NWT RESEARCH DATABASE

Regions: Inuvialuit Settlement Region

Tags: traditional food, food security, country food, food systems, community freezer

Objective(s): To assess and describe the feasibility, value, barriers and supports, and overall outcomes of the implementation of community freezers in the context of the Inuvialuit Settlement Region (ISR) of the Northwest Territories (NWT).

Project Description: This licence has been issued for the scientific research application No. 6082. The objective of this study is to assess and describe the feasibility, value, barriers and supports, and overall outcomes of the implementation of community freezers in the context of the Inuvialuit Settlement Region (ISR) of the Northwest Territories (NWT). The study aims to develop an improved understanding of how community freezers play out in the everyday context of communities’ country food systems, and the strengths and barriers to managing and sustaining such initiatives. This improved understanding will inform decision-making surrounding how communities in the ISR invest in community freezer infrastructure going forward. This study will use one-on-one semi-structured interviews, taking place in-person or via telephone/videoconference. The study will include interviews with community freezer managers from each of the 6 communities of the ISR (approximately 6-12 interviews) as well as interviews with community members who use the community freezer or who have the potential to use the freezer in their respective ISR communities (2 to 4 communities will be selected for a more in-depth case study to include community freezer user/potential user interviews, approximately 10-15 interviews per community). The research team will work with community partners such as the respective communities’ Community Corporations and Hunters and Trapper Committees, as well as hire a Community Research Lead to help recruit participants for interviews. Interviews will be audio-recorded and transcribed for analysis. In-person meetings with the Paulatuk Hunters and Trappers Committee, Paulatuk Community Corporation, and Tuktoyaktuk Hunters and Trappers Committee took place in November 2023 to discuss planning for this project. Public meetings were also held in Paulatuk and Tuktoyaktuk in November 2023 to share plans for the project and hear community members’ input. The research team has engaged in multiple meetings with the Director of the Inuvialuit Community Economic Development Organization based in Inuvik to shape and inform the project. The research team also met with a representative of the Gwich’in Tribal Council’s Department of Lands and Resources in February 2024 to discuss the project. Members of the research team also attended a Tuktoyaktuk Hunters and Trappers Committee meeting in February 2024 for advice on data collection in the community. The research team anticipates planning travel to the Inuvialuit Settlement Region in February/March 2025 to return and interpret research results. Results from this study will be shared through meetings with key partners and organizations, public meetings, posters, and a final research report. Preliminary results will be shared with the local and regional partners and organizations prior to the publication of final results. Sharing of results to a broader audience may include publishing an article in the territorial peer-reviewed journal ‘Xa`gots’ee`hk’o?`’. Other dissemination methods will be determined through communication with community partners. The fieldwork for this study will be conducted from: January 27 - December 31, 2025