Yellowknifers will perform a vehicle-related tribute concert in April to continue raising money for the city's street outreach program.

N.W.T. MLAs will be back in the legislative assembly on Tuesday to begin their first full legislative session since last fall's election.

The City of Yellowknife and Northern Roots Consulting are launching the second year of the Transform Your Yard to a Food Garden Mentorship Program.

The Government of Yukon has increased the honoraria for Emergency Medical Services community responders. Previously, the on-call pay was set at $3.71 per hour. Now the rate has increased to $7.70 per hour.

A police officer who responded to a domestic assault call four years ago in Kinngait said he feared for his partner’s life when they arrived to find a man brandishing a knife at them.

RCMP Const. Simon Coutu-De Goede testified Monday at a coroner’s inquest into the fatal shooting of Attachie Ashoona on Feb. 26, 2020.

Ashoona, 38, was shot by Cpl. Jaime Methven at the home of Ashoona’s father and died at the scene soon after. The Ottawa Police Service later investigated the incident and cleared the officer of any wrongdoing.

Monday was the first day for the inquest at Kinngait’s community hall. It will explore the circumstances surrounding Ashoona’s death and consider recommendations to prevent deaths under similar circumstances in the future.

Coroner’s counsel Sheldon Toner played for the six-member jury recordings of two calls made to RCMP dispatch shortly before 5 p.m. on the afternoon of Feb. 26, 2020, reporting that a man was assaulting and dragging a woman by her hair.

Coutu-De Goede was one of the officers who responded to the reported domestic disturbance, alongside Methven.

Coutu-De Goede testified that, after arriving at the house, they observed a man at the top of the stairs with blood running from his nose. The man was later confirmed to be Ashoona’s father, Goo Kingwatsiak.

He did not want the officers to enter the residence, Coutu-De Goede said.

“As we were about to make entry, that’s when I heard a male from inside the house shout aggressively,” the officer said.

The male shouted that he was grabbing a knife, and Coutu-De Goede said he could hear what sounded like a person sorting through utensils in a drawer.

“That’s when I drew my service pistol out,” he said.

Coutu-De Goede said he and Methven started to make their way through the corridor leading into the house and encountered Ashoona brandishing a kitchen knife with a black handle.

The officer said Ashoona was pointing the knife toward them as he approached them.

“That’s when I pointed my service pistol at him, because I feared for my safety and my life at that time,” Coutu-De Goede said.

“That’s when I told him to back away and drop the knife, to which Mr. Ashoona didn’t comply with my comments.”

He said that at least two times, he heard Ashoona shout “shoot me” as Ashoona approached Methven with the knife.

“He was saying that very aggressive, loud yelling, determined in a way that it felt like there was no other option for him,” Coutu-De Goede said.

He said he began backing away, out of the entryway to the residence and down the stairs.

At some point, he became separated from Methven who was still inside the residence.

Coutu-De Goede said Ashoona suddenly “pivoted” back inside the residence and he lost sight of him.

“I couldn’t see what was going on, but I feared for the life of my partner,” he said.

Coutu-De Goede heard two gunshots, and went inside to find his partner standing in the corner of the residence with her pistol drawn.

Ashoona was lying on his back on the floor and “still had a cigarette in his mouth and a knife in his right hand,” Coutu-De Goede said.

“He wasn’t saying anything. [He] definitely had difficulty breathing, was gasping for air. I could see that life was starting to leave Mr. Ashoona’s body,” Coutu-De Goede said.

Other officers arrived and performed CPR, but Ashoona died at the scene.

Ashoona’s mother, Inuquq Ashoona, also testified Monday. She said she had seen her son earlier on the day in question and he had been drinking vodka with his girlfriend.

Later that day, someone ran into her house to tell her that her son had been shot by police.

Inuquq Ashoona said her son had never talked about wanting to hurt himself, but that as a teenager he had once said, “one day I’m going to be killed by the cops.”

The inquest is scheduled to continue through the week with testimony from eyewitnesses, RCMP officers and the woman whom Ashoona was reportedly assaulting. It’s expected to conclude Friday with the jury’s recommendations.

