Inuit Research Strategy – CP

Source: The Canadian Press – Broadcast wire
Mar 22, 2018 

OTTAWA – The organization that represents 65,000 Inuit in Canada is calling for an end to years of exploitative research based in a colonial history that has ignored the well-being of Indigenous people in the North.

Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, or ITK, has released a research strategy encouraging researchers and research institutions to partner with Inuit in projects that better reflect the needs and priorities of northern peoples.

The strategy acknowledges the racism and exclusion that began with the first scientific forays into the North, which viewed Inuit as bystanders or research subjects and centred around priorities that were set by outsiders to Inuit Nunangat, which is the preferred Inuit term for the Arctic.

ITK head Natan Obed says meaningful partnerships have begun between Inuit and outside institutions, but that a formal, co-ordinated research strategy will lead to increased collaboration and encourage more Inuit-led investigations.

The strategy highlights five priority areas, which include promoting Inuit governance in research, aligning funding with Inuit research priorities, building Inuit research capacity and encouraging Inuit access and ownership over findings.

Indigenous Relations Minister Carolyn Bennett says the Inuit must have a strong say in the policies and the research that takes place in the North.

(The Canadian Press)

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