Agnico Eagle pledges $10M to Inuit Nunangat University

Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. announced Tuesday it will contribute $10 million toward the development of Inuit Nunangat University, bringing the Inuit-led institution’s confirmed funding to about $166 million.

The mining company’s chairperson Sean Boyd announced the pledge at the Future of Business Summit at Ottawa’s Rogers Centre, alongside Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami president Natan Obed.

“We’re looking at this as really about creating the hope for the young people, to develop the next generation of leaders in Nunavut by being able to stay at home and community and continue their education at home,” Boyd said.

Obed thanked him for Agnico Eagle’s contribution.

“We can ensure that the next generation of Inuit are ready to join the workforce, ready to lead across any sector that they choose to go into with a proper education foundation,” Obed said.

“None of this is possible without support.”

Federal Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Rebecca Alty reaffirmed the federal government’s previously announced $50-million commitment to the project.

Boyd called the university initiative “transformative,” saying it would strengthen access to post-secondary education closer to home and support Inuit-led solutions in the North.

He praised ITK’s selection of Arviat as the host site for the university’s main campus.

“We have a number of employees at our mines in the North that come from Arviat. It’s an excellent choice for an Inuit university’s main campus,” Boyd said.

However, he said, the new donation is not aimed at developing a supply of workers for the mining sector.

“As a mining company, we’re not investing in this new university because we’re expecting to get graduates to benefit the mines,” Boyd said.

Inuit Nunangat University is being developed as an Inuit-led post-secondary institution rooted in Inuit language, culture and ways of knowing.

“For too long, Inuit students have had to leave their communities to access higher education,” Alty said. “Inuit Nunangat University is being built for them.”

Boyd said Agnico Eagle’s support for the concept dates back more than a decade, noting the company pledged $5 million in 2014 to help advance discussions about creating an Inuit university.

Total funding needs for the university to become operational by 2030 are estimated at between $160 million and $200 million.

Before Tuesday’s announcement, confirmed funding stood at $156 million — a $50-million donation from Mastercard Foundation; $52 million from Nunavut Tunngavik Inc.; $2 million from Makivvik, the organization representing Inuit in Nunavik; $1 million each from the Rideau Hall Foundation and the McConnell Foundation; and $50 million from the federal government.

The project is also expected to benefit from additional federal support earmarked for student housing and programming through the Nunavut Agreement implementation contract.

Obed was not available after the announcement to answer whether more funding is needed to open the university’s main campus.