Community Capability and Development in Nunavik Research Project (CCDiN)

Community Meeting in Puvirnituq

February 14 -15, 2011

February 14th, 2011

Chair persons: Josie Nappatuk lead us into prayer, introduced the day and moderated the discussion throughout the morning of Feb. 14th, 2011. Robert Levy Powell served as a moderator in the afternoon of Feb. 14th, 2011.

Interpreter: Alacie Hickey, from KSB.

Participants: One representative from each of the communities of Salluit, Ivujivik, Akulivik, Inukjuak, Umiujaq, and Kuujjuarapik, as well as community members from Puvirnituq.

Organizations represented: Innulitsivik Health Center (Social services, complaints commissioner), the Family House, the Community Wellness program, Saputiit youth association, Avataq Institute, Makivik Corporation, KSB, the Health Board, the elders, the women’s association, the municipal council and a pastor.

The McGill research team: Nicole Ives, Vandna Sinha, Robert Levy Powell, Aida Mark, Dominique Leman.

1. Research in Nunavik - The fact that community members are tired of researchers coming up North and conducting research with the Inuit people was discussed; - Since the Inuit has traditionally been an oral people, little of their knowledge is put in writing; According to some of the participants, this may lead the Qallunaat to perceive them as not having much knowledge, which could explain why they conduct research and projects in the North. This sends the message that Qallunaat know more than Inuit; It was also mentioned that the Inuit did not have time to write because their family responsibilities are too great; - The research team explained that their main purpose was to be of use to community members; - The research team was thanked for their presence and it was mentioned that 10 years ago, Inuit perceived that Qallunaat did not want to listen to them, but today, they felt that the team was there to listen; - Feeling empowered and oppressed at the same time by Qallunaat was mentioned; - Feeling that researchers give a positive nudge to the Inuit which is a good way for the people to voice their emotions and to ask themselves if they are healthy enough as a people and if their organizations are well established.

2. Methodology of the CCDiN research project - The fact that there were not more people interviewed in Puvirnituq and in other communities was discussed; - It was suggested that one person from each community should have been in charge of the research and should have conducted the interviews with the people; the research team explained that the original plan was to have community members conduct interviews, but that they were unable to recruit community researchers for this work.

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- The concern that the people who were interviewed for the research project were perhaps not necessarily aware and well informed about all the initiatives that were in place to address social issues and therefore depicted a more negative picture of the situation in Nunavik, was raised.

3. Inuit involvement in research - It was suggested that community members who are not currently employed form a committee to develop projects, and not wait for researchers to speak about the problems that they see in the communities; - It was suggested that research belongs to the community, belongs to the people. One participant encouraged everyone present at the meeting to acknowledge that Inuit are working hard, and to not disregard all the effort and work which is being done.

4. Social issues in Nunavik - Persistence of social issues in the North despite having a hospital and many services was discussed; - It was suggested that this may be because the services are not given in a culturally appropriate way; - Some of the social issues mentioned were: trauma related to residential schools, the presence of bootleggers in the community, the shortage of housing, high rates of suicide, violence within families and gossip among community members; - To address the shortage of housing, it was suggested to lobby in Quebec city.

5. Discrepancies between Inuit workers and workers from the South - It was suggested that additional funding should be used for training Inuit to better address social issues in their communities; - Discrepancies between salaries and benefits received by the southern workers compared to the Inuit workers was mentioned, especially regarding access to housing, paid trips, and benefits.

6. Overlapping of projects - Some participants voiced their disappointment in the CCDiN research project and findings, feeling that it was a setback to be presented with these research results at this time, when the Regional Health Board is working hard with different sub-committees to look at how to better address social issues in the areas of mental health, youth protection and addictions and violence.

7. Culture and the preservation of the Inuktitut language - Cultural erosion and loss of traditional knowledge and practices was discussed; - It was suggested that the youth need to be more encouraged to speak and learn Inuktitut; - To promote the use of Inuktitut, it was suggested that employees who speak Inuktitut should receive a higher salary than those who do not; - To support Inuktitut language, it was suggested that an association or Institute for Inuktitut language be created, as well as a cultural lifestyle program, to teach youth about traditional living practices (for example, there are only a few youths who can build igloos); - To empower the Inuit, it was suggested that children learn their history from a young age;

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- Fear and concern that formal education is detrimental to the preservation of the Inuktitut language was discussed; - Too often documents are not translated in Inuktitut and when they are, Inuit tend to read the documents written in English because it is faster; - The tendency to speak English or French when Qallunaat are present contributes to the loss of the Inuktitut language; for example, it was mentioned that during Council meetings, although the majority of members are Inuktitut speakers, the conversation is often in English. It was suggested that a more conscious effort be made to use the Inuktitut language as much as possible.

