Climate Change 8
transportation hub of Nunavut. Indeed, any traveler to Nunavut will need go through the
little yellow airport at Iqaluit.
Data for this project were also generated in two other towns on South Baffin
Island. These are the towns of Pangnirtung and Qikiqtarjuaq. The place name
Pangnirtung does not actually mean anything in Inuktitut, but rather is a derivation of the
name Panniqtuuq which means “Place of Bull Caribou.” In 2005, there was a referendum
to formally adopt the Inuktitut name, but this was rejected. One reason stated by a
contractor working in the town was because of the “marketability” of the name. “Pang”
as it is known in local parlance, is a town of roughly 1,200 people located at the mouth of
the Cumberland Sound. This community benefits from some tourism as it sits at the
southern end of the popular Auyuittuq National Park. Pangnirtung also has a reputation
for weaving and other artifacts, which generates some economic activity. Qikitarjuaq
(pop. approximately 500) lies on Broughton Island north of Pangnirtung and the Arctic
Circle. This community is the only settlement close to the northern end Auyuittuq so it
also benefits financially from some tourism.
This brief introduction of communities represents a problematic characterization
of life in the Arctic. It is clearly framed in terms of settlement, which focuses attention
away from traditional Inuit practices grounded in mobility. I present it here to provide
the reader a sense of the place in static terms, but also to provide the backdrop to the
larger conflictual milieu in which some residents of Baffin Island must contend.
Narratives of Global Climate Change
In the summer of 2006, during my second research trip to South Baffin Island in
Nunavut, I was able to devote some time to collecting narratives surrounding global
Convention