Sean Nipisar said his daughter kept asking when they could go hunting as soon as they received their tags to hunt a polar bear.

Inuit families in Ottawa gathered on Saturday for a Christmas feast, stories and music.

The annual event, held at the Pauline-Charron Centre in Ottawa’s Vanier neighbourhood, is hosted by Illipalialisaaqtilugu EarlyON Child and Family Centre.

There was a story time, crafts and games, giveaways and a musical show with an Inuit games demonstration by 10 performers from Nunavut Sivuniksavut.

Illipalialisaaqtilugu EarlyON Centre, a program offered under Tungasuvvingat Inuit’s umbrella, serves Inuit families with children from newborns to age six, offering programs and support services to enhance the child and the parent-and-caregiver bond. The centre promotes cultural knowledge and Inuit pride and identity through programs designed to support healthy pregnancies, early literacy skills and early childhood development.

The centre provides advocacy for families involved with the Children’s Aid Society of Ontario, said Norma Ventura, EarlyOn acting manager.

“We ensure our families’ voices are heard through a cultural lens,” she said. “We always welcome families with children older than six as well.”

Approximately 85 people attended the afternoon feast.

Baker Lake councillors haven’t decided yet whether to appoint a new mayor from the current council or hold a byelection to replace former mayor Kevin Iksiktaaryuk, who resigned Dec. 10.

The decision will be made at the council’s first meeting in January, said Sheldon Dorey, Baker Lake’s senior administrative officer.

In the interim, deputy Mayor Trevor Attungala is leading council.

Iksiktaaryuk gave notice on Tuesday that he had resigned from the mayoral position, citing “ongoing responsibilities, high expectations, and stress” as reasons for stepping down.

He was in his first term as mayor and previously served as a hamlet councillor.

Under Nunavut’s election law, council has two options when a mayor resigns. It can either appoint one of its own members to the mayoral seat, or it can schedule a byelection.

After opening just over a year ago with an office but no permanent veterinarian, Kuujjuaq’s veterinary clinic is finding its footing with a regular veterinarian presence, and housing.

“It is the first of its kind, so we had all the growing pain,” Liam Callaghan said.

Callaghan has been spearheading the project at Kuujjuaq’s Northern Village for more than a decade to provide consistent veterinary care in the community.

Liam Callaghan, who has been working to establish a veterinary clinic in Kuujjuaq for 12 years, finally sees the fruit of his efforts with infrastructure and regular veterinarian visits. (Photo by Cedric Gallant)

Two years ago, the permanent clinic was under construction and village councillors were actively looking for veterinarians.

The village partnered with the University of Montreal to regularly send veterinary students as interns for two weeks at a time, once a month. The initiative led to a decrease in vet prices and in the population of stray dogs in Kuujjuaq.

This project has been an example of the community coming together for a singular purpose, Callaghan said.

For instance, the building that now houses the veterinary interns and the clinic was created from donations from Nunavik Housing Bureau and Nunavik Building Inc.

The housing bureau provided a trailer, which became the clinic, and Nunavik Building Inc. pitched in with a unit to become the staff housing. Local contractors donated their own time and materials to attach the two buildings together.

Funding for the clinic also comes from all kinds of sources.

“Every organization built this place,” said Callaghan.

Laetitia Deroeux was completing her two-week internship in November at Kuujjuaq’s veterinary clinic, often having a fully booked schedule. (Photo by Cedric Gallant)

“There is no template for a place like this in the North, no examples to follow. Sometimes I am walking in circles, but as long as I am moving it is something.”

As well, many people have volunteered to work at the clinic when there are no veterinarians in town.

Laetitia Deroeux was the veterinary intern visiting Kuujjuaq in November. She said most of the time, interns are alone during their two-week trips except when there are surgeries. In those cases, there are two interns present.

Deroeux said working in Kuujjuaq is a chance to gain valuable experience as a veterinarian.

“We have a tendency to lose our independence,” she said in a French interview at the clinic.

“When we are here, in terms of learning, it is a great opportunity.”

The reception she gets for her work has also contributed to her positive experience.

“[People] are happy to have someone there to take care of their animals,” she said.

Callaghan is waiting to see how budgets align next year. The original project for him was to have vet services offered across Nunavik by having an intern permanently reside in Kuujjuaq, and another on rotation from one community to another.

