NWT RESEARCH DATABASE

Regions: North Slave Region

Tags: mining, social sciences, economics, climate change

Objective(s): To build positive relations between university researchers and the Tli?cho communities; to co-create knowledge that is of equal value to the Tli?cho people and to scholarship; to enhance the capacity of the Tli?cho people to pursue a sustainable future in accordance with Tli?cho values based on findings that emerge throughout the project; and, to co-create knowledge that will inform the policy and practice of impact assessment in Canada.

Project Description: TThis licence has been issued for the scientific research application No.5378. The objective is to build positive relations between university researchers and the Tli?cho communities; co-create knowledge that is of equal value to the Tli?cho people and to scholarship. This project will enhance the capacity of the Tli?cho people to pursue a sustainable future in accordance with Tli?cho values based on findings that emerge throughout the project. The research team also seek to co-create knowledge that will inform the policy and practice of impact assessment in Canada. The research team will disseminate several new knowledge products to the Tli?cho Government and communities, provide graduate student training, and new academic publications. The research team will be engaging approximately 25-35 community members of diverse age (18+), gender, and positions of employment in interviews of approximately 1 hour, seeking to speak with individuals in government positions that involve responsibility for environmental impact, community members who have sought to contribute to previous environmental impact assessment processes, and individuals who currently or previously work in the mining industry. As this project is a community collaboration, the team will work closely with the Tli?cho community in identifying participants. Interviews will take place at a location in the community of the interviewees’ choice, or virtually via Zoom if preferred by the interviewee or as necessary to ensure safety in light of the pandemic. Interviews will be audio-recorded, and the interviewer will also take notes. Interview recordings will also be transcribed as soon as possible after the interview. All audio-recordings, transcriptions, and notes will be kept on a password-protected university server accessible only by the Principal Investigator and co-applicants listed in this agreement, and the graduate student research assistants working on this project. The audio file and transcript for each interview will also be provided to the interviewee, for personal storage or submission to the Tli?cho Government. Consent will be sought from some interview participants to have portions of the interview video-recorded for the production of a short documentary film. The communications with the Tli?cho began in December, 2021, and has consisted of several meetings with Tee Lim, and one meeting with a broader spectrum of Tlicho Government staff. The research team are planning the first visit to the region to meet several community members with an interest in the research in early September. The team will continue to engage in regular meetings to share updates, and receive feedback, which may result in revising research plans. Upon completion of the research, the research team will draft short summary reports of the findings for the Tli?cho government and interested community members. As well, the team intend to offer a local workshop to discuss the findings with community members. The fieldwork for this study will be conducted from November 18, 2022 to December 31, 2022.