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 CCGS Admunsen Photo by: Marc Tawil, ArcticNet |
Arctic Science and Research Activities
The government of
Prime Minister Paul Martin responding to the Speech from the Throne October 2004.
Northern Contaminants Program
2004 has been a busy year for Arctic science and ICC. The highly successful federal Northern Contaminants Program (www.ainc-inac.gc.ca/ncp) with its renewed funding is completing the first full year of peer-reviewed science in the north under NCP III. ICC has worked closely with the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami (www.itk.ca) in bringing contaminants and climate change information to the communities as well as to the Federal Government though a number of aboriginal roundtables. ICC continues to play an active role on the science managers committee and in bringing Inuit and
A region of particular challenge and opportunity is
Speech from Throne
ArcticNet and Nasivvik
ICC is represented on many boards including the Nasivvik Centre for Inuit Health and Changing Environments and the ArcticNet Centre of Excellence. The Nasivvik Centre (http://www.nasivvik.ulaval.ca/) was established under the Aboriginal Capacity and Developmental Research Environments (ACADRE) Program through a grant from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research -
ArcticNet is a newly established Network of Centers of Excellence (NCE) of Canada that brings together scientists and managers in the natural, human health and social sciences with their partners in Inuit organizations, northern communities, federal and provincial agencies and the private sector to contribute to the development and dissemination of the knowledge needed to formulate adaptation strategies and national policies to help Canadians face the impacts and opportunities of climate change and globalization in the Arctic. Over 90 ArcticNet researchers from 23 Canadian universities and five Federal departments collaborate with research teams in the
ArcticNet and Nasivvik have co-funded four regional Inuit Research Advisors (IRAs) to facilitate Arctic research in Inuit regions and to engage Inuit in undertaking research activities of importance to their communities. The four IRAs will receive support and training to assist University and government researchers in making the appropriate connections with the communities and regional organizations, to develop Inuit led research projects and to facilitate research in Inuit regions on contaminants, climate change and environmental health. The four successful candidates represent
Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program (AMAP)
In December 2004 the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program (AMAP) released the Persistent Toxic Substances, Food Security and Indigenous Peoples of the Russian North report (http://www.amap.org). The report was the culmination of a research project initiated by indigenous peoples and financed in part through the Global Environment facility and the support and effort of the Arctic Council permanent participants and member nations. The project was undertaken in most part by Russian institutions and experts with the support from the relevant Russian federal government executive bodies for the first time in a project of this size, indigenous experts through the Russian Association of Indigenous Peoples of the Far North (RAIPON) and its regional branches acted in this project not as assistants but as equal partners of the research teams. The report findings illustrate the need for international controls on persistent toxic substances and the continued need for monitoring Arctic indigenous populations. Based on concentrations measured in maternal blood serum, exposure of Russian Arctic indigenous people to PTS show levels of long-banned pollutants, in particular HCH, HCB, DDT, and PCBs that are among the highest currently reported for all Arctic regions. Of particular concern is the discovery of up to 25 fold increase in fresh DDT concentrations, indicating current used of this banned substance.
The POP exposure intensity (body burden) of Arctic indigenous women as measured in maternal and umbilical serum, in some cases exceeds that of resident and territories which are internationally recognized as disaster areas, for example the Aral Sea region (page 178, PTS 2004).
International Polar Year
Duane Smith, President of ICC Canada has been appointed to the Canadian National International Polar Year (www.ipy-api.ca) Organizing Committee. In 2007 - 2008 the international polar research community will celebrate the 125th anniversary of the First International Polar Year (IPY). The International Polar Year 2007-2008 offers a chance to build on existing programs and develop an exciting range of education and outreach activities that will attract the next generation of polar scientists and engage the public. An intense, global campaign of coordinated polar observations and analysis, it will be bipolar in focus, multidisciplinary in scope, and truly international in terms of participation.
The IPY Joint Committee established by the International Council for Science and the World Meteorological Organization will coordinate the international effort. In Canada, the Canadian Steering Committee is supported by the Canadian Secretariat, which is hosted at the University of Alberta, and works in concert with the Canadian Polar Commission and the IPY Federal Working Group to coordinate Canada IPY initiatives. The Canadian IPY Steering Committees role is to ensure that Canadian IPY activities address both Arctic and Antarctic regions, scientists from a range of disciplines, and maintain a focus on compelling scientific questions.