8. Healing and reconciliation - The importance of healing from past trauma before the people can reconcile with Qallunaat was emphasized; - The healing process will take time; - When Qallunaat force reconciliation on the Inuit, it is felt as further oppression.

9. Intergenerational gap - A gap in culture and values between generations was a concern for participants; - The youth face an uncertain future as 50% of children are born to single parents, there are high rates of suicide, alcohol and drug abuse and very few post secondary students; - It was suggested that the elders be more present and give more advice to the youth and help them value their Inuit culture, because many youths only see the Qallunaat lifestyle. - Elders mentioned feeling at times unsure of how to guide the youth and how to transmit their knowledge to the younger generations because of their lack of written documents. And because of this, some of them sometimes wondered if it would be easier to just follow the Qallunat lifestyle (instead of insisting on preserving the Inuit traditional life-style and culture).

10. Youth - Hanak forum in Inukjuak last June for youth was a success. The youth want to organise and become more independant. Inuit adults presented at the Forum and shared their living experiences with the youth. - The challenge of reconciling Qallunaat and Inuit cultures was mentioned; - Youths are sometimes told what to do by adults and elders, but are not often told how to do it. Youths are looking for support, advice and guidance from their parents and from elders. They need someone to walk with them. They need direction and guidance in life. - Elders mentioned wanting to support and guide the youth, but not knowing how, because of a lack of written materials. They wonder if they should guide them in the Inuit or in the Qallunaat lifestyle. - It was mentioned that many youth know more how to live in the Qallunaat environment, than in their own Inuit environment. And when they come back to their environment, they don’t know how to live and risk becoming destructive. - Despite the problems, youth need to hear positive things from the elders. They need to hear their hopes and visions. They need to feel hopeful for the future, and believe in the abilities, strengths and talents of their people and of themselves as Inuit youth.

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11. Family - Broken families engendering broken communities was discussed; - Lack of harmony in a family impacts a child negatively; - Men and women need support from other men and women. And youth need support from their parents; - The feeling that adults are not listened to by youths and by elders was mentioned;

12. Education - It was suggested that the academic curriculum be more sensitive and tailored to the Inuit lifestyle; - It was suggested that people speak with their KSB Commissioners if they have concerns regarding the curriculum and their children’s education. - The lack of recognition by the Quebec government for certain educational programs was mentioned as an issue. The Survival school in Puvirnituq was cited as an example: they give certificates in Inuit traditional knowledge, and in Qallunaat survival skills, but they are not recognized as a College by the government of Quebec.

13. Nunavik Regional Government - Whether or not Inuit are prepared to have self government was discussed; - It was mentioned that the Inuit want a regional government, because they want to empower themselves and follow their ancestors wishes to govern themselves; - Scepticism of how the process has unfolded towards regional governance was mentioned as a concern. Because there have been many pilot projects, one participant mentioned being concerned that this referendum for self- governance would be just another pilot project; - Knowing their history was mentioned as a way for Inuit to know how to govern themselves appropriately; - The idea that if the Inuit are a healthy people, self-government will be a positive step forward. But that it will not solve all the problems. Social issues as well as emotional and spiritual problems need to be tended to immediately; - The concern that a Nunavik Regional Government will not go far enough, in terms of autonomy in policy making was raised; applying policies from the South, written by Qallunaat will not be satisfying to many; - The issue of the land not belonging to the Inuit despite self-government was raised; - It was suggested that additional information regarding the process and content of the referendum be aired on the radio in the next few weeks, prior to the referendum scheduled for March 31st, 2011, since there seems to be unanswered questions and a certain amount of confusion regarding the impacts of this referendum on the people and the communities and what will change in the present institutions such as KRPF, KSB, Social Services, etc. - The fear that the Inuit will have less involvement in their organizations as a result of the amalgamation of many boards of directors in the future NRG, was raised; - The concern that few Inuit will be able to get jobs in the future NRG because of a lack of training and appropriate certification, was raised; - The fear that a public government in Nunavik might hinder relationships between Nunavimmiut (and sometimes even within families) and divide the people was mentioned; - Envy of Nunavutmiut who have their own government was mentioned as a motivation for Nunavimmiut to trust that this will be good for the people and will give them a direction; - Another participant mentioned that there are many self-governments which do not work, and this could be the case in Nunavik; 4