The modest office space for the clinic is an upgrade from Liam Callaghan’s closet, which was once the host for veterinary services in Kuujjuaq. (Photo by Cedric Gallant)

"We're bringing it back to the NWT." Up Here – a magazine covering Canada's North – has changed hands again, months after it was sold to a Yukon-based group.

Renewable diesel might be a "game-changer" for the NWT's attempts to abandon conventional diesel. But what is it and how could it make such a difference?

The N.W.T. Department of Infrastructure told CBC by email they are expecting up to 800 truckloads of supplies will be delivered on the Mackenzie Valley winter road this year  — around twice the average volume of 300 to 400 loads. 

Canada Post workers will return to their jobs on Tuesday, ending a month-long strike, the company said after a Canada Industrial Relations Board hearing.

Yellowknife will remember the late Gail Cyr at a celebration of life to be broadcast from the Northern Arts and Cultural Centre on Sunday afternoon.

Check out some of the beautiful Yellowknife holiday displays that caught our eye. If you have some fantastic NWT lights to share, send us a photo!

A Yellowknife market garden, bakery and farm store has to keep adapting to survive. The latest move? Get your baked goods (and more) via the city's bookstore.

Search warrant documents offer some insight into the brazen ways police say drug dealers are plying their trade in one small N.W.T. community.

With just 11 days until Christmas Day, Santa and Mrs. Claus flew south from the North Pole to participate in Iqaluit’s annual Santa Claus parade.

Along the parade route Saturday afternoon, residents were bundled up while they waited to greet the big man in red, who was joined in the parade by members of Iqaluit’s fire department and organizations including Canadian North, the Nunavut Employees Union and Ampere (formerly Pinnguaq).

The parade started at the Arctic Winter Games arena and ended in the Nakasuk School parking lot, where Santa descended from his qamutiik and handed out candy canes.

Yukon RCMP Chief Supt. Scott Sheppard says he worries 'we're almost creating a bit of an industry around this whole idea of harm-reduction' - and he questions whether it's the right approach.

The Cree Nation of Mistissini and the government of Quebec signed an agreement to create the first national park in Eeyou Istchee.

The Yukon government, Kluane First Nation and White River First Nation have decided to forgo the allowable harvest of the Chisana caribou herd to prioritize conservation.

Two years after the Northwest Territories government established a plan to hire and retain more Indigenous staff, Indigenous representation in the territorial public service has hit a record low.

Kenneth Eberle, Nathan Eberle and Justin Nagel pleaded guilty to one count each under the Yukon’s Wildlife Act of hunting without a permit in Whitehorse territorial court last week. 

Gavin McKenna, the 16-year-old hockey star from Whitehorse, was officially named on Friday to Team Canada's final 25-player roster for the World Junior Hockey Championships in Ottawa.

Igloolik residents are being warned that whooping cough has been identified in their community.

Whooping cough, or pertussis, is a throat and lung disease that is very easily transmitted from person to person, the Department of Health said in an advisory issued Friday.

The department urged Igloolik residents to stay home if possible and avoid public gatherings for now.

Parents of babies and young children should be especially cautious, it said. Department staff are working to trace anyone who might have had contact with an infected person, in order to stem the spread.

In the advisory, it asked anyone experiencing respiratory symptoms to wear a mask while in public. People experiencing a cough lasting more than three weeks should contact their local health centre.

Symptoms of whooping cough include:

• a cough that lasts longer than a week and is followed by an unusual sound, like a “whoop”;
• trouble breathing;
• vomiting after coughing.
• coughing that is worse at night;
• a high fever (39°C and above) that lasts more than three days.

A whooping cough vaccine is available, the department said. People should check that their vaccination is up to date.

Two Iqaluit hockey teams are competing in Ottawa this weekend at the 19th annual Holiday House League Tournament, hosted by the city’s West End Hockey League.

The action fired up Friday morning with a tight-checking game between the Iqaluit Blizzard and the Pierrefonds Marquis team from Pierrefonds, Que., in the under-15 B division. Iqaluit lost the hard-fought contest 4-1.

Inuki Wilman, left, and goalie Marc André Goupil, were part of a successful 2-0 finish for Iqaluit’s Team Piqsiq against the Pierrefonds Barons of Quebec on Friday. André was named star of the game for the shutout. (Photo by Daron Letts)

“We lost, but we had lots of fun,” said Carter Lewis, a defenceman for the Iqaluit squad. “We will continue to strive to win, and if we don’t, we’re having fun.”

