Our Featured Celebration

Most cultures treat themselves to a bit of last minute self-indulgence before they begin their period of fasting (think of Pancake Tuesday, just before Lent), but few are as honest about it as the Icelanders. While most disguise their pre-penitential feasting with terms like “Mardi Gras" or "Shrove Tuesday", Icelanders will proudly celebrate "Bursting Day" (Sprengidagur) February 16, feasting on traditional salted mutton and thick pea soup until they - well - burst. Or hopefully, not quite.

UPCOMING EVENTS

 

Coming up this month: Kasuutiniq, the 2010 Qikiqtani Teachers Conference, February 22-26, 2010, sponsored by the Nunavut Teachers Association, and coordinated by Patti Black, Terry Forth and Geoff Rigby. The conference will attract 340 teachers, administrators and language specialists from across the Qikiqtaaluk Region.

NEW BEGINNINGS

Ottawa's Carleton University is actively seeking to engage Aboriginal people in its programs. To support that work, they've asked Carleton alumna Jennifer David and Galin Kora will be helping Carleton to develop an evaluation framework for its Aboriginal Services programs and services.

Stonecircle has also been invited by to assist Sagamok Anishnawbek First Nation in developing an accountability framework for business development. Fred Weihs will work with the First Nation on a process for overseeing the development of joint ventures in various sectors of the economy including construction and mining.

ONGOING PROJECTS

The National Centre for First Nations Governance is a national, independent Aboriginal organization that supports First Nations as they seek to implement effective self-governance and and develop day-to-day government operations. Jennifer David and Terry Rudden have begun a review of communications and promotional material from (NCFNG) as the first phase of the Communications Review for the national organization.

Kory Goulais, with input from Alex Ker and Jennifer David, completed a draft survey for distribution to Temagami First Nation as part of Stonecircle’s work on resource development consultations. The team is currently designing a document to outline the concepts of Duty to Consult and Accommodate and Temagami’s current resource development initiatives. This will form a presentation as part of community consultations, to be held in March.

Ron Ryan and David Boult have begun another round of training programs for the Municipal Training Organization (MTO). In January and February our dedicated duo will visit five communities in Nunavut to deliver a course on Introduction to Northern Government. The MTO developed an important series of training programs in response to the need to develop the capacity of Hamlet employees across the territory. In addition, David, “Mr. Never Turn Down A Teaching Gig” Boult, will also be continuing the delivery of the course in two additional communities in March. This last tour will provide David with the much-coveted title of “He Who Has Visited Every Community in Baffin Island”. (Pictured: David with some happy students in Cape Dorset.)

The second wave of community consultations for the Integrated Community Infrastructure Sustainability Plan Project is about to kick off. The project will give the Government of Nunavut valuable guidance in setting priorities for future investments in community infrastructure to promote sustainable economic. environmental, social and cultural well being. The first round of consultations took in Sanikiluaq and most Kivalliq communities; February and March will see Project Manager Chris Grosset and his team (Alex Ker, Fred Weihs, Galin Kora, Christian "Clootch" Cloutier, Geoff Rigby and associate Marla Limousin) covering Baffin and completing the Kivalliq, with a final round of visits this spring to the Kitikmeot.

HAPPY ENDINGS

Final versions of the Summary of Proceedings and a Community Strategic Plan were presented to the Urban Aboriginal Strategy Ottawa sub-committee. The documents will soon be made available on the committee’s web site at www.ottawaboriginalcoalition.ca

The good folks at NCC Investment Group Inc. celebrated the move to their new Headquarter Office in beautiful downtown Iqaluit with an Open House on December 9th, assisted by Terry Forth, Victor Tootoo, Terry Rudden and Geoff Rigby. NCC Investment Group Inc. is the premier real estate development company in Nunavut with 10 office buildings and over 250 residential units, including Inuksugait Plaza.  All properties are owned and managed by the Inuit of Nunavut. (Pictured left to right: Greg Cayen, Sheldon Nimchuk, Clarence Synard, Brent Crooks and Terry Forth.)

Aarluk recently delivered a final report on research licensing in Nunavut to the Federal Program Office of the International Polar Year in INAC. The project, led by Alex Ker with Clootch, was undertaken as part of the Canadian Arctic Research Licensing Initiative. Aarluk documented and assessed research license application, approval and reporting requirements, and made recommendations to increase efficiency, coordination and capacity throughout the Nunavut research licensing system. 

BIRTHDAYS

Incredibly, this is a completely birthday free month for all three companies. Twenty people, and no-one born in February. What's with that? What exactly is so unromantic about May?

