Six projects from the NWT have been named as finalists for this year’s Arctic Inspiration Prize.
As part of the 10th anniversary of the service award, 10 nominees have been listed across three categories. Vying for the top prize of $1 million are two major projects, both outside the NWT: the Collective Action for Nature-based Active Play and Youth Employment or CANAPY project in the Yukon, which aims to create a three year pilot project to expand the recreational sector and increase accessibility to sport and outdoor recreation for children; and the Ilagiitigut anngiangijaqatigiinnirq ilurqusivuttigut in Nunavik: This aims to establish a 32-bed addictions treatment facility and address addiction causes in Northern Quebec.
“I’m thrilled to see so many innovative and inspiring projects in this the 10th anniversary of the AIP,” said AIP Charitable Trust Laureates representative Glen Brocklebank. “Regardless of who wins, they should all be very proud of this accomplishment.”
In the running for up to four $500,000 Arctic Inspiration Prizes are six projects, four of which are operating in the NWT. They are a Fish Camp near Happy’s Landing run by Diane Koe to teach traditional fishing and drying practices to youth, Elders and anyone else who would wish to learn. The camp would also provide dry fish for households unable to make their own. A second project in the Beaufort Delta is the Hope House project, spearhead by Peggy Day. The project aims to establish a facility for homeless people to access mental health services, addictions counselling and employment and housing opportunities. A third Delta project is the Tuktoyaktuk Community Climate Resiliency Project: Kendyce Cockney is hoping to help her community prepare for the difficult decisions being forced upon it by climate change by helping educate residents about climate driven change to improve resilience and stimulate capacity in the community, which may be forced to move if coastline erosion can’t be mitigated.
A fourth project seeks to support Well Being across the NWT: Organized by Rachel Cluderay, the plan is to develop a training program for on the land educators to be able to mitigate and respond to mental health challenges in remote environments. Two further projects in the running are outside the NWT — a Nunavut project to develop a mental health resource app to connect people directly with services available in the territory and an Indigenous Community Safety Partnership program, which aims to empower Yukon First Nations to address intergenerational trauma.
Two NWT-oriented projects are in the running for the up-to-nine final $100,000 prizes — a project to help educate people in Treaty rights using on the land programming is being pitched by Jacey Firth-Hagen and Angela Koe-Blake is hoping to establish a training program for Indigenous youth river guides. The program would seek to empower youth in both the NWT and Yukon by teaching valuable boating and river survival skills and give them the groundwork to begin careers as wilderness guides.
These 10 recommendations will now go before the National Selection Committee, who will announce the winners of the prizes next year in March in a live nationwide broadcast.
Owned and governed by the AIP-Charitable Trust, the Arctic Inspiration Prize is the largest annual award in Canada. It seeks to enable community projects in the fields of education, sustainable housing, health, performing arts, traditional knowledge, language, and science.