Perceptions of Water Among the Inuit Community in Iqaluit, Nunavut: an Anti-Colonialist, Feminist Political Ecology
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Perceptions of Water among the Inuit Community in Iqaluit, Nunavut: An Anti-Colonialist, Feminist Political Ecology Victoria Watson A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts Graduate Program in Geography York University Toronto, Ontario September 2017 ã Victoria Watson, 2017 ii Abstract Water is an essential part of everyday life. In Iqaluit, residents receive their water through either utilidor or trucked water delivery, which is an integral system for everyday life in the North. For Inuit residents, gathering water from the land is also an essential source of drinking water. Based on fieldwork results from 2016, this thesis argues that perceptions of municipal water in Iqaluit are a source of added stress to daily life, and that gathering water from the land is an important part of Inuit identity that can be a source of healing. Both experiences with municipal water and water from the land are emotional and embodied. Specific results will be discussed with regard to age and gender. Using principles from Indigenous methodologies with feminist political ecology, data was collected through participant observation and a series of twenty-one semi-structured interviews with Inuit community members. iii Acknowledgements Writing this thesis has been one of the greatest learning experiences, and I am grateful for the many people who supported me throughout this process. First, I would like to express a very heartfelt thank-you to my supervisor Dr. Patricia Wood for her patience, expert advice, motivation, and unwavering moral support. Her guidance was integral in this project from start to finish. I would also like to thank my committee member Dr. Deborah McGregor, for her encouragement, insightful questions, and support both in the field and during the writing process. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Elisha Kilabuk, for his vital contributions to this project and for sharing his knowledge with me. Elisha’s support was key in the success of this project. Thank you to all of the community members of Iqaluit who participated in this project: Connie Nowdluk Pauloosie Elengayuk Sally Mikijuk Geela Kango Sarah Bogz Oopik Geeta Annie Shoo Mickey Kootoo Rachel Michael Joanna Aula Jeannie Nowdlak Nash Paniuq Kopa Mike Jeanine Nowdluk Ben Westwell Annie Tiglik Maleeta Pishuktee Thank you also to the many people who participated but wished to remain anonymous. I am honoured to have been able to hear your stories, and grateful that you were willing to share them with me. Thank you to Jamal Shirley, Mary Ellen Thomas, Rick Armstrong, and all the staff at the Nunavut Research Institute for your support during my fieldwork seasons. Finally, thank you to my family, friends, and colleagues who supported me along the way. Nakurmiik. iv Table of Contents Abstract……………………………………………………………………………………………ii Acknowledgements………………………………………………………………………………iii Table of Contents…………………………………………………………………………………iv List of Tables………………………………………………………………………………..........vi List of Figures……………………………………………………………………………………vii List of Images…………………………………………………………………………………...viii Chapter One: Introduction……………………………………………………………………...1 Context…………………………………………………………………………………….4 Water Infrastructure………………………………………………………………4 Water Governance………………………………………………………………...9 Methodology………………………………………………………………………..........11 Methodological Summary…………………………………………………..........11 Fieldwork………………………………………………………………………...14 Thesis Outline…………………………………………………………………………....16 Chapter Two: Context………………………………………………………………………….18 Introduction………………………………………………………………………………18 Colonial History………………………………………………………………………….20 Forced Permanent Settlement……………………………………………………20 Residential Schooling…………………………………………………………….23 Missionary Work…………………………………………………………………27 The Killing of Qimmiit…………………………………………………………...30 Project Surname………………………………………………………………….34 Healthcare and Illness…………………………………………………………...37 Making Connections with Emotional Geographies and Feminist Political Ecology…….41 Making Connections with Water………………………………………………………...45 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………….46 Chapter Three: Research Methodology and Approach……………………………………...48 Introduction………………………………………………………………………………48 Principles of Indigenous Research Methods…………………………………………......50 Theoretical Framework of Emotional Geographies and Feminist Political Ecology……59 Emotional Geographies of Resource Access…………………………………….59 Feminist Political Ecology……………………………………………………….61 Complementing Indigenous Methodologies with Emotional Geographies and Feminist Political Ecology…………………………………………………………………………65 Research Approach………………………………………………………………………68 Research Design………………………………………………………………....68 