- The fear that Qallunaat might take over in Nunavik if they are able to vote in a public government; - Administering funds themselves might be very empowering for Nunavimmiut; - Questions arose around how self-government can be implemented if the James Bay Agreement (and therefore the loss of rights to the Land) is still effective; - It was proposed that there be the implementation of the Inuit dollar. - The question of raised whether or not there will be different parties in the NRG or if it is simply KRG which changes its name to NRG. - There seems to be confusion in the minds of many regarding ITN and self-government. Further clarification would be welcome; - It was suggested that in the future NRG, Inuktitut be the only language used in the offices; - One participant mentioned that having a regional government seemed like just another administration, but that if it did not pass in the referendum, it would be a long time before Nunavik would see another self-government project in the region.

To conclude the day, we listed the different documents and projects that the research team would follow-up with:

1. Send notes from the community meeting, slides from the presentation, and strategy document written after the meeting in Kuujjuaq in October 2010. 2. Send out the Agreement to be voted upon for referendum along with a policy brief. 3. An update of the Parent Involvement pilot project presently conducted in Kujjuaq.

February 15th, 2011

Interpreter: Alacie Hickey, from KSB.

Participants: One representative from each of the communities of Salluit, Ivujivik, Akulivik, Inukjuak, and Kuujjuarapik, as well as community members from Puvirnituq.

Organizations represented: Innulitsivik Health Center (Social services), Makivik Corporation, KSB, the Health Board, the elders, the women’s association and a pastor.

The McGill research team: Nicole Ives, Vandna Sinha, Robert Levy Powell, Aida Mark, Dominique Leman.

Review of things to do after the meeting in Puvirnituq and additional strategies to explore:

1. Send notes from the community meeting, slides from the presentation, and strategy document written after the meeting in Kuujjuaq in October 2010. 2. Send out the Agreement to be voted upon for referendum along with a policy brief. 3. Video conference meeting with Social Services in Puvirnituq, re: workshops for community workers.

4. Suggestion: A meeting/workshop for youth to be able to voice their perspectives on challenges with reconciling Inuit and Qallunaat cultures (intergenerational issues).

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a. One participant mentioned the recent Hanak conference held in Inukjuak, where youth gathered and shared ideas on different topics as a good forum for discussion – there has not been any follow-up since then; This participant is presently working on a website to host discussions –messages board – run by users. b. Contact representatives from Saputiit in different communities.

5. Suggestion: Forum for online discussion guidelines – what to do when someone seems to be in distress (online)? a. Have a website where you can talk without sharing your name b. Transform the phone-based hotline into an online medium c. Offer a space for healing (E.g.: for those who have been closely affected by suicides in their community) d. Have a clinical “moderator”.

6. Suggestion: Proposal for treatment center in Inukjuak a. Ask for help with completing an application form with Makivik Corporation. b. Be in touch with the sub-committee on mental health from the NRBHSS. c. It is suggested that if a new treatment center is implemented on the Hudson Coast, it should be modeled on the Isuarsivik treatment center (Kuujjuaq).

7. What AA services are available in Nunavik? a. There is an AA group in Kuujjuaq b. Materials about applying the AA model in the North are available for individuals and groups c. Issues of privacy in small communities d. AA was tried in Salluit but was discontinued e. AA in Kuujjuarapik seems to work well. A member of the Cree community is in charge, but it is open to Inuit and Cree community members f. Suggestion: Could teleconferencing be used to connect AA groups from multiple communities? What is needed is an organizing entity, to build on what has already been done. g. A participant mentioned that once individuals leave the Isuarsivik treatment center, they are offered follow-up services in their home community; unfortunately, these services are not always taken advantage of by the graduates of the program. What seemed to work better was the aftercare program that was started in partnership with the treatment center in Kuujjuaq, which brought graduates from the program together with a facilitator, to support each other. Unfortunately, that project had been put on hold because the treatment center did not have enough staff to facilitate these programs. h. Suggestion: Organising a meeting of former treatment center clients, so that they can offer each other support, and offer support to other community members who are struggling with alcohol and drugs. i. One participant described the shame and stigma around attending AA meetings. This participant encourages those who have been through addictions to participate and get involved in AA groups to describe their own struggles and how they overcame addictions.

8. Suggestions for next meeting:

- Offer honoraria or note in writing that no honoraria is offered (only per diem expenses) - Compensate for child care expenses - Bring slides as handouts - Consider meetings in each community. Nakurmiik! Thank you! 6