With Nunavut chief coroner Khen Sagadraca presiding, Toner is leading the inquest while Donna Keats is counsel for the RCMP.

An inquest is mandatory when a person has died while detained or in custody, but it does not have the power to recommend charges or to decide who is at fault.

Service Canada has formed a dedicated task team to help Nunavut's Arctic Winter Games athletes with their passport applications ahead of the event in Alaska in March.

Roslyn Woodcock of Whitehorse has a shed in her yard that is filled with jigsaw puzzles, and community members are free to borrow them.

One athlete walked away from the inaugural Southern Inuit Games in Ottawa last weekend with two gold medals.

Timothy Erkloo high-kicked his way to victory with a seven-foot jump and managed to travel 159 feet, 10 inches in the airplane event.

Caelin Holmes, 23, leaps into the air during his attempt at the one-foot high kick at the Southern Ontario Inuit Games in Ottawa Feb. 3. (Photo by Jorge Antunes)

His performance in the two competitions raised enthusiastic cheers from the small crowd in attendance at TD Arena.

Erkloo is originally from Pond Inlet and has called Ottawa home for the past eight years.

The Feb. 3 Games was the first event of its kind to be hosted by Tungasuvvingat Inuit, which provides services for urban Inuit living in southern Canada.

A small group of competitors tried their luck at the one-foot high kick, arm pull, airplane and kneel jump. Organizers handed out medals to the top three competitors in each event.

What started as a relatively small crowd filled out to about 100 people by the time the most popular event, the one-foot high kick, was underway.

One of those audience members was Jessica Ruano, who was there with her daughter, Joy, whom she adopted from an Inuit family.

Ruano said she enjoyed the show, adding events like these offer important opportunities to teach her young daughter about her roots.

“It’s essential,” she said, adding Joy is also learning Inuktitut.

Paige Kreps, TI’s Toronto regional manager, organized the event.

Some competitors were hesitant to appear on stage at such a large venue, Kreps said, so TI wants to run a few smaller programs as a gateway to recruiting competitors for the next Games.

“What we would really like to do between now and the next time is to do more workshops, [and] events in the community,” she said.

Organizers have decided to end this year's sled dog race in Pelly Crossing, 150 miles short of the route's final destination.

Families are seeking answers about how their children will access gender-affirming care if the province they travel to for appointments stops providing certain health services to trans kids.

Stephanie Bernard was shocked to hear Prime Minister Justin Trudeau kicked off Black History Month last week with a personal shoutout to her.

“From groundbreaking trailblazers in halls of fame and history books to unsung heroes in communities across the country, Black excellence is all around us,” Trudeau said in a statement Feb. 1.

He then named Bernard and highlighted her work as a community leader in Iqaluit and founder of the Nunavut Black History Society.

Bernard said she was inspired to co-found the society close to a decade ago because there was no celebration for Black History Month when she first came to the territory.

“We wanted to see Black History Month celebrated and celebrate everything that is wonderful about people of African descent,” she said.

“We’ve seen it strengthen each year and it’s just been a really wonderful experience the way the community has come together around Black History Month.”

The Nunavut Black History Society will kick off its celebration Feb. 14 with a film festival featuring the musical Bob Marley: One Love at the Astro Theatre. The Black History Film Festival will feature a movie each week through mid-March.

Bernard said the organization will update its Facebook page with more details on workshops, films and other events. People can keep an eye on the page for a calendar.

Aaron Hernandez — better known to his many fans as hip-hop artist Godson — recently revealed that he's been diagnosed with lymphoma and has begun chemotherapy. 'Keeping things in is not going to help me in this fight,' he said.

Kyra Kilabuk says she never expected to become a sought-after tattoo artist when she started practising on synthetic skin a decade ago.

“I ordered a beginner kit and started it at home for myself just to practise for fun, with no intention of ever coming this far or imagining that it would become something like this,” the Iqaluit-based visual artist said in a phone interview.

“Once I became more comfortable and started tattooing myself and some close friends and family, I really noticed there’s a huge demand for it.”

