Back in the field
Well, it's been a while since the last post, as I took a break from blogging over the entire summer. I had a very good reason. My partner, Nathalie, and I had our first baby. A little girl named "Nuna" (meaning "land" in Inuktitut). So, I stayed back in Winnipeg with family while Zach and the crew were in Igloolik and out on the land with elders. They had a strong finish to the summer filmmaking and interviewing. I'll be posting a mind blowing video about their experience soon. Stay posted.
And, now finally, I'm back in the field and am traveling with Nuna and Nathalie. We started last week in Churchill. I was a facilitator on a "teen leadership camp" that took youth from Canada, US and Australia to the north to learn about climate change, polar bear conservation and social activism. I helped the youth direct a short video about their experience. We flew through Rankin and Iqaluit and are now in Pangnirtung. Over the next two weeks, I'll be working with Qajaaq Ellsworth and Stacey Aglok, talented Inuit filmmakers and youth outreach organizers, on another youth video project. We're developing a short documentary about Inuit youth perspectives on climate change. This project, once finalized, will be in exhibits at the COP-15 international climate change negotitations in Copenhagen this December as well as the Olympics in Vancouver. It's an exciting project that'll help the world better appreciate Inuit views on this important topic.
After our time in Pang, we'll be heading to Igloolik to meet up with Zacharias and our Isuma partners there, and we'll be begin editing the rough cut of the larger climate change documentary. Similarly, there's been a lot of interest in this work, and we'll likely put something together that will be exhibited at COP-15 as well. Indeed, "The Countdown to Copenhagen" is definitely on, and hopefully our ongoing Inuit-focused work will help contribute to the international dialogue. Stay tuned...I'll be blogging much more over the next three months.
