Conversations with Nattilingmiut elders on conflict and change: Naalattiarahuarnira

Abstract

This study draws upon recorded conversations with 21 Nattilingmiut elders and relies on a close research mentorship with Nattilingmiut elder Nilaulaaq Miriam Aglukkaq. The Nattilingmiut were one of the last groups in the Canadian Arctic to become settled into communities initiated by the federal government, a project that began in the 1950s and ended in the late 1960s. While early literature about Inuit strongly suggests that Inuit pre-settlement society was extraordinarily peaceful and harmonious, there is little literature available that focuses on Inuit elders' perspectives on changes to their social experience in post-settlement times. The Nunavut Government and Inuit agencies are currently working to develop systems that reflect Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit (Inuit epistemology) towards self governance and a consciously developed syncretism. As the Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit initiatives rely on the input of the Inuit elders, this study meets a current need to enhance elders' participation by offering some of their perspectives on dealing with conflict and change. It also offers a decolonizing methodology and is based on local protocols of the East Kitikmeot communities.