“Steering Our Own Ship?” An Assessment of Self-Determination and Self-Governance for Community Development in Nunavut

Lost in Translation? Exploring Outcomes of Nunavut’s Resource Development Training and Employment Policies for Inuit of Northern Baffin Island

“…Like most communities, Mitt imatilik's formal economy is service-based, with public administration, retail trade, educational services, construction, health care, and social services sectors dominating labour force participation (Statistics Canada, 2013, cited from Ritsema et al, 2015). Subsistence hunting, fi shing, and gathering, as well as the practice of cultural arts, are also important parts of the overall economy (Ritsema et al, 2015). Mitt imatilik has an elementary and junior high/high school, as well as a community learning centre that off ers programs and courses for adults.…”

“…Mitt imatilik has an elementary and junior high/high school, as well as a community learning centre that off ers programs and courses for adults. Like many communities in Nunavut, Mitt imatilik struggles with poverty as noted in a variety of social indicators, including low educational att ainment, high unemployment, and poor health (Brubacher, 2015a;Ritsema et al, 2015).…”

“…QIA manages Inuit-owned lands in the Qikiqtaaluk (Baffi n) region on behalf of approximately 14,000 benefi ciaries who live in thirteen communities from Qutt iktuq in the High Arctic down to Sanikiluaq located in Hudson Bay. 9 As Ritsema et al (2015) note with respect to Nunavut's multilayered system of governance, the "convoluted system of competing interests, perspectives, and goals" has resulted in confusion amongst local communities, which lose track of who is responsible for what service or policy impacting their lives. This confusion is extended to provision for vocational education and training, including programs and institutions associated with the MRIIBA as identifi ed in Article 8.1.6.…”

“…With respect to the formation and implementation of the MRIIBA, Ritsema et al (2015) also note that community members in Mitmatt ilik distrust their RIA owing to a lack of transparency and communication relating to royalties from the project (p. 169). Similar tensions existing between land claims organizations and community members have been noted in other regions where IBAs have been brokered (Caine & Krogman, 2010;Cameron & Levitan, 2014;Kulchyski & Bernauer, 2014)-one possible indication of the emergence of a comprador element occurring within the region.…”

“…The project is a multibillion dollar, open-pit, high-grade iron ore mine, with a life expectancy of twenty-one years and opportunities for expansion (Dalseg & Abele, 2015). Over this time frame, the project is expected to generate thousands of jobs while in operation, triple the growth rate of the territory's annual gross domestic product, and provide nearly $5 billion in tax revenue and royalties (Ritsema et al, 2015).…”