From parkas to qamutiks, Inuit turn research into employment opportunities

Sherlyn Kadjuk’s journey from designing garments in Arviat to supplying custom-made parkas for Parks Canada is an example of the way research can create opportunities for Inuit businesses.

Kadjuk’s success story was mentioned Wednesday during the Aqsarniit Trade Show and Conference in Ottawa, where a panel discussed how data-driven research can lead to economic opportunities, especially within local communities.

The National Research Centre’s testing facilities on the East Coast helped ensure Kadjuk’s garments — which are meant for park workers to wear — meet safety standards.

It’s one of many partnerships across the country opening new markets for Indigenous producers, many of whom are women.

“Inuit and the research economy come from two different types of experiences,” said Katherine Minich, senior researcher with Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami’s Inuit Research Network.

“There’s different values, philosophies and capacities that don’t necessarily reconcile easily, so that’s where the gaps show up.”

Minich spoke on a panel alongside Anne Barker, program director of the National Research Centre’s Arctic and Northern Challenge Program; Carolann Harding, founder of SmartICE; and Scott Grant, Qikiqtaaluk Corp. chair in Qikiqtani inshore fisheries science and education training.

The discussion was moderated by Jimi Onalik, president of CanNor.

Progress has been made by Inuit negotiating research gaps through collaboration, Minich said, as well as through the establishment of new programs.

For example, Sikuttiaq, a sea-ice travel safety and monitoring project, has helped establish long-term employment opportunities in the North, said Barker, with the National Research Centre.

“These are tangible economic benefits that extend beyond the projects themselves,” she said.

Barker emphasized how research into government procurement policies identified barriers to successful Indigenous bids. One of those barriers was access to testing.

For years, National Research Centre has been looking into the use of Indigenous clothing as personal protective equipment for federal workers, she said.

But many Inuit lacked the resources required to meet federal safety standards, so the National Research Centre filled that gap.

Harding, CEO of SmartICE, a social enterprise that offers climate change adaptation tools, emphasized communities must control their own information.

“We are custodians of that data for the community,” Harding said, adding his organization’s role is to safeguard that data until local members are equipped to interpret it and leverage it for commercial use.

SmartICE has also developed two remote environmental monitoring systems to measure ice thickness, including SmartQAMUTIK, a device towed behind a snowmobile that provides real-time ice and snow thickness readings.

During the session, an audience member asked Harding about safety while on the ice with the SmartQAMUTIK.

“Has anybody ever gone through the ice?”

“Not on my watch — none of our staff have ever gone through the ice,” Harding replied, mentioning SmartICE integrates local and traditional knowledge before using technology. She acknowledged that community members have fallen through, but rely on SmartICE data as a safety tool.

“It’s interesting that after all the money spent on technology, we first ask for traditional knowledge to see if the ice is thick enough before going in with the machine,” the attendee noted.

The four-day Aqsarniit trade show wrapped up Thursday at Rogers Centre Ottawa.