Bringing Inuit and Arctic Perspectives to the Global Stage: Lessons and Opportunities
Sheila Watt-Cloutier, Chair Inuit Circumpolar Conference
14th Inuit Studies Conference
Calgary, Alberta
August 11, 2004
Introduction
Good morning. My name is Sheila Watt-Cloutier. I am the elected Chair of the Inuit Circumpolar Conference. I was born and raised in Nunavik and I now live in Iqaluit, the capital of Nunavut.
ICC was formed in 1977 to defend the rights and interests of internationally of the 155,000 Inuit living in Alaska, Canada, Greenland, and Chukotka, Russia. The principal goals of the ICC are:
To strengthen unity among Inuit of the circumpolar region.
- To promote Inuit rights and interests on an international level.
- To develop and encourage long-term policies which safeguard the Arctic environment.
To seek full and active partnership in the political, economic and social development of circumpolar regions.
I am very pleased to share the plenary with some old friends and some new ones. I want to thank Arctic Institute and in particular my good friend from Greenland, Karla Williamson for bringing us together for this important conference.
The Opportunity
The research and university community is of growing importance in the Arctic. After many years of decline there are signs that Canadas research capacity in the Arctic is increasing. The need of Inuit organizations for research and their capability to use it is increasing as well. When governments ratify the Labrador Land Claims Agreement, all Inuit regions in Arctic Canada will live in a post land claims world.
We can often have different perspectives, but Inuit organizations and Canadas research community can complement each other. Often the research world is divided into physical and social sciences and then into disciplines and sub-disciplines--which can be quite bewildering--to be honest. Many researchers explore one or two things in detail, whereas, Inuit generally look holistically on issues. Culture, economy and environment are all woven into our tapestry.
The Arctic and Inuit are no longer isolated physically or psychologically from the rest of the world. We are connected to the world in all sorts of ways. Globalization is not necessarily a bad word to Inuit. The research community and Inuit need also to connect more fully. This will take efforts by you and by us, but the pay back of doing business together should be significant. Your detailed knowledge and our big picture go together well. This is not to say that Inuit do not have detailed knowledge as well, but we often see and do things holistically, embracing the spirit of our culture, economy and environment in our research and decision-making.
So, we need ways and means of communicating and connecting with each other. A partnership between us will bring our perspectives and yours to bear on issues. My remarks today will explore this opportunity and its challenges.
Inuit use and occupy huge areas of land and ocean, but we are few in number. This means I spend a lot of time on the road speaking with people who make decisions that affect the Arctic, but do so in capitals far to the South. My business is to help others to see the value of understanding connectivity. What I mean by this is, people have lost the understanding that their own human activity can have severe negative impacts on their neighbors, whether their neighbors are next door, in the next country or continent, and in our case in the next hemisphere. The contaminants and the climate change issues are perfect examples of this disconnect and the negative impacts that challenge our efforts to preserve in our homeland, our cultural heritage. This is what I mean by helping others see the connectivity we are all connected, and the planet is one. Our actions affect otherssometimes we see the effect, sometimes it is far away and we do not see it and therefore do not understand the impact. Each of us can choose if our actions will have a positive or negative effect on our global neighborhood.
Why then is it important for Inuit to be heard internationally and more importantly why is it important for Inuit communities to know the world hears and listens to us? International events affect us more and more. Environmental protection, management of migratory species of animals, trade rules, and energy markets are all determined by decisions made internationally. In response, Inuit have to be internationalist in orientation, purpose, and activity. It is not always easy for Inuit to get into international political game. Our ability to do so is influenced by the attitude of Governments. Many see and welcome connections with us, others dont yet understand the growing importance of the Arctic or the value of working with us. We have had a few senior civil servants within the Government of Canada, the United States and the United Nations see the value of connecting with us; these partnerships have advanced all of our objectives.
We all know the Arctic and Inuit are navigating rapid changes very quickly. In the midst of this change we need to be both resilient and adaptive. The connectedness of our world demands this. I think this is another way of saying our big picture along with our detailed knowledge and your detailed knowledge go together.
