More indigenous involvement in Arctic research wanted

Canada will push for more aboriginal input during its chairmanship of the Arctic Council, particularly on climate change and endangered species, according to environment minister Leona Aglukkaq.

At the council’s meeting in Whitehorse on 21 October, Aglukkaq told The Globe and Mail that a framework for such input would be put in place. The traditional knowledge held by indigenous people is often "missing in the research that’s done”, she said.

The minister cited disagreements between native hunters and population biologists about the health of the polar bear population as one example of indigenous knowledge being useful. “My brother is a full-time hunter who will tell you that polar bear populations have increased and scientists are wrong,” she said.