Now, traditional Inuit tattoos, or kakiniit, as they’re known in Inuktitut, are one of Kilabuk’s specialties.

She is scheduled to take her talents to Winnipeg later this month for a weeklong tattooing event run by the Manitoba Inuit Association. From Feb. 11 to 17, she will provide traditional tattoos for Inuit in the city at no charge.

All available spots were booked up within 30 minutes of the announcement, she said, and the waitlist is now 100 names long.

Kilabuk thinks there’s such high demand because while cities like Winnipeg have numerous tattoo shops, it can be challenging for Inuit living in urban centres to find an Inuk tattooist who understands the cultural significance of the tattoos.

“The connection between what you’re getting and what it means to you is so much more authentic if you have somebody who understands it themselves,” Kilabuk said.

Most of Kilabuk’s clients are women, especially those seeking traditional tattoos, and the age range varies from teenagers to elders.

The kakiniit that Kilabuk’s clients get often weave in personal connections to family and community.

However, some placements and styles are particularly popular: facial tattoos, called tunniit, often positioned on the forehead or chin; delicate lines and dots under the eyebrows; tattoos across the back and chest to represent the amauti; and wrist, hand and finger tattoos.

Another style that is popular is birthing tattoos, generally tattooed on the upper thighs.

“Normally, this is done when a woman is going to give birth or they want to have a child,” Kilabuk said.

“We decorate their thighs beautifully and do symbols in the way that they want so that when their baby is born, the first thing that they’ll see is this art on their mother’s thighs.”

Kilabuk is a mom herself, but says she’s thinking of adding that special tattoo to her own collection to symbolize being a mother.

She said these days, she’s seeing more and more Inuit with traditional tattoos, especially younger generations who are keen to reconnect with this part of their culture.

“It really starts with understanding the history and background of Indigenous Peoples in Canada, because I feel like there’s so much taken away from us for generations,” Kilabuk said.

“I know there are some people who feel like it shouldn’t be done, or [they feel] they might have some backlash against them for whatever reasons, and that’s OK.”

But it’s beautiful and important to keep the practice alive because Inuit share their stories through art, she said. And, Kilabuk added, having tattoos in highly visit spots like the face and hands is a “big power statement.”

“Having traditional tattoos like this available for the public to see, right on our face, right on our hands, where they are very visible is a very big power statement.”

“It really comes down to revitalizing our culture and being proud of who we are,” Kilabuk said.

Aaron "Godson" Hernandez says he is thankful for the support of his family and community as he fights cancer.

When Steve Boutet, president of Quebec City-based North Shore Pro Wrestling, received an invitation from Iqaluit’s Franco-Centre to host an event there, he thought it was a prank at first.

The invitation turned into a one-of-a-kind, hard-hitting event for Iqaluit, drawing a rowdy crowd of approximately 200 to the Aqsarniit hotel Saturday night.

“People are very welcoming [to] us, they treat us like we’re kings, so that’s amazing,” Boutet said in an interview.

Popularized by organizations like World Wrestling Entertainment and All Elite Wrestling, professional wrestling is generally considered a form of athletic theatre featuring stunts and storylines.

That could be seen Saturday as the crowd cheered on the good guys, heckled and booed the bad guys, and went crazy for the ring jumps, headlocks and hard-hitting body slams.

Cedrik O’Connor, one of the 11 wrestlers who came up for the event, said that despite all the pain that’s involved, it’s his favourite thing in life and he thinks about it every day.

At his day job, O’Connor works as a video game artist in Quebec City but he took some time off to travel north for the Iqaluit event.

“I want to come back and be part of the trip again because it’s really cool,” he said.

It’s clear Iqaluit has an appetite for pro wrestling. The room was full of energy from start to finish. At one point, the crowd chanted, “This is awesome!”

Boutet said he wants to put on another show in Iqaluit. This was North Shore Pro Wrestling’s first event outside of Quebec.

While there were a lot of logistics to organize — including shipping a wrestling ring north via cargo flight — he said the love his team felt from the people of Iqaluit was special.

