NWT RESEARCH DATABASE

Regions: South Slave Region

Tags: social sciences, traditional knowledge, food security

Objective(s): To conduct research on the state of country food systems in the Northwest Territories.

Project Description: The Aurora Research Institute (ARI) and Government of the Northwest Territories Department of Environment and Natural Resources (ENR) have joined with research partners in communities, Canadian universities, and throughout the Northwest Territories (NWT), including Akaitcho Territory Government, to conduct research on the state of country food systems in the NWT. Jessica Dutton and Jennifer Fresque-Baxter will manage and administer the project as co-principal investigators. Diane Giroux and Mike Tollis of the Akaitcho Territory Government (ATG) Aboriginal Aquatic Resource and Oceans Management (AAROM) program will provide invaluable community perspective, identifying priorities, advising on local and regional protocols, and bringing local knowledge to research activities. The purpose of the study is to collect baseline data about key country food issues as identified by the people and communities that harvest country foods. The project is guided by the following objectives: 1) to identify community priority areas for country food research; 2) to assess the social and ecological factors that influence country food systems in priority areas using both scientific and indigenous knowledge; and, 3) to develop evidence-based recommendations to support long-term sustainability of country food systems. In addition to fulfilling the objectives of the overall research project, the purpose of this regional project is to assist the Akaitcho Territory Government in identifying key concerns having to do with country foods in Akaitcho communities and to describe the state of the local food system in the Akaitcho region, including local food sources, harvesting and sharing practices, barriers and opportunities to access country foods, and food security. The study will use a focus group method to collect data from approximately 30-50 participants at a regional gathering. Akaitcho Territory Government will invite each member community (Fort Resolution, Fort Smith, Yellowknife, Dettah, and Lutselk’e) to send 6-10 participants, including the Chief, Elders, staff members/harvesters, and youth. Over the course of a two-day gathering at Mission Island in Fort Resolution, the participants will participate in large and small, participant-directed, open-ended focus group discussions about country food priorities, guided by questions such as: Which country food sources are important to you, your family, your community? What has changed over time in the country food system? What were things like in the past? How are they now? How have they changed? What do think you think has caused these changes? How are these food sources processed? How are country foods shared in your community? Who should have access to country foods? What opportunities support people in accessing country foods in your community? What barriers prevent people from accessing country foods in your community? What should be done now to ensure country foods are accessible in the future? What programs have worked in the past and which have not? What resources do communities have? What country food programs or activities would you like to see? This project is driven by Akaitcho Territory Government (ATG) questions and priorities. ATG AAROM representatives are involved as part of the research team. ATG members will advise on meeting planning, agenda, discussion questions, etc. Participants from ATG will have the opportunity to attend from all member communities (all expenses will be covered). In addition to the opportunity for travel, participants will be involved in identifying country food priorities that will shape the ATG’s work on food security and country food sustainability. Communication of results of the gathering will be fully at the discretion of Akaitcho Territory Government, who will determine the types of reporting and deliverables to be developed and determine whether or how these reports and deliverables will be shared and with whom. At ATG's discretion, deliverables could include a report on the findings of the gathering, a report on the state of the food system in Akaitcho region, regional presentation of findings, posters, articles, and other visual, digital, and print deliverables. A summary of the project findings will be released publicly (after vetting by ATG) and made available via Polar Knowledge Canada's data repository and may be made available on ARI and ENR's websites. The fieldwork for this study will be conducted from March 20, 2018 to December 31, 2018.