NWT RESEARCH DATABASE

Regions: Inuvialuit Settlement Region, Gwich'in Settlement Area

Tags: biology, caribou, traditional knowledge, wildlife

Project Description: The Arctic Borderlands Ecological Knowledge Coop uses both local and scientific knowledge to monitor and assess changes in an area that covers the range of the Porcupine Caribou Herd and nearby coastal and marine areas. Interviews with local experts are conducted annually by community researchers to record observations about fish, berries, caribou, unusual animal sightings, weather conditions, and other aspects of the environment. These observations are presented and discussed at the Coop’s Annual Gatherings and at community meetings, and are accessible on the Coop website. Interviews in the Northwest Territories will be conducted in Fort McPherson, Tsiigehtchic, Inuvik, Aklavik and Tuktoyaktuk. Local researchers will be hired to conduct interviews in each community, and will receive training and on-going support in interview techniques, report writing, and presentation skills. Each researcher, in collaboration with local organizations and individuals, will develop a list of local experts who may be interested in being interviewed. Approximately twenty interviews will be conducted by each researcher. A set list of questions relating to the local experts’ observations about fish, berries, caribou, unusual animal sightings, weather conditions, and other aspects of the environment will be used. Interviewees will only be asked questions related to their area of expertise. A map of the local region will be used in the interviews to mark the locations of specific observations. Researchers will largely record interview information through note-taking, although the tape-recording of responses for some interview questions will be carried out with the permission of interviewees. After the interviews are completed, researchers will put together a written report as well as a presentation for the Coop’s 2006 Annual Gathering. Each interviewee will receive a copy of the report. The study will be conducted from February 13 to March 17, 2006 within the municipal bounds of Fort McPherson, Tsiigehtchic, Inuvik, Aklavik and Tuktoyaktuk.