v Engaging in Community…………………………………………………………72 Gathering Participants………………………………………………………......73 Interview Questions……………………………………………………………...75 Interviews and Focus Group…………………………………………………….78 Limitations and Challenges……………………………………………………...78 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………….80 Chapter Four: Findings and Discussion………………………………………………………81 Introduction………………………………………………………………………………81 Experiences with Municipal Water………………………………………………………83 Stress from Concerns of Municipal Water Quality………………………………83 Stress from Municipal Water Service Interruptions………………………..........94 Stress of Anticipating Shortage…………………………………………………107 Stress from Financial Strain of Water………………………………………….111 Strategies for Coping with Water Shortage or Service Interruption…………...114 The Continued Importance of Gathering Water from the Land…………………..........116 Taste, Coldness, and Feel………………………………………………………117 Water from the Land for Well-Being…………………………………………...121 Water as a Part of Inuit Culture and Reconnecting with Inuit Identity………...126 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………...132 Chapter Five: Summary and Conclusion……………………………………………………134 Results Sharing and Data Verification………………………………………………….135 Contributions…………………………………………………………………………...136 Recommendations from Interview Participants………………………………………...138 Further Research……………………………………………………………………......140 References……………………………………………………………………………………...144 Appendices……………………………………………………………………………………..151 Appendix A: Chart of Interview Participants…………………………………………..151 vi List of Tables Table 1: The revised interview structure guide, with general themes and specific questions to ask if needed…………………………………………………………………………77 vii List of Figures Figure 1: City of Iqaluit Map……………………………………………………………………..2 Figure 2: Bathymetric contour lines of Lake Geraldine………………………………………….6 Figure 3: A map showing Lake Geraldine in proximity to the Apex and Sylvia Grinnell rivers……………...........................................................................................................9 Figure 4: An advertisement for a focus group in English and translated to Inuktitut…………...71 Figure 5: One of the posters used to gather research participants, with English translation below………………………………………………………………………………….74 Figure 6: The initial loosely structured interview topic guide………………..…………………76 Figure 7: A map of Iqaluit showing its proximity to Sylvia Grinnell Territorial Park………….82 viii List of Images Image 1: A model of the sand filtration system used to filter Iqaluit’s water…………………….5 Image 2: A city worker filling pots left outside a resident’s home, to provide residents with water during a water service interruption………………………………………………7 Image 3: An “Eskimo Identification Number” tag……………………………………………...36 1 Chapter One: Introduction Water is an essential part of everyday life. In Iqaluit, residents receive their municipal water either through utilidor, a utility corridor that carries drinking water in, and greywater and sewage out, or through water truck. For those who are on trucked water service, a municipal water truck delivers water from Lake Geraldine, Iqaluit’s water reservoir, to a tank inside the home. For Inuit residents, gathering water from the land is also an essential source of drinking water. Perceptions of the municipal water system are varied. This research looks at Inuit perceptions municipal water in Iqaluit, and the importance of using water from the land for physical, emotional, and sometimes spiritual benefits. Currently, there is much physical geography research on water being conducted in Northern communities; however, more social science research is needed to better understand impacts on community health and well-being. There is also a need for research in both physical and human geographies that focuses on the perspectives of Indigenous people. This research works to address this gap by prioritizing Inuit voices, and by providing information regarding the social impacts of changing water availability. This information may be used to support water policy development for Nunavut, as the Department of Health works towards establishing a territorial water strategy. 2 Figure 1: City of Iqaluit Map (City of Iqaluit Photo 2014) The findings of my research show that perceptions and experiences with municipal water in Iqaluit are a source of added stress to daily life. Municipal water service interruptions can be due to infrastructure problems, weather preventing water trucks from completing deliveries, and water shortage due to running out of tanked water. The research shows that these are emotional, embodied experiences that can have an impact on health and well-being. Although everyone will have different perceptions of municipal water, four subthemes emerge from the stories of the research participants