“We’re really happy to be here,” Boutet said. “We’d love to come back.”

Qulliq Energy Corp. restored power to Iqaluit just before 12:30 p.m. following an electricity outage caused by “problems with two of the generators” at its generating station.

A community-wide outage hit the city a little after 11:30 a.m.

By 11:45, QEC reported its crews were at the plant and investigating. It posted two more updates over the following 45 minutes until power was restored.

There was no fire at the generator, the company said in a social media post, addressing the smoke Iqalummiut saw coming from the power station on Sunday morning.

“The black smoke was caused by the impacted generators,” the company’s first update said, shortly after noon.

Businesses reported temporary closures on Sunday morning because of the power outage. But by 12:30, they were beginning to announce that business was back to normal.

The Town of Fort Smith is fundraising for the families of the six people who died in a Northwestern Air plane crash less than two weeks ago, and for the crash's only survivor.

The documentary will screen at the Łı́ı́dlı̨ı̨ Kų́ę́ film festival. It focuses on the healing journeys of children of residential school survivors.

Yellowknife's Bristol Pit — a former gravel pit and now snowboard hill — is the subject of a short film showcasing the capital's scrappy, community-based snowboarding culture. 

A new cookbook, by youth and for youth, includes recipes cooked through a community kitchen program.

A young Cree man from Wemindji, Que., may be one of the youngest firearms-safety instructors to teach in Eeyou Istchee — and Michael Mark hopes the experience will help him reach his goal of becoming a police officer. 

The Yukon Quest sled dog race — which kicks off on Saturday in Whitehorse —  isn't quite the race it used to be, and some younger mushers say they're just fine with that.

A new survey is asking Northerners what's next for Hay River's 260 acres of vacant farmland that was once the site of the Northern Farm Training Institute.

Postpartum Support Yukon has released the results a survey that reveal one-third of Yukon women were unaware of potential perinatal negative impacts on mental health.

Traditional Moroccan dishes and a chance to share cultural knowledge will be on the menu Saturday in Iqaluit at a Moroccan Cultural Diversity Day celebration.

The event runs from 5 to 9 p.m. in the gymnasium at l’École des Trois-soleils. It’s hosted by Iqaluit-based francophone economic development organization Carrefour Nunavut as part of its goal of building lasting relationships between newcomers and community members .

Carrefour works to strengthen the community by hosting cultural diversity days, and selects a different country for each event.

On Saturday night, the group “will have a presentation and some food from Morocco,” said Carrefour executive director Francis Essbou.

“The event is open to anybody in Iqaliut, the goal of these events is to make a network for people.”

The Inuvik RCMP have charged a man with impaired driving causing death, in connection with a fatal collision two and a half years ago.

The WSCC has laid four charges against Diavik diamond mine following an incident that seriously injured a worker in January 2023.

The ring is set up and ready for action Saturday night at an event rarely seen in Iqaluit: professional wrestling.

Doors open at 8 p.m. at the Aqsarniit hotel for what organizers say will be a “memorable” night of pro wrestling, and the show begins at 9 p.m. The event is a collaboration between the Franco-Centre and North Shore Pro Wrestling.

The card will feature 14 wrestlers and a crowd of more than 200 is expected, the Franco-Centre said in a news release.

Popularized by organizations such as World Wrestling Entertainment and All Elite Wrestling, the sport is generally considered to be a form of athletic theatre featuring stunts and storylines.

“Get ready for an adrenaline-filled event that will leave you on the edge of your seat,” the Franco-Centre said in a Facebook post, promising “jaw-dropping moves, fierce rivalries, and electrifying energy.”

The event will be in English and French. Tickets can be purchased at a link on the Franco-Centre’s Facebook page.

Braeburn Lodge owner Steven Watson and manager Leigh Knox filed a statement of claim to the Yukon Supreme Court Monday, seeking an order to have a white husky named Taya returned to them. 

Walk-in clinics for people to acquire or renew firearms licences are scheduled to be held in Iqaluit every day next week.

