Climate change conference a big success
Kerry McCluskey
Northern News Services
Cambridge Bay (Apr 06/01) - The words "Kyoto Protocol" don't mean a whole lot to Kugluktuk elder Tommy Pigalak.
And whether or not U.S. President George W. Bush signs the international protocol agreement to reduce greenhouse gases won't really make much of a difference in the life of the Kitikmeot resident.
But what does matter to him, and it matters a great deal, is that he is watching the banks of the rivers around Kugluktuk cave in during the spring; witnessing never-before-seen species of birds fly into the area; and he knows he can't ice fish on the river as early as he used to.
All of these things, caused by global warming, give Pigalak great cause for concern. It was that concern that prompted him to participate in the Nunavut Tunngavik-sponsored Elder's Conference on Climate Change.
Held in Cambridge Bay at the end of March, the event brought several Nunavut elders together with representatives from NTI, the science world and the regional Inuit organizations.
"I really enjoyed it very much. I learned a lot," Pigalak said last week, from his home in Kugluktuk.
"We had a good meeting about animals and weather and anything to do with global warming," he said.
Meant to be an informal gathering, the group sat together for three days and told stories of the ways things used to be and how they are now. Pigalak said he and the other elders all spoke of the great changes they'd seen in the land and the animals and the weather during their lifetimes.
He also said he learned more about the science of global warming and came to understand how greenhouse gases were warming the Arctic and causing the huge changes the elders have all witnessed.
More than lip-service
Earle Baddaloo also attended NTI's meeting on climate change. Baddaloo, the director of environmental protection for the Department of Sustainable Development, said participating in the conference was extremely valuable to the government.
"We were able to hear from the elders what changes they'd noted in the climate of the area and how it was affecting them," said Baddaloo.
"We were able to document this and we will utilize this information in a climate change strategy we are preparing in Nunavut," he said.
Under the direction of Sustainable Development Minister Olayuk Akesuk, the department is preparing a climate change strategy and business plan based on the traditional knowledge they glean from elders in these kinds of workshops.
Baddaloo said the department wanted to present the strategy and plan to Akesuk by the summer so the minister could take it to cabinet for approval before the fall session.
Nunavut's strategy falls under part of the larger national strategy to deal with global warming.
Taking it to the south
The information documented at the Cambridge Bay gathering is also being spread south of the border. Jose Kusugak, the president of Inuit Tapirisat of Canada, said he hoped to educate southern Canadians and organizations about the effect global warming has on the Arctic.
Kusugak said he found the conference particularly important and informative because it again affirmed the need to use elders when building knowledge.
"Personally, I think it brought home that traditional knowledge is, in fact, science. It's just a different type of science," said Kusugak, from his Ottawa office.
"Science is often thought of as a bunsen burner and a beaker. With traditional knowledge, the bunsen burner is the sun and the beaker is the ocean," he said.
Kusugak said his first step was to take the messages from the elders to a conference he was attending late last week on global warming.
He said he knew change wouldn't be immediate, but that it was important to begin the process.
"I do make a point about talking about global warming," he said.