Contaminants and Inuit Health
Let me turn briefly to the now well-known issue of long-range transport of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) to the Arctic. Chris Furgal and Eric Loring will speak about work they have done to provide community data and insights needed on the national and international stages.
As many of you know, certain POPs end up in the Arctic and bioaccumulate in the food web, particularly the marine food web. Many Inuit women have levels of POPs in their bodies well above Health Canadas level of concern. We have preliminary evidence that suggests the levels of contaminants our children are exposed to before birth can affect their neurological and cognitive capabilities and their immune systems.
The Northern Contaminants Program (NCP) established through the 1991 Green Plan brings together four federal agencies, three territorial governments and four aboriginal peoples organizationsincluding ITK and ICC (Canada)to sponsor research needed to get a handle on the problem. It also funds the communication of research results back to the communities and forward into international agencies, to persuade them to sponsor international negotiations to turn off the POPs tap. Ten years after the NCP began, more than 100 nations signed the Global POPs Convention in Stockholm. The Convention entered into force this May 17, 2004.
Negotiations began in Montreal in 1998 and were followed by sessions in Nairobi, Geneva, Bonn and Johannesburg. We used a variety of ways and means to get our perspective and concerns heard. We presented an Inuit carving to Klaus Topfer, Executive Director of UNEP, at a special event, with all the negotiators, in Nairobi. The carving of a mother and child became the conscience of the negotiationswe had made the connection and it resonated until the Convention was signed. An image of the carving was highlighted on UNEPs web page, and the carving sat upon the podium at each and every negotiation session. In Geneva, we showcased sealskin-hunting clothing to illustrate our ongoing ties to the land. In Bonn, we were asked by the German hosts to organize a night of aboriginal cultural activities and country food. In Johannesburg we invited delegates to sample caribou and muskox jerky.
We spoke clearly and from the heart at each session, drawing upon research by Canadian scientists. With the support of the Alaskan member of the delegation of the United States, ICC drafted the following preambular clause that is now included in the convention.
Arctic ecosystems and indigenous communities are particularly at risk because of the biomagnification of persistent organic pollutants and that contamination of their traditional foods is a public health issue.
This clause put Inuit and Canada on the map, and helps us to make further connections to speed implementation of the convention.
There are many reasons why this was an example of effective communication. In these global negotiations ICC helped the Government of Canada translate high quality Canadian science into international public policy. Our aim was to protect the health of Inuit and all Canadians.
The POPs story is long and complicated but important. This is why we prepared a book, Northern Lights Against POPs: Combatting Toxic Threats in the Arctic to document what happened and why. There are flyers for the book at the back of the room.
Climate Change and Inuit Health
Let me turn now to climate change. There is no doubt that global climate change is taking place in the Arctic. Inuit hunters and elders have reported for ten to fifteen years, changes to the natural environment caused by the changing climate. Many of these observations have been published. In November 2004, Arctic Council Ministers will receive the four-year Arctic Climate Impact Assessment (ACIA) which projects by 2070 massive depletion of summer sea-ice leaving a remnant around the North Pole. The assessment projects severe disruption of marine habitat, and the likely extinction of polar bear, walrus, some species of seal and some marine birds. It is also foresees the destruction of Inuit as a hunting culture.
In the POPs debate we were able to use the Northern Contaminants Program to connect Inuit to national and international decision-making. Unfortunately we dont have a similar vehicle in the climate change debate. When the federal government put its basic climate change policies, institutions and research programs in place in the mid to late 1990s the Arctic was virtually ignored and indigenous peoples were all but forgotten. We have been playing catch up ever since. We hope the ACIAprepared by more than 300 researchers in 15 countrieswill encourage the federal government to partner with us and to make-up lost ground. Last week I wrote to the Minster of Foreign Affairs recommending the establishment of a contaminants-style northern climate change program.
Last November I attended the Conference of Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Milan as a member of Canadas delegation. I was surprised by the interest shown by the media in the Arctic in what we had to say. This particular COP did not easily allow Arctic issues to be heard. Canada did not mention the Arctic in any of its interventions. At ICCs request Samoa raised Arctic perspectives in its plenary intervention. The common challenges of the Small Island States and the Arctic are a perfect example of the connectivity I have spoken about.
