Ulu makers learn the trade
Traditional knife building workshop creates space for conversation
Beth Brown
Northern News Services
Monday, October 31, 2016
KUGLUKTUK/COPPERMINE
Thursday night is ulu night at the Kugluktuk elders' centre, where the hamlet's youth are getting a hands-on education in making the traditional tool.
Each week until Dec. 15, youth aged 16 to 25 are gathering for dinner, discussion and do-it-yourself time.
"It's to learn traditionally and to connect with each other and talk to each other," said Tiffany Novoligak, the program's facilitator and staffer at the Kugluktuk youth centre.
The ulu workshop stemmed from the youth, who asked for such training.
Participants started off by designing their own ulu patterns, including intricate handles to be carved out of muskox horn.
A saw was cut up to provide the raw material for the ulu blades.
The 11-week workshop is a project of Moving Forward Together - Hivumut Aulaniq Atauttimut - a five-year crime prevention program currently in its third year running within the hamlet.
The program, which has a core mandate for building community and supporting individuals, is largely youth and young-family focused.
The students are learning to create a budget, efficiently purchase supplies and run the technical side of the project.
Organizers will also help the youth with a business plan should they want to sell the ulus when they are completed.
But it's not just about the ulus, said Jodi Alderson, program coordinator for Moving Forward Together.
"We use these programs not just for skill building, but to actually talk about things in their lives," Alderson said.
"Sometimes it is skills like finances but sometimes it's conflict resolution."
The youth might talk about relationships, and forms of communication, she said.
"We use it as a time to connect and learn less tangible skills. It's an engagement tool, this type of programming."
The finished ulus provide a sense of purpose and accomplishment for participants, she said.
The exercise is also meant to help build confidence and encourage youth to be innovative, seek out new learning experiences and create their own opportunities, said Novoligak.
"I'm excited for the finishing off of their ulus," she said, "And (for students) to know how to make them and know how much time and effort it takes."