Team Piqsiq of Iqaluit won its game decisively against Quebec’s Pierrefonds Barons in the under-15 A division.

The Piqsiq offence dominated in the first period but the team didn’t manage to score until the final six minutes of the second period.

They sealed their 2-0 win with a shorthanded goal in the final minute of the third period, after the Quebec team pulled its goalie to send out an extra attacker while Iqaluit killed a penalty.

Matoo Netser and Jeremiah Bailey-Mark scored for Team Piqsiq.

Piqsiq goalie Marc André Goupil was named Iqaluit’s star of the game in a post-game ceremony.

He said he felt “good” about the win, an understatement underscored by his wide smile.

Both Iqaluit teams are guaranteed three games during the tournament, which wraps up Sunday and is being played in Stittsville, a neighbourhood in Ottawa’s west end.

Regardless of the competition on the ice, the Iqaluit teams beat their first opponents, the weather forecast, with an assist from their sponsor Canadian North.

“We’re really grateful that everyone was able to arrive on time,” said Karliin Aariak, whose son, James Aariak-Shirley, plays defence with Team Piqsiq.

Forecasts in Iqaluit early Thursday called for blizzard-like conditions for later that day and Friday. The blizzard did not materialize, but the early departure provided peace of mind for parents.

“I was grateful I was already booked a day earlier,” said Shirley Williams, whose son, Tyler Williams, is a forward with Piqsiq.

Win or lose, players on both teams are scheduled to enjoy a National Hockey League game Saturday night between home team Ottawa Senators and the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The federal government announced Friday the appointment of two new members to the Nutrition North Canada Advisory Board.

Dan Vandal, the federal minister of northern affairs, made the announcement during the final day of the Arctic Change conference in Ottawa.

McKinley Winters was appointed chair and Mavis Cli-Michaud was appointed to the board.

Winters is from Hopedale, a Nunatsiavut community on the coast of Labrador. He was a team leader with the Nunatsiavut government’s Department of Health and Social Development from 2016 to 2020.

He managed the department’s food security programs, including Nutrition North’s education initiatives and Harvesters Support Grant.

Cli-Michaud has more than 30 years’ experience in senior management within government. She has worked with Deh Cho First Nations Investment Management Board, Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board, and is a founding director with the NWT Native Women’s Association.

She is a member of the Liidlii Kue First Nation, in N.W.T.

The Nutrition North Advisory Board makes recommendations to the minister of Indigenous and northern affairs to help guide the direction of the food subsidy program.

The board’s former chair, Nellie Cournoyea, stepped down in December 2023, said Kyle Allen, communications director for Vandal.

The board notably lost a member in December 2023 when Beth Kotierk resigned in protest, over the Government of Canada’s support of Israel in its conflict with Hamas in Gaza.

Two applications were heard in court regarding Ron Barlas' frozen assets valued at approximately $5 million.

The former chair of the N.W.T.'s Health and Social Services Authority leadership council, or board, says he was shocked and dismayed to hear the territory's health minister plans to dissolve the council and replace it with an administrator. 

A federal minister said the government would "get things moving" as an industrial relations board was called in, moving the Canada Post strike nearer to an end.

A two-month tax break that knocks the GST off certain items begins on Saturday. Here's what will change and how Yellowknife businesses are responding.

Diana Lee Jimmy and Emeral Poppe, who worked for the First Nation’s language department, also make up half of Dene Ā́' Nezen, a grassroots group of Liard First Nation members calling for more transparency and accountability. They were fired after speaking to CBC News about the initiative.

Inuit are taking a larger role in scientific research and using the data preserve their way of life.

Audience members heard multiple examples of this over the week during ArcticNet’s Arctic Change conference in Ottawa.

ArcticNet is a network of researchers and scientists who focus on climate change and modernization of the Arctic.

In the past, researchers came to the Arctic with their own projects and ideas, whereas now they are tailoring their work to local needs, Premier P.J. Akeeagok, who was at the conference, said in an interview.

“There’s been a huge shift in terms of actually listening to the communities, hearing what the priorities of the communities are, and then keeping that content in the community,” he said.

One of those shifts is happening in the Marralik estuary, between Kuujjuaq and Kangiqsualujjuaq, off the coast of Nunavik.

