NUNAVUT - Eleven students from the Nuiyak School in Sanikiluaq will be joining more than 190 aboriginal youths from across the country in participating at the 10th annual E-Spirit National Aboriginal Youth Business Plan competition, at the University of Ottawa from May 11 to 13.

Nuiyak School student Tim Appaqaq, Betsy Kittosuk, Paddy Aqiatusuk and Kelly Fraser will propose a gift shop, the Nanuk Gift Shop, where aboriginal art, such as carvings, parkas, mittens and jewelry, will be sold.

"We are going to try and do our best in our business," said 43-year-old, Grade 11 student, Kittosuk.

Another team, made up of Debbie, Daisy and Malaya Kavik, as well as Anna Qittosuk, proposes to operate a restaurant called Inuit Nirivinga, with a varied menu, including country and southern foods.

"We wanted to provide more Inuit food to our community," Debbi, a 17-year-old Grade 10/11 student said.

As for Mick Appaqaq, Becky Qavvik and Ti-Gilles Kowcharlie, their team proposes a translation service, Inuit Language Inc., where educational material would be translated into the Sanikiluaq dialect.

"Most of the books we get aren't really in our dialect, so it will be a great plan to provide in our school," said Kowcharlie, a 17-year-old Grade 10/11 student. "Let other cities and other Nunavut communities to know that our dialect is different from all Northern dialects. We like to compete with others and we are very prepared to do it."

Cindy Goodyear, a teacher at the Nuiyak School, provided guidelines and advice to the students. One team from the school attended the competition last year, but came back empty-handed. She said this year, they are hoping to come back with an award.

"It gives them some experience outside of Sanikiluaq, to be able to meet other students and experience different cultures and also expose them to different opportunities, whether it would be educational opportunities, employment opportunities," she said.