Inuit vulnerability and adaptive capacity to climate change in Ulukhaktok, Northwest Territories, Canada

Abstract

Climate change is already being experienced in the Arctic with implications for ecosystems and the communities that depend on them. This paper argues that an assessment of community vulnerability to climate change requires knowledge of past experience with climate conditions, responses to climatic variations, future climate change projections, and non-climate factors that influence people's susceptibility and adaptive capacity. The paper documents and describes exposure sensitivities to climate change experienced in the community of Ulukhaktok, Northwest Territories and the adaptive strategies employed. It is based on collaborative research involving semistructured interviews, secondary sources of information, and participant observations. In the context of subsistence hunting, changes in temperature, seasonal patterns (for example timing and nature of the spring melt), sea ice and wind dynamics, and weather variability have affected the health and availability of some species of wildlife important for subsistence and have exacerbated risks associated with hunting and travel. Inuit in Ulukhaktok are coping with these changes by taking extra precautions when travelling, shifting modes of transportation, travel routes and hunting areas to deal with changing trail conditions, switching species harvested, and supplementing their diet with store bought foods. Limited access to capital resources, changing levels of traditional knowledge and land skills, and substance abuse were identified as key constraints to adaptation. The research demonstrates the need to consider the perspectives and experiences of local people for climate change research to have practical relevance to Arctic communities such as for the development and promotion of adaptive strategies.

Well-being and environmental change in the arctic: a synthesis of selected research from Canada’s International Polar Year program

“…The growing body of work on subsistence harvesting and land use that amassed around the theme of climate change also suggests it is becoming more difficult Russia (1970Russia ( -2005. Adapted from Russell (2012) for harvesters to engage in country/traditional food harvesting (Ford 2009;Ford and Furgal 2009;Pearce et al 2010;Wesche and Armitage 2010). Case studies of marine ecosystems suggest the risks of sea ice melt as well as increased variability in weather and marine mammal distribution have had a major influence on subsistence harvesting as discussed by Barber in this issue (Riedlinger and Berkes 2000).…”

Climate change, community capitals, and food security: Building a more sustainable food system in a northern Canadian boreal community

“…Permafrost thaw, increases in food web contamination, changing migratory patterns of animals, increases in intensity and frequency of wildfire, and changes in hydrology all impact access and availability of traditional foods (Andrachuk & Smit, 2012;Chen et al, 2013;Ford et al, 2008;Ford, Pearce, Duerden, Furgal, & Smit, 2010;Ford, Smit, & Wandel, 2006;Guyot, Dickson, Paci, Furgal, & Chan, 2006;IPCC, 2014;Nickels, Furgal, Buell, & Moquin, 2006;Pearce, Smit, Duerden, Ford, Goose, & Kataoyak, 2009b;Pearce, Ford, Willox, & Smit, 2015;Wakegijig, Osborne, Statham, & Issaluk, 2013), with many of these issues projected to intensify in the future (Price et al 2013, IPCC 2014. But the impacts of climate change go further than disruptions to the ecosystem goods and services, threatening other services and infrastructure communities depend on (Prowse, Furgal, Chouinard, Melling, Milburn, & Smith, 2009).…”

Agricultural Sustainability

“…A purposive sampling strategy was used to recruit respondents from a cross section of farm sizes, local cropping systems (e.g., row crops, fruit and nut orchards, livestock) and market orientations (e.g., commodity, direct market, certified organic) (Kemper et al 2003;Pearce et al 2010). Interviewers followed a set of open-ended questions to minimize prompting and interviewer bias, but allow respondents to share personal experiences from their career in agriculture and their perspectives on various economic, regulatory and climate-related issues.…”