Perceptions of Water Among the Inuit Community in Iqaluit, Nunavut: an Anti-Colonialist, Feminist Political Ecology
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.
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