Reading this weeks readings reminded me of a documentary I had seen a few years back. It is entitled “Inuit Knowledge and Climate Change”. The documentary was written, produced, and directed by Zacharias Kunuk, is presented almost entirely in Inuktitut, and features interviews with Mary Simon as well as many Inuit elders. In the documentary the Inuit present their observations that prove that climate change is happening. The Inuit elders have hundreds if not thousands of years of traditional oral history that they rely on in order to provide food for their families through hunting and fishing. Unfortunately, the climate is changing, and hunting and fishing are becoming harder to do.
The Inuit present evidence for the following:
- later freeze up
- earlier break up and melt
- decreased thickness of shelf ice
- change to weather patterns and prevailing winds
- change in behaviour of seals and polar bears
- change in the earth’s tilt, changing star navigation and position of sun on horizon
- increase in pollution in the north
Also presented are alternate reasons for the decline of the polar bear population (although the Inuit assert that the bears are not in decline) and the seal population. The Inuit elders feel that the wildlife biologists are to blame for the decline in the animal populations, and that the methods of tracking with helicopters and tagging is causing more harm. In a few well presented and passionate speeches, the elders present their love for and kinship with the animals and assert that the Inuit are not and could not ever bring harm to the animals.
The Inuit know that climate change is happening, but fell powerless to do anything about it. Their hope is that by presenting this information that more people will sit up and take notice. The video is approximately 54 minutes long and is well worth a view.