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NUNAVUT
More has to be done so Inuit Sign Language is widely accepted and interpreters are trained and available, says one Nunavummiuq who is hearing impaired.

"I want to go to school in Ottawa soon and I couldn't go here because they couldn't find an interpreter," said Clayton Ungungai through an interpreter.

Ungungai, 23, is originally from Baker Lake and moved to Iqaluit several years ago. He said at first he started to learn American Sign Language but heard and knew of people who knew ISL.

The two languages are similar but there are at least 50 different signs due to differences in culture and the environment.

When signing "baby" in ASL, Ungungai rocks his arms as if a baby were in a cradle, and in ISL he puts his hands over his head as if he were putting a child in an amauti. The sign for "seal" in ASL is more of a flapping movement, and in ISL he puts his arm and fist in an upward motion as if a seal were coming up through the ice.

Since 2006, Ungungai has been helping develop ISL as part of a project to promote the language.

Kevin Stoddart is a close friend of Ungungai's and the pair grew up together in Baker Lake. Stoddart uses some signs but mostly spells out words using his fingers. They also chat using MSN Messenger and Facebook.

"I think people should recognize Inuktitut Sign Language as much as spoken English or ASL and they need to learn it and put it in schools," Stoddart said.

Until he can find an ISL interpreter, Ungungai will stay in Iqaluit and will have to put pursuing his interests in photography, fashion design and web design on hold.

Stoddart said Ungungai will not give up on his dream of going to school.

"At the end of the day, we need interpreters," Ungungai said.

James MacDougall, a professor at McGill University in Montreal, has been working with Ungungai and the Department of Justice, as well as the ISL project with the Department of Culture, Language, Elders and Youth. He is also involved with the Canadian Deafness Research and Training Institute.

MacDougall said he is not sure how many people in the territory are hearing impaired, but he estimates the number is three times greater than in the south.

He said Ungungai applied to Arctic College last year but he couldn't go because there was no interpreter. When an ISL interpreter was needed for a high profile court case last March, one could not be found in the territory and a woman was flown in from British Columbia. She used a mixture of ISL and ASL.

"We need a interpreter training program so they can work in schools, the justice and health systems," MacDougall said.

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