GOSSIP

The people of Consilium, Stonecircle and Aarluk are all remarkable, each in their own special way. But most of us don't get to be Poster Kids. MOST of us. However, the Aboriginal Human Resources Development Committee, obviously folks with a keen eye for talent, plucked Stonecircle researcher Kory Goulais (number 73, below) as Poster Boy for their Aboriginal Recruitment Fair, to be held in Toronto April 27th. Forget it, folks - he's ours.

Actually, it's quite the month for Kory. He found not only fame, but True Love. After what we are assured was an official, down-on-one-knee marriage proposal, Kory's girlfriend, euh, fiancé Alison McDonald has agreed to a life of connubial bliss. Several Consilium resource people were involved in the preparation of the Proposal, including the compilation of an up-to-date resume, a list of previous successful relationships, four hours of peer-group reviewed role play, and a particularly compelling PowerPoint cost/benefit analysis. Congratulations to both of you, with a special message from Clootch and Geoff. (Right, Kory (standing on milk crate) and Alison.)

Consilium, Aarluk and Stonecircle were all represented at last week's Northern Lights Trade Show and Conference, a glittering showcase of businesses, suppliers and service providers from Nunavut, Nunavik, Labrador and Nunatsiavut. Organized by the Baffin Regional and Labrador North Chambers of Commerce, the event integrated conference sessions, cultural events, and a trade show, providing an excellent introduction to Canada's North for businesses and the general public. (Pictured left to right: Victor Tootoo, Clootch, Chuck Gilhuly and Geoff Rigby)

Consilium's designated Bon Vivant and Man about Town, Ron Ryan, represented us at "Taste of the Arctic", one of the special events organized the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami to mark Year of the Inuit. Held at the National Gallery of Canada, the evening was a fundraiser for the Arctic Children and Youth Foundation. Ron reports an amazing dinner, a presentation on the Foundation by Susan Aglukark, music and poetry by Taqralik Partridge, and a special recognition of Peter Mansbridge for his contribution to the recognition of the North in broadcasting. (Left to right: Martha Flaherty, Ron Ryan, David Chartrand, Wenda Watteyne, and Morgan Hare.)

THE CONSILIUM GUIDE TO WINTER DENIAL

As we enter February , we are led to ponder the soul-defining quintessence of winter as a distillation of the Canadian Experience is, and the importance of denial in its survival. From the first snowflake to the last icicle, Canadians have mastered the Art of pretending all this cold and darkness doesn’t matter by lying to themselves about what’s really happening out there. Here for your convenience is a handy month-by-month guide to the nonsense we tell ourselves to get through a typical winter. (Nunavut, Nunavik, NWT and Nunatsiavut readers, of course, are allowed to laugh their heads off at the rest of us wimps.)

November:

This is not winter. This is Late Fall. Everything COULD still thaw. Heck, I remember lots of winters without any real snow until Christmas. Lots. Whatever snow we get is just going to melt. This chilliness, scraping the car window in the morning, heck, that’s not winter, that’s just – bracing.

December (pre-December 21st):

This is not officially winter yet. Not until December 21st. Anyway, a little snow heading up to Christmas is nice. Seasonal, kinda. Makes for good pictures. Heck, if it wasn’t for the wind and the dark, you’d hardly notice the cold at all.

December (post-December 21st):

Yay! December 21st! From here on in, the days get longer. It’s not really the cold that gets you, it’s the dark. And now the darkest part is over. And hey, Christmas to distract us!

January:

Yup, you can really tell the days are getting longer. No, really! And anyway, every Canadian knows that REAL winter is December, January and February, and here we are halfway through already! And there’s ALWAYS a January thaw. Besides, the thermometer might SAY it’s cold, but heck – all together now – it’s a DRY cold.

February:

Well, that’s it. Everyone knows that January is the worst month of winter, and we made it through. February – pffft. We can take this. Bring it on. We finally have a long weekend – thanks for that, Mr McGuinty. C’mon, Wiarton Willy. Those 4 foot icicles hanging down in front of the kitchen window means that it is starting to warm up, a sure sign that spring cannot be far behind. And there’s ALWAYS a February thaw. And besides, it’s such a short month.

March:

This is actually Spring. Anything that happens now is just a fluke, a seasonal anomaly. It’ll melt. Winter’s over.

CHECK BACK EVERY MONTH FOR MORE CONSILIUM, STONECIRCLE AND AARLUK NEWS, TOOLS, AND GOSSIP.