Tara Kearsey
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Oct 07/02) - Elders from every Nunavut community will finally get a chance to share their visions with the territorial government on how Inuit culture and language should be promoted.

Culture, Language, Elders and Youth assistant deputy minister Anthony Saez said all hamlets will be invited to send one representative to an elders gathering in Iglulik Oct. 6 to 11. The elders chosen to attend will be nominated by their community.

"The main objective of that meeting is to discuss with elders from across Nunavut how the department can serve them better in terms of accessing our programs and our services.

"We want to know how CLEY can better adapt to the needs of elders in Nunavut," he said.

All travel costs associated with the gathering will be absorbed by the department.

Saez said all input gathered at the meeting will assist the department in developing a broad vision for preserving and emphasizing Inuit culture.