Penguin Canada set to publish book by Sheila Watt-Cloutier

Penguin Canada plans to publish “The Right to be Cold,” by Inuit environmental activist Sheila Watt-Cloutier, shown here in Iqaluit. (FILE PHOTO)

Penguin Canada plans to publish The Right to Be Cold by environmental activist and Nobel Peace Prize nominee Sheila Watt–Cloutier.

Penguin competed against other Canadian publishers to acquire the Canadian rights, a Sept. 10 news release from Penguin Canada said.

The Right to Be Cold will be published under Penguin Canada’s Allen Lane imprint in the fall of 2013.

The news release said The Right to Be Cold “is a human story of resilience, commitment, and survival told from the unique vantage point of an Inuk woman who, in spite of many obstacles, rose from humble beginnings in the Arctic community of Kuujjuaq, Quebec — where she was raised by a single parent and grandmother and travelled by dog team in a traditional, ice-based Inuit hunting culture, and became one of the most influential and decorated environmental, cultural, and human rights advocates in the world.”

The Right to Be Cold explores “the parallels between safeguarding the Arctic and the survival of Inuit culture — and ultimately the world — in the face of past, present, and future environmental degradation.”

“We jumped at the chance to work with Sheila Watt–Cloutier not only because of her sterling reputation or because of the urgent issues she touches on,” said Penguin Canada’s associate publisher Nick Garrison. “What struck us all immediately was the irresistible originality of her understanding of the way we are affecting the planet. The very best non-fiction answers questions you didn’t even know you have been asking, and that is exactly what Sheila does with The Right to Be Cold. We are very proud to publish it.”

“Writing The Right to Be Cold is also my way of giving back to the people and the culture that has served not only as my grounding foundation but also as the very anchor of my spirit as I was propelled out into the challenging world of international politics,” said Watt-Cloutier, nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007 for her work in showing the impact global climate change has on human rights.

Watt–Cloutier has received many prestigious awards, including an Aboriginal Achievement Award, the United Nations Champion of the Earth Award, and Norway’s Sophie Prize. From 1995 to 2002, Watt-Cloutier served as the Canadian president of the Inuit Circumpolar Council. She was elected in 2002 to become the international chair of the ICC.

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, the Penguin news release notes.

Last year, Watt-Cloutier was a visiting scholar at Mt. Allison University in New Brunswick.