Inuit vulnerability and adaptive capacity to climate change in Ulukhaktok, Northwest Territories, Canada
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 c...
Published in: | Polar Record |
---|---|
Main Authors: | , , , , , |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Cambridge University Press (CUP)
2009
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0032247409008602 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0032247409008602 |
id |
crcambridgeupr:10.1017/s0032247409008602 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
crcambridgeupr:10.1017/s0032247409008602 2024-10-13T14:05:11+00:00 Inuit vulnerability and adaptive capacity to climate change in Ulukhaktok, Northwest Territories, Canada Pearce, Tristan Smit, Barry Duerden, Frank Ford, James D. Goose, Annie Kataoyak, Fred 2009 http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0032247409008602 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0032247409008602 en eng Cambridge University Press (CUP) https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms Polar Record volume 46, issue 2, page 157-177 ISSN 0032-2474 1475-3057 journal-article 2009 crcambridgeupr https://doi.org/10.1017/s0032247409008602 2024-09-18T04:03:43Z 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. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Climate change inuit Northwest Territories Polar Record Sea ice Ulukhaktok Cambridge University Press Arctic Canada Northwest Territories Ulukhaktok ENVELOPE(-117.772,-117.772,70.736,70.736) Polar Record 46 2 157 177 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Cambridge University Press |
op_collection_id |
crcambridgeupr |
language |
English |
description |
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. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Pearce, Tristan Smit, Barry Duerden, Frank Ford, James D. Goose, Annie Kataoyak, Fred |
spellingShingle |
Pearce, Tristan Smit, Barry Duerden, Frank Ford, James D. Goose, Annie Kataoyak, Fred Inuit vulnerability and adaptive capacity to climate change in Ulukhaktok, Northwest Territories, Canada |
author_facet |
Pearce, Tristan Smit, Barry Duerden, Frank Ford, James D. Goose, Annie Kataoyak, Fred |
author_sort |
Pearce, Tristan |
title |
Inuit vulnerability and adaptive capacity to climate change in Ulukhaktok, Northwest Territories, Canada |
title_short |
Inuit vulnerability and adaptive capacity to climate change in Ulukhaktok, Northwest Territories, Canada |
title_full |
Inuit vulnerability and adaptive capacity to climate change in Ulukhaktok, Northwest Territories, Canada |
title_fullStr |
Inuit vulnerability and adaptive capacity to climate change in Ulukhaktok, Northwest Territories, Canada |
title_full_unstemmed |
Inuit vulnerability and adaptive capacity to climate change in Ulukhaktok, Northwest Territories, Canada |
title_sort |
inuit vulnerability and adaptive capacity to climate change in ulukhaktok, northwest territories, canada |
publisher |
Cambridge University Press (CUP) |
publishDate |
2009 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0032247409008602 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0032247409008602 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-117.772,-117.772,70.736,70.736) |
geographic |
Arctic Canada Northwest Territories Ulukhaktok |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Canada Northwest Territories Ulukhaktok |
genre |
Arctic Climate change inuit Northwest Territories Polar Record Sea ice Ulukhaktok |
genre_facet |
Arctic Climate change inuit Northwest Territories Polar Record Sea ice Ulukhaktok |
op_source |
Polar Record volume 46, issue 2, page 157-177 ISSN 0032-2474 1475-3057 |
op_rights |
https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1017/s0032247409008602 |
container_title |
Polar Record |
container_volume |
46 |
container_issue |
2 |
container_start_page |
157 |
op_container_end_page |
177 |
_version_ |
1812811247469461504 |