Dave Miller of CBC Mackenzie in Yellowknife and Jeannie Arreak-Kullualik of CBC Iqaluit were presented with the prestigious Science in Society Journalism Award from the association earlier this month in Vancouver.

The pair's winning entry Bowheads: In the Balance, was a cross-cultural joint-station documentary that dealt with the many factors influencing the comeback of the endangered Eastern Arctic Bowhead whale.

The winning entry was one program in a five-part series that Miller wrote, produced and mixed. It aired late last year.

Arreak-Kullualik was script consultant and voiced the series in both English and Inuktitut.

To collect enough information for the documentary, both journalists, along with sound specialist David Poisey, travelled to an area known as Nuvuttiapik (Isabella Bay) near Clyde River.

"The area is seen as one of the top 10 whale-watching sites in the world," Miller says. "There's a very real concern over exploitation of the area for eco-tourism."

Twenty-six-year-old Arreak-Kullulik, who's originally from Pond Inlet, has worked for CBC Iqaluit for almost four years.

Currently, the host of the bilingual noon show, Tamainoon, she hopes the documentary helps her own people understand the

"I know the story, the whole series has already accomplished something. A lot of people didn't understand the bowheads' behavior or their reproduction process. After the bowhead hunt in Repulse Bay we became very keen to find out what we could. I hope this helps," she says.

Miller, 44, who's worked for CBC Mackenzie for the last 12 years and is no stranger to awards, says the series was played national on CBC's The World This Weekend.

"I'm not an Inuk. But I was in Nunavut and had to deal with a lot of things Inuit-style. Bringing Jeannie on board really complemented my effort. By combining the cultures I think we both were able to produce a better product."

Altogether CBC North received two first-prize placements in this category. In 1993 CBC North Radio received the same award for a radio documentary about Fetal Alcohol Syndrome.

"It's nice to be honored and recognized by your colleagues instead of an outside agency with a vested corporate interest."

The Canadian Science Writer's Association is a non-profit organization with hundreds of members throughout the country.