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Inuit vulnerability and adaptive capacity to climate change in Ulukhaktok, Northwest Territories, Canada

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 September 2009

Tristan Pearce ,
Barry Smit ,
Frank Duerden ,
James D. Ford ,
Annie Goose  and
Fred Kataoyak
Tristan Pearce
Affiliation:
Global Environmental Change Group, Department of Geography, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario N1G 2W1 (tpearce@uoguelph.ca)
Barry Smit
Affiliation:
Global Environmental Change Group, Department of Geography, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario N1G 2W1 (tpearce@uoguelph.ca)
Frank Duerden
Affiliation:
Department of Geography, Ryerson University, 350 Victoria St., Toronto, Ontario M5B 2K3, Canada
James D. Ford
Affiliation:
Department of Geography, McGill University, 805 Sherbrooke St. W., Montreal, Quebec H3A 2K6, Canada
Annie Goose
Affiliation:
Ulukhaktok, Northwest Territories X0E 0S0, Canada
Fred Kataoyak
Affiliation:
P.O. Box 34, Ulukhaktok, Northwest Territories X0E 0S0, Canada
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Abstract

Climate change is already being experienced in the Arctic with implications for ecosystems and the communities that depend on them. This paper argues that an assessment of community vulnerability to climate change requires knowledge of past experience with climate conditions, responses to climatic variations, future climate change projections, and non-climate factors that influence people's susceptibility and adaptive capacity. The paper documents and describes exposure sensitivities to climate change experienced in the community of Ulukhaktok, Northwest Territories and the adaptive strategies employed. It is based on collaborative research involving semi-structured interviews, secondary sources of information, and participant observations. In the context of subsistence hunting, changes in temperature, seasonal patterns (for example timing and nature of the spring melt), sea ice and wind dynamics, and weather variability have affected the health and availability of some species of wildlife important for subsistence and have exacerbated risks associated with hunting and travel. Inuit in Ulukhaktok are coping with these changes by taking extra precautions when travelling, shifting modes of transportation, travel routes and hunting areas to deal with changing trail conditions, switching species harvested, and supplementing their diet with store bought foods. Limited access to capital resources, changing levels of traditional knowledge and land skills, and substance abuse were identified as key constraints to adaptation. The research demonstrates the need to consider the perspectives and experiences of local people for climate change research to have practical relevance to Arctic communities such as for the development and promotion of adaptive strategies.

Type
Research Article
Information
Polar Record , Volume 46 , Issue 2 , April 2010 , pp. 157 - 177
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2009

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