Global Climate Change negotiations are highly detailed and technical. There were thousands of delegates and I wondered how we could possibly inject the human dimension, the Arctic voice into the global debate. Had we forgotten the dramatic predictions of changes to our homeland, the Arctic; had we forgotten the Small Island States in the Pacific that may be underwater within my lifetime, had we forgotten the effects on our prairie farmers? The human impacts of climate change seemed to be lost in the technical detail.
A year ago the largest ice shelf in the Arctic broke in half, releasing into the ocean the freshwater lake it enclosed and its unique ecosystem. As the melting ice and winds of change thaw the Northwest Passage Inuit are likely to be faced with major opportunities and challenges from international shipping. I do not believe that the Government of Canada yet appreciates or is equipped to address the sovereignty implications of climate change in the Arctic.
For the last two years ICC has been exploring the connections between human induced climate change and human rights. In Milan we held a media and NGO briefing on this topic. The room was filled to overflowing and people from many regions of the world welcomed our attempt to recast debate and bring people and human rights to its very center.
In addressing climate change we have placed our limited resources primarily in two international activities:
1) Participation in the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment (ACIA). This will be the worlds most comprehensive and detailed regional assessment of climate change. Of the first importance to Inuit, we intend this assessment to inform future COPs to the climate change convention. This assessment will be accompanied by policy recommendations. ICC is pressing for a amendment to the preamble to the climate change conventionsimilar to language in the Stockholm Conventionthat acknowledges the Arctic dimension to climate change.
2) Submitting a climate change-based petition to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), seeking a declaration that destruction of the Inuit way of life as a result of emission of greenhouse gases, in particular by the United States, amounts to a violation of the human rights of Inuit.
We have discussed the still draft petition with civil servants from federal agencies and with David Anderson and Lloyd Axworthy formally ministers of Environment and Foreign Affairs respectively. Rodolfo Stavenhagen, the United Nations special rapporteur on human rights, whom I met with recently in Iqaluit, fully supports our strategy to connect climate change with human rights. In the absence of a northern climate change program we intend to use the circumpolar assessment as the information base to support our petition. The petition provides important opportunities to engage the media and to inform governments, non-governmental organizations, and the public at large of the cultural and human implications of climate change in the Arctic. Being 155,000 Inuit in the entire world fighting for our cultural heritage is not so easy; the petition is a vehicle for us to put ourselves on the political map.
ArcticNet: Connecting into the Future
Let me turn briefly to ArcticNet, a new research initiative that has the potential to involve Inuit in a constructive and meaningful way. "The Integrated Natural/Human Health/Social Study on the Changing Arctic" or ArcticNet incorporates the Coast Guard icebreaker Admunsen to undertake a four-year research project on the effects of global changes in the Canadian Arctic.
Through Canadas Networks of Centres of Excellence (NCE) program, the federal government will invest $25.7 million in ArcticNet over the next four years. The ArcticNet proposal says, and I quote,
The central objective of the Network is to translate our growing understanding of the changing Arctic into impact assessments, national policies and adaptation strategies. The direct involvement of Northerners in the scientific process is a primary goal of the network that will be fulfilled through bilateral exchange of knowledge, training and technology.
As there was little consultation with Inuit prior to submission of the ArcticNet proposal, ICC (Canada), ITK, and other Inuit organizations thought long and hard whether to support it. In cooperation with NTI and ITK we now sit on the ArcticNet Board of Directors. We intend that ArcticNet will evolve into an effective research and communication program mirrored on the Northern Contaminants Program.
I want to leave you with an important messagethe Arctic is now acknowledged as a barometer of the globes environmental healththe canary in the global coal mine. In February 2003, the United Nations Environment Program Governing Council passed a resolution, which effectively recognized this fact. This recognition sets the scene for a new era of national and international research in the Arctic. Of course the 2007 International Polar Year will also concentrate the attention of researchers in the circumpolar region. In short, the scene is set and the time is right for new and effective partnerships between Inuit and the research community.
This SILAR is dedicated to Vitaly Kimstach a trusted Arctic researcher who was lost in Thailand to the Tsunami. Vitaly will be sadly missed but his legacy and excellence in Arctic research will live on.