Beluga hunting in the area has been banned by the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans since 1986, due to a lack of data.

But over the past five years, Inuit and project researchers have made 182 observations of belugas, and are hoping this new information could help reverse the beluga hunting ban.

“That’s a huge difference, and it just shows the power of community-based monitoring approaches,” said Mikhaela Neelin said, who works with the Marralik estuary beluga project, Thursday during a presentation on his team’s work.

Project leader James May, president of the Nunavik Hunting Fishing Trapping Organization, said the beluga project involves more than just science and research. It’s a way of life.

“We’re teaching the kids how to feed themselves,” he said.

Research scientist Scott Grant speaks on his work in the Arctic at the Arctic Change conference in Ottawa Thursday. Grant said the “primary goal” of his fisheries research is to maximize Inuit engagement and exchange knowledge and best practices. (Photo by Jorge Antunes)

In Nunavut, Inuit are participating in research about the sea life that calls the territory’s coastal waters home.

Scott Grant, a scientific researcher from Memorial University in Newfoundland and Labrador, has spent more than 20 years in fisheries research and training. He’s also the Qikiqtaaluk Corp. chairperson in Qikiqtani inshore fisheries science, training and education.

Grant’s work includes conducting multi-species sealife surveys in Igloolik, Sanirajak, Kinngait and Sanikiluaq.

He said he relies on a community-based approach. Inuit bring their traditional, ecological knowledge to the table and in turn get training on research methods. Through this collaboration, Grant said, researchers can learn their needs and identify ways for the communities to benefit from the research and continue it on their own.

ArcticNet Arctic Change conference ended Friday.

Some northerners are anxious for the Canada Post strike to end soon — including 14-year-old Molly Hayward who relies on the postal service for equipment she needs to manage her Type 1 diabetes.

Elaine Auger is the new chief of K’atl’odeeche First Nation, after getting 129 of the 211 votes that were cast. Her only opponent, Ken Norn, received 80 votes.

An electric vehicle expedition from Florida to the Arctic left behind charging equipment as it went. Tuktoyaktuk has two Tesla Destination Chargers as a result.

A rare and striking blue trial proof of Inuk artist Kenojuak Ashevak’s The Enchanted Owl shattered auction records on Dec. 2, selling for an unprecedented $366,000 to a Canadian collector — the highest price ever for one of her works.

“The Enchanted Owl is the iconic image that transcends the boundaries of Inuit art and is a classic piece of Canadian art,” said Mark London, one of the founders of First Arts, which promotes and markets Canadian Indigenous art.

The proof was consigned to First Arts by American collectors John and Joyce Price, whose extensive holdings of Inuit and First Nations art has been gradually released to the market. The blue trial proof had been in their collection since 1996.

Trial proofs are a common part of the printmaking process, which is a collaborative effort between the artist who creates the original work of art and the printmaker who translates it into a print, London said.

Acclaimed Kinngait artist Kenojuak Ashevak was named to the Order of Canada in 2012. She died in 2013 at the age of 85. (File photo)

The blue owl was a trial proof created during the experimental process to determine the best colour scheme for the final edition.

Trial proofs are typically destroyed along with the printing plate. That makes this surviving blue trial proof “incredibly rare” and “one of a kind,” London said.

Titled “Artist’s Proof II,” this trial proof is distinct from the edition of 50 stonecut prints of Ashevak’s The Enchanted Owl that were officially released as part of the second Cape Dorset print collection in 1960.

That edition featured two colour variations: 25 prints in red and black, and 25 in green and black.

A description on the First Arts website says this proof — which was likely printed by the Kinngait-based stonecut printmaker Eegyvudluk Pootoogook — “features the classic blue hue that defined the early prints of Kinngait.”

The sale of the blue trial proof broke a recent auction record for The Enchanted Owl. A red tail version of the work was sold by Heffel Fine Art Auction House in Toronto on Nov. 20 for $289,250.

The “beautiful” blue colour of this trial proof contributed to its higher valuation, London said, as the piece was originally estimated to be worth $200,000 to $300,000.

Bidding started at $160,000 before climbing to its record-breaking final price of $366,000, in a YouTube livestream of the sale.

Nunatsiaq News contacted First Arts to ask the identity of the purchaser, but the person’s name remains undisclosed.

London said he is “happy to say that it was sold to a Canadian collection and will be staying in Canada, as opposed to the loss of a cultural property to American collectors.”