Sessions will be held from Feb. 5 to 9 on the fourth floor of building 1106, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. each day.

The clinics are running as part of the Qukiutiliritsiarniq Nunavummi Firearm Safety Nunavut campaign, according to a news release from the Department of Justice.

Visitors can stop in any time to gain or renew their licences for non-restricted firearms and learn about gun safety. Trigger locks, gun cleaning kits and first aid kits, as well as snacks and door prizes, will be offered.

The department’s community justice division will also continue to offer firearms safety courses, licence renewal clinics and events to promote firearms safety across Nunavut, the release said.

Fort Smith’s midwifery program officially resumes on February 5 after being shut down for over a year due to lack of staff.

Anchorage is seeing its lowest temperatures in 15 years and gas storage facilities are under strain. One-thousand businesses were told to evacuate their buildings until the snow had been cleared from their roofs.

Could biomass heat a community? Wekweètı̀'s senior administrative officer says it's something he'd like to see happen.

A public housing building was spewing liquid and smelled of diesel. While it was a water leak that has been fixed, resident Sandy Young worries it's unsafe.

A man is facing a charge of impaired driving causing death in connection with a fatal vehicle collision outside Inuvik in 2021.

The Yukon government is aiming to have a new managed alcohol program up and running in Whitehorse by this spring.

Premier P.J. Akeeagok said a “united voice is a power tool” as he took his turn leading the Northern Premiers’ Forum, a group made up of the heads of Canada’s three territorial governments.

“This forum is an excellent opportunity to work together to ensure that our unique and shared northern needs can be brought forward effectively,” Akeeagok was quoted as saying in a news release his office issued Thursday.

The Northern Premiers’ Forum is where the premiers of Nunavut, Northwest Territories and Yukon meet annually to discuss their common interests as they engage with the federal government and other provinces.

The forum was created in 2003 — just four years after the creation of Nunavut — under the Northern Cooperation Accord.

Premiers of the three territories take turns as the forum’s chairperson.

N.W.T. served as the organization’s chair in 2023, with former premier Caroline Cochrane starting the year heading up the organization. But in December, its leadership passed to new N.W.T. Premier R.J. Simpson, who was sworn in as the territory’s premier in December, not quite two months ago.

Yukon Premier Ranj Pillai, who became his territory’s government leader a little more than a year ago, is the third member of the group.

The premiers’ priorities include Arctic security and sovereignty, infrastructure and housing, the news release said.

The Northern Premiers’ Forum’s 2023 meeting was in Inuvik, N.W.T. in May. No meeting date or location has been announced yet for 2024.

Team Nunavut officials say between 50 to 70 young athletes are at risk of missing the upcoming Arctic Winter Games in Alaska because of difficulties securing a passport.

The ultra race that bills itself as the world's coldest and toughest is back. This year, organizers are urging competitors and spectators to bring studs and spikes.

Pita Aatami will serve another term as president of Makivvik Corp., after a decisive win in Thursday’s election.

Makivvik reported preliminary results from all 16 polling stations Thursday night, showing Aatami had been re-elected to a second consecutive three-year term.

He defeated challengers Suzy Kauki and Harry Tulugak in a three-way race for the top job at the organization that serves Inuit in Nunavik.

Aatami received 1,862 votes compared to Tulugak’s 393 and Kauki’s 347. There were 10 spoiled ballots, according to results posted to Makivvik’s website after 7:30 p.m.

Aatami previously held the position as Makivvik president from 1998 to 2012, and now another term will take him to 2027, continuing his tenure that began in 2021.

During his campaign, he focused on self-determination, economic development, youth protection and clean energy.

Some of his promises were to renew the Sanarrutik Agreement, a deal signed in 2022 with the government of Quebec to improve economic development in Nunavik.

Aatami said during the campaign he also plans to build a new head office and satellite office on the Hudson coast, and improve teamwork between Makivvik and Nunavik regional organizations.

The family of Michael Bennett said they're still waiting to hear what exactly happened on the morning of his death. Last March, Bennett and Ben Symington were fatally shot in Mayo.

