Makivvik reveals plan for adapting to climate change
Strategy has been five years in the making, involving more than 150 people
Makivvik released its Nunavik Climate Change Adaptation Strategy that will guide all stakeholders in the region for the next 10 years. (File photo by Cedric Gallant)
Makivvik has released its Nunavik Climate Change Adaptation Strategy, a collaborative effort from coast to coast that has been five years in the making.
The effort started with a climate change workshop in Kuujjuaq back in 2019, where two dozen knowledge holders got the ball rolling. Eventually, more than 150 people were involved in the project.
The document marks a “pivotal moment in our collective commitment to safeguarding Nunavik Inuit culture and ways of life that are deeply rooted in the natural environment,” said Adamie Delisle Alaku, vice-president responsible for Makivvik’s department of wildlife, environment and research, in a news release.
Makivvik is the Inuit corporation created in 1978 to create generate jobs, improve housing conditions and protect the Inuit language and culture.
The climate change strategy will be used to co-ordinate efforts by governments and regional businesses and organizations, and to direct funding around Nunavik to meet the region’s needs and priorities in adapting to climate change.
The strategy was released at Makivvik’s annual general meeting this week in Quaqtaq, and identifies objectives to be completed over the next 10 years.
It will help organizations like Kativik Regional Government make villages better able “to improve the resilience of future and existing homes and community infrastructure,” according to the news release.
KRG chairperson Hilda Snowball said, “Our ability to implement sustainable, impactful climate change adaptation depends on the collaboration and commitment of all partners, including the governments of Quebec and Canada.”
The strategy is split into four pillars:
- advance Nunavik self-determination;
- protect the health, well-being and culture of Nunavimmiut;
- maintain and protect current infrastructure in communities, and;
- maintain the delivery of essential services.
The document lists long-term objectives for adapting to climate change, and steps that can be done in the medium and short term.
One long-term goal is to use “strengthened use of Inuit knowledge to inform and direct adaptation planning.”
A shorter-term objective involves improving the ability to document the effects of climate change as they are observed by Inuit, for Inuit.
“Nunavik Inuit have a fundamental right to determine the future of our society and territory, including regarding how we adapt to climatic changes,” the document said.
The strategy acknowledges political, social, economic and environmental changes may occur over time. A regional climate change committee was formed to ensure the strategy’s direction is adapted to current realities.
“We believe that if we follow this path that we have created together, we will keep our communities safe and thriving for future generations,” according to the strategy.
The report is available online on Makivvik’s website.
Swimming lessons to all. And I understand that obese float in the water with ease, explains our leader will save us all as a flotation device🤑 Bonuses Flabbergasted, Bonuses beyond google keyboards imagination.
I agree , before the great floods , makivik should hand out life jacket to all .
Thank you, EJ; yours is one of the most succinct and dogged comments I’ve seen in a while. Should be included in the Makivvik report and be required reading for all NS students in O-tah-wah
I thought , one of the new mandates is to offer, free babysitting service at the montreal airport.
Adapting to climate change is a broad topic. What would Makivvik’s mandate position them in climate adaptation? Policy for who to follow? Laws where they can consult on? Investment choices? Partnership choices? NEAS and its nasty fuel, airlines and their empty flights, wasted fuel? Is climate monitoring something they can work on? The Makivvik we know now have no idea what so ever.
Sounds like Makivik got some sort of a grant , now , they have to spend it. Maybe , we inuks can switch from gas powered ski-doos and Atvs to electric one .
Here we go, once again with the Makivik Corporation beginning yo join the bad wagon with the world scientists and of what the article says is 24 knowledge holders of nunavik. These knowledge holders, are they all Inuit Elders or are they non Inuit. What qualifications do these knowledge holders have? Who or what made them decide to attend this meeting in the first place? Was it because the knowledge holders of the landholding corporations of the nunavik communities could have a free trip to Kuujjuaq with free hotel rooms, perdiums and free food? Don’t they know it’s the white politicians from the early 80’s started talking about climate change and that the south pole would be warmer and the ice glaciers would be melted away by the early 2000’s. It’s all fear mongering from white people. If Makivik is so intoned with climate change then shouldn’t they be telling all 14 Inuit communities to stop he Inuit fro driving their company and personal vehicles along with their skidoos and atv Hondas during their monthly parades? Tell and explain to the Inuit living in nunavik to stop using their skidoos and atv Hondas and canoes when they go hunting or camping? Don’t be like a politician, promise one thing but say something completely different from the other side of their mouth. Don’t be Hypocrites! Stop investing the Inuit owned monies in purchasing more and larger aircraft for Canadian North and Air Inuit. These new aircrafts that Makivik is purchasing, are they electric? Since they want to pretend in a pretend climate change.
So Makivvik has buckets of cash up for grabs if can come up with a project using the magic words “fighting climate change.”
Will the money tap be turned off if it’s fighting for caribou, wildlife, fish, land and our human health? A project to look into the manipulation of the climate change belief to make our future worse and cash poorer?
Wind farms are a high subsidized business. The landowner hosting a wind turbine on their land gets paid, say, around $12,000 per wind turbine. However, they assume all liabilities of wind-turbine if an oil spill, wind turbine fire burns down nearby homes, etc.
While the wind farm owner pockets a sweet six-digit $$$$$$ cash payment per turbine per year.
The project could search if can discover if there has ever been a wind turbine farm where electricity prices dropped and not always skyrocketing.
Though in reality, through taxes and high electricity bills, we pay for the government subsidized wind farms as the government dances over the 50% fossil fuel reduction.
Forcing us to live a non electricity using life while wind farms take the diesel generated electrical power to keep baseline stable and to power their turbines.
Remember, turbines are not windmills, they need electricity to operate.
Why is cough, cough, “fighting climate change” exposing itself to hurt us? To take us backwards, not forward and leaders are ok with that?