Ashevak, who died in 2013 at the age of 85, was an Inuk artist from Baffin Island who created carvings, drawings and graphic works inspired by her Arctic environment.

One of the most celebrated Inuit artists, she was a Companion of the Order of Canada and recipient of the Governor General’s Award in Visual and Media Art.

Her earliest artwork was The Enchanted Owl in 1960, which gained widespread recognition and was featured on a Canadian postage stamp in 1970.

Elaine Auger is the new Chief of the Kátł’odeeche First Nation, defeating Ken Norn by 129 votes to 80 and succeeding April Martel in the role.

The news follows a confirmed case of avian influenza, or bird flu, found in a seabird near Resolute Bay in October. 

Iqaluit’s Christmas games are set to return, but in a different venue due to concerns from the Iqaluit District Education Authority.

The games start Dec. 23 at the cadet hall. More games are planned for Dec. 24, 26, 27, 30 and 31, running from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. each day, followed by a New Year’s Day candy toss.

Former city councillor Joanasie Akumalik has been recruited by the city’s recreation department to help organize the events.

At Tuesday’s council meeting, Akumalik acknowledged there have been “challenges.”

“We were scrambling a bit to find a new location,” he said.

The Iqaluit District Education Authority board rejected the city’s application to use Nakasuk Elementary School this year, where the games are usually held.

Alexina Kublu, the board’s interim chairperson, said Nakasuk’s principal expressed concern about damage to the building after recent years’ Christmas games.

“Two Christmases ago, I think it was, there was quite a lot of damage and that really disrupted the use of the school for learning purposes by the students,” Kublu said in an interview.

She said some of the school’s doors were damaged and required repairs. Also, children ran around the school unsupervised and as a result the school’s bathrooms and library needed more cleaning.

“When the students are out at Christmas, the janitorial staff are still on, are still working, and that is the time that they do extensive cleaning of the schools in preparation for the winter to start up again after Christmas,” Kublu said.

She said principals at the other three schools — Aqsarniit Middle School, Inuksuk High School and Joamie Ilinniarvik School — shared concerns about their buildings possibly being damaged too.

The city issued a news release Wednesday saying it was “disappointed” by the district education authority’s decision, adding it had tried to address the board’s safety and security concerns.

“We considered it very inappropriate and degrading for the city to do this,” Kublu said in response to the news release, adding the city should have simply announced the venue change.

She said Iqaluit needs a community hall that can be used for Christmas games — something other communities have.

Akumalik, at Tuesday’s council meeting, also said the city should look at developing a community hall.

With a venue set for this year and sponsors for prizes being lined up, he said work is being done to make sure the games are safe with security, medical staff and volunteer cleaners on site.

“We are hoping for the best,” Akumalik said.

Mayor Solomon Awa and Coun. Kyle Sheppard were among the council members who shared their excitement and hopes to help the Christmas games be a success.

“Your efforts are really, really appreciated this year, so thank you very much,” Sheppard said.

The NWT's top RCMP officer says despite shifts in drug-related crime, the average resident of the territory is safer here than anyone in the south.

Ontario Superior Court of Justice Judge Barbara Conway signed off on an “amended and restarted” receivership order Dec. 9 that, among other things, increases the receiver’s borrowing charge to $105 million.

If your Christmas decorations outshine the rest of your street – or your lights are just plain fun – let us know here as we build a gallery of the best.

Jule$, an 18-year-old from Tulita, releases new music for the first time in more than a year on Friday. He described overcoming anxiety and loss to do it.

A new United Way NWT program will offer three ways to help wildfire recovery and preparedness in the territory's communities.

The N.W.T.'s director of energy fielded questions this week about what it would take to develop a local supply of wood pellets. The N.W.T. relies on northern Alberta for the 20,000 tonnes of pellets it uses each year.

The president of the Yellowknife Firefighters Association wants to know whether the city has acted on any recommendations included in a 2022 public safety report, saying he still hasn't even seen the full document.  

Nominations for an upcoming mayoral byelection in Haines Junction, Yukon, opened on Thursday, following the abrupt resignation last month of Micheal Riseborough, who had been elected mayor just weeks earlier.

There's more frustration about rural Yukoners being discharged from the Whitehorse hospital with nowhere to go — while Yukon's health minister acknowledges there are "gaps" in health care that need to be fixed.