into that region’s premier business networking event. (PHOTO BY DOUG MCLARTY/ARCTECH DESIGN AND SERVICES)

With this year’s theme of “Sivumut Kivalliq — Moving the Kivalliq Forward,” the fifth annual Kivalliq Trade Show is set to kick off at the end of this month and promises a trademark roster of workshops, exhibitors, art sales, entertainment and plenty of business networking opportunities.

“It’s takes a lot of energy and effort to pull it all together,” said Robert Connelly, president of the Kivalliq Trade Show Society. “We’ve come a very long way.”

The event is scheduled to begin in Rankin Inlet with a meet and greet reception at the Siniktarvik Hotel Sept. 29, a trade show exhibition Sept. 30 at the Singuttuq Complex Community Hall capped with an evening entertainment and fashion show, and formal presentations and workshops on Oct. 1.

The final day of events will conclude Oct. 1 in the evening with a banquet, community auction and live entertainment with Arviat’s own Agaaqtoq Band.

With resource development front of mind among Kivalliq residents, hamlet staff, entrepreneurs and traditional hunters, many speakers will gear their presentations toward managing change and training, Connelly said.

“Certainly, with the level of development taking place, there are always challenges,” he said.

“At times, they can be, in some respects, a little scary for communities. But the challenges that come are also exciting because they create opportunities.”

The first workshops on Oct. 1 will focus on municipal and mine-related training and will feature presentations from:

• Keith Collier, Arviat’s economic development officer;

• Elizabeth Cayen, executive director of the Nunavut Fisheries and Marine Training Consortium;

• Krystal Mayrand from Agnico Eagle Mines;

• Richard Connelly from Sarliaq-CMAC; and,

• Kenneth Kerr, executive director of the Kivalliq Mine Training Society.

In the afternoon, registered participants can attend workshops on training in the areas of arts and crafts, youth, workplace training and adult literacy initiatives with:

• Sherlyn Kadjuk, general manager, Kiluk Ltd.;

• Joelle Foster, director of Futurpreneur;

• Patrick Tagoona, from Sakku Investments;

• Adriana Kusugak from the Nunavut Literacy Council; and,

• Simon Okpatauyak, chief executive officer of Kivalliq Partners in Development.

The Kivalliq Trade Show began humbly five years ago, Connelly said, when a group of individuals gathered to talk about the many business opportunities that were flourishing through the region’s diverse economic sectors — tourism, arts and crafts, and resource development, to name a few.

Those early meetings highlighted the need to understand the changes that were happening, maximize local benefits, and properly prepare through training, investment and partnership.

Back then, the Meadowbank gold mine had just opened, Connelly said. Now it’s going strong and the Meliadine mine will soon be a part of the landscape.

“We wondered in that first year how it would go over, how people would react,” said Connelly. “The reaction was overwhelming. It’s been sold out ever since.”

The Hamlet of Rankin Inlet originally took the lead but two years ago, organizers decided to form the Kivalliq Trade Show Society to manage the growth and complexity of the event.

It’s an ideal opportunity to take control of the changes that are happening locally, Connelly said, by allowing local and southern business leaders along with government officials from all levels, to meet and discuss how best to move forward economically.

Change can lead to fear and uncertainty, Connelly said. One way to counteract that is to bring all the players together for a few days to ask questions and offer opinions.

“That dialogue is so important to the communities.”

Organizers expect 50 exhibitors for the Sept. 30 trade show and between 150 and 200 delegates to attend the three-day event.

You can find out more about the Kivalliq Trade show here.

A week later, the Nunavut Trade Show will unfold in Iqaluit, from Oct. 7-9. You can find details of that event here.