A panel of young adults spoke of how intergenerational trauma from residential schools continues to impact their lives and communities, on the final day of the National Gathering on Unmarked Burials in Iqaluit.

Four young people, two of them Nunavummiut, told their stories and also shared messages of hope on Thursday afternoon.

The panel was one of the final events at the three-day gathering organized by the office of Kimberly Murray, the federally appointed special interlocutor for missing children and unmarked graves and burial sites.

While the focus was on northern voices, the gathering was attended by representatives from Inuit, First Nations and Métis communities from across Canada.

Pakak Picco of Iqaluit, one of the youth panelists, emotionally described dealing with the loss of friends to suicide and substance use.

A common factor among all those friends, he said, was intergenerational trauma caused by residential schools and day schools.

“In the last 12 months, I’ve lost three close friends and relatives, people I enjoy hunting on the land with,” Picco said.

“Whenever I get sad about it, I feel like — the federal government or the churches, I feel like they won sometimes because here we are in 2024, 2023” and “we’re still losing kids.”

Despite the loss, Picco said he sees a lot of hope.

He praised the Embrace Life Council for its healing initiatives and described the Aqqusariaq Nunavut Recovery Centre, which is currently under construction in Iqaluit, as something that will benefit people in the future.

He said he sees hope in gatherings like the one this week in Iqaluit with its audience of elders and survivors.

“We have to keep going for the youth,” Picco said, adding “it helps my heart when I see gatherings like this because it’s a shared experience.

“It’s not just our community or me feeling like this; in every community, there’s people suffering the way we are here and it all traces back to one thing.”

Jody Tulurialik of Taloyoak shared her own similar experience dealing with loss.

She referred to the previous day’s survivors’ panel during which Navalik Tologanak of Cambridge Bay highlighted barriers to receiving healing services from elders.

“There are many instances where us Kitikmiut do not have access to resources that Kivallimiut and Qikiqtaalumiut have access to,” Tulurialik said.

“I’d like to see more collaborative projects, spaces and organizations between all the regions in Nunavut.”

Megan Metz, from Haisla Nation, B.C., offered a message of resiliency.

“We cannot forget all that we have held on to in spite of these very intentional efforts to strip us of who we are,” she said.

“One day, all of us will be the ancestors that the upcoming generations will speak of so we should, in turn, honour ourselves, remember who we are and respect ourselves and our stories.”

The conference portion of the gathering ended Thursday evening with closing remarks from Murray, who echoed the comments of the four youth panelists.

“You are making us proud and you are making your ancestors proud,” she said.

Nearing the end of her two-year appointment as special interlocutor, Murray said her big task in the coming months is to compile what’s been discussed at all national gatherings held across Canada and file a report to the federal government establishing a legal framework on missing Indigenous children and unmarked graves.

Those findings will be published during a gathering in Ottawa in June.

“In my view, Canada is committing a crime if it does not help communities find all the disappeared children,” Murray said.

“Thank you for sharing your knowledge and thank you for leading the country as we continue along this path to recover the children.”

One month after the territory’s new $19-an-hour minimum wage took effect, the Government of Nunavut reminded employers that paying less than that violates the territory’s Labour Standards Act.

Last November, the GN announced that as of Jan. 1, 2024, the territory’s minimum hourly wage would rise to $19 from $16. That 18 per cent increase made Nunavut’s minimum wage the highest in Canada.

In a public service announcement Thursday, the GN reminded employers that “any payment below the minimum rate is not in compliance with the Labour Standards Act.”

It said any employees who feel they’re being paid less than the minimum hourly rate should speak to their employer, and can also consult the Nunavut Labour Standards Compliance Office.

That office can be reached by phone at 1-877-806-8402 or by email at [email protected].

Days before the Yukon Quest sled dog race kicks off in Whitehorse, organizers are scrambling to deal with a curveball from Mother Nature — an unusual spell of above-zero temperatures earlier this week has plastered the first section of the trail with ice.

Many Enterprise residents have been displaced from the community for months. We looked at how that will impact voting in the hamlet's upcoming election.