Inuvik (Feb 13/06) - A group of interpreters are translating the National Energy Board hearing in Inuvik from English to Inuvialuktun and Gwich'in.

Rosie Albert, left, and Agnes White translate the National Energy Board hearing into Inuvialuktun over the Internet and telephone. - John King/NNSL photo

Surrounded by large glass walls, the elders translate the hearing as it unfolds.

"The glass is there so we only hear the people talking through the microphone," said Rosie Albert, an Inuvialuit elder who helped translate during the Berger inquiry in the 1970s.

The glass also prevents those in attendance from hearing the interpreters as they translate.

"It is important work because the elders live off the land and the Inuvialuit need to know about these projects in case the land is spoiled," Albert said.

Translating the extremely technical information covered in the hearings can be a tough challenge, says interpreter Agnes White.

"You really have to be dead on with what's going on," White said.

The interpreters work in pairs so that if one gets tired the other can take over, says White.

Marie-Anick Elie, a public relations and logistics specialist for the Northern Gas Project Secretariat, co-ordinated the interpreters.

"The Inuvialuktun and Gwich'in languages are more lanky than English, so I've had to remind the speakers to talk slow, " said Elie.

"It's been a lot of fun helping the elders."

Translation of the hearings is being offered live on the Internet and by phone so people not only across the North but all across Canada can listen in on the hearings.

Albert and White take their job seriously.

"It's about what you know and can translate," said White. "I'd be lying to myself if I said I didn't know how to translate."

Albert agrees and says people need to know what's going on in their region.

"A lot of the elders don't speak English so we translate so they can understand," Albert said. "Knowledge is key."