EdinburghNLP/nunavut-hansard-plusplus huggingface dataset:
Even though that is the case, it is just being used without being fully implemented within the government; it is just paying lip service.
My question is in regard to the Cultural Immersion Day. Is it mandatory for the government to use it or is it at their discretion? We’re just paying lip service because it’s not mandatory to use the Cultural Immersion Day.
Obviously, it’s not important. It’s up to the Department of Culture and Heritage to protect the culture.
I just wanted that information about your participation.
Even though some people think we’re just paying lip service, we will keep working hard to make sure that Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit is implemented within the government.
That’s one of our objectives as a department. We will have a continuing dialogue with the Department of Human Resources and their minister.
Even though some people out there may think we’re just paying lip service, we’re going to keep working to make sure that it’s being implemented within the government.
I also thank the minister for stating that these will continue to be implemented.
We are also quite proud of these initiatives.
However, it becomes quite noticeable that our government only uses Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit when it suits their purposes.
That’s usually when they say they have implemented it. On the other hand, if it becomes too burdensome or difficult, then this government seemingly throws it out the window.
Personally, this is the cause of my biggest concern.
From my personal perspective, if we say that we’re going to be using Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit or its principles, we can’t just have it apply for certain times, but keep it as a foundation. Here I refer both to Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit and Inuit cultural customs.
For example, if we’re going to have the Cultural Immersion Day, where the employees will practise cultural activities on a trip outside, I would imagine an accompanying directive so they aren’t just going for a social tea outing.
What I’m trying to ask the minister is this: as a department, what foundations or policies do you apply when you’re setting up such programs that involve Inuit culture and language?
As this is an operational question, I will refer it to my deputy.
What I can say to this question is that when the directives were being drafted, we were able to voice our recommendations on certain activities we wanted included and we were grateful for that opportunity.
Additionally, as the Inuit Cultural Immersion Day was being identified, we specified that elders should be included in any type of outing, just as an example.
For instance, some employees of the Department of Culture and Heritage weren’t able to participate in this day due to other work-related duties or other reasons.
The participants who were able to attend the activities or who partook in the particular lessons about Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit have to attend a debriefing meeting outlining what activities were undertaken, as well as a particular lesson learnt by the participants. They would discuss these issues at that meeting.
A follow-up meeting is one of the requirements.
I have just used these two examples where we were able to provide recommendations to the department as they developed the directives.
Although I only mentioned these two examples, we also participated in other aspects of the drafting of the directives.
I would like to ask the minister maybe in another way.
I have never asked a minister this: as ministers, are you given the opportunity to say that you’re going to go do this and that or not?
If anything, a program or if anything is set up or if there is going to be a change, the ministers are always consulted and asked for their opinion, whether they approve or not. We’re given every opportunity to be consulted on any new program.
For further clarity, as a minister, if there has to be any changes or if there is a new program coming up, are you asked or consulted of who can participate?
If you’re consulted and as minister responsible for Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit and Culture and Heritage, what did you want included in the Cultural Immersion Day activities?
The question posed by Mr. Enook is particularly a good question. However, if you were to direct these questions to different departments on the ability of the minister to make recommendations and especially if it is directed at all ministers, I would be more comfortable if the Premier answered those questions.
The Minister of Culture and Heritage is only able to respond directly to questions related to cultural matters, as he isn’t the spokesperson for all ministers.
That is the Premier’s responsibility and I want that noted here.
We have the Premier responsible for assigning portfolios based on their capabilities. I would prefer that this question be directed to our Premier, if my response is understandable.
I don’t know what your response was, so I will just proceed.
We’re under Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit and I thought I was just referring to Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit.
As the minister responsible for Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit and as one of the people involved in this process, can he provide recommendations when a particular program is being deliberated on and that certain activities are required?
If the minister has that ability, what suggestions did he provide for this IQ day that was recently announced for implementation?
I don’t want every detail, but maybe he can provide some examples, such as perhaps his own personal recommendations he wanted included.
Though we have already responded to your question, this program was set up by the Department of Human Resources. If you should have any problems about this program or if you feel the need to make some changes, you should ask them.
I don’t know how to ask that question because I’m not getting any responses here.
The only question I have is this: as the Minister of Culture and Heritage, were you able to make suggestions on what you would like included in the Cultural Immersion Day? This is what I would like see in the program.
Yes, we were consulted. As my deputy indicated, we responded to your question.
Yes, we were consulted and we are consulted on anything new.
I would like to direct my question to the Minister of Culture and Heritage.
The Minister of Human Resources announced the Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit and Cultural Immersion Day directives.
As the minister, what did you want included for Cultural Immersion Day?
We didn’t see any problems when this was being drafted. I think everything that was being proposed was acceptable.
I am glad that the minister approved the Cultural Immersion Day.
My question is: when this was being set up, as the Minister of Culture and Heritage and minister responsible for Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit, what did you want included under that program?
I had already responded to that question.
We approved this proposal.
If you have any problems, they could be identified. This day was set up by the Department of Human Resources and if you have any problems with it, you can talk to them. If they had any concerns, it would be reviewed by cabinet.
I’m just going to complete my allotted time.
We try and represent our constituents, and it is sad that I ask a question for which I don’t get a response.
Mr. Chairman, my question was: were you able to participate and did you contribute to the design of this Cultural Immersion Day?
He is the minister.
He can say, “Do this and that. You have to include this.”
That’s all I wanted to know so that the people of Nunavut will know what this Cultural Immersion Day is.
I just want the minister to indicate what programs or what types of activities he wanted done on that day.
We do keep trying to respond to your question. We like the set-up of this program. There weren’t many changes that we made.
We did put in a few.
Please let me know if I talk too long, even though I haven’t reached my 10-minute time allotment.
With respect to Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit, especially today, we can work closely with the Minister of Culture and Heritage, Minister Arreak.
I hope the minister urges the departments and his deputy would urge the government departments to include Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit with the Nunavut government.
If they went to the United Nations, they could have a speech using Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit as their foundation.
It’s very hard to define what Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit is.
If they go abroad or to different countries, it’s very difficult to define what Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit is.
I would like to ask the minister about Inuit societal values.
During cabinet meetings, are you going to be urging your minister or talk to the deputies about integrating or implementing Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit?
As a minister, you have every authority to do so.
Are you going to be urging the departments to implement Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit or would you give a directive to the departments?
I believe in Inuit societal values and Mr. Awa knows it too. He can lobby the ministers to integrate it into their departments.
Regular members can urge you so that you can talk to the rest of the cabinet about implementing IQ into their departments.
Thank you, Mr. Ningark, for urging us to do that.
What we usually do if there are any proposals is we check to see how the Inuit societal values will be affected by that new proposal.
I do urge my department and the ministers about integrating or implementing Inuit societal values. Yes, we will keep urging the departments.
Let me try to put a perspective on Inuit societal values the way I grew up and was taught. In fact, I spent a good many years before I went to school learning about Inuit societal values.
It’s a family value to begin with. Why?
Well, there is a saying, “Who can look after the family, neighbourhood, and extended family better than the family itself?”
Why do we always want to make sure that when a child is taken away from the home, they stay within the community? Well, why not?
Who knows better than the one who conceived the child before it was born and knows different habits, different fears, and different tastes in food and everything else?
It’s the family. If the family can’t look after the child, then why don’t we make sure that that person is safe? That’s what Inuit societal values are all about.
When we travel abroad from Nunavut, we talk about the Inuit way of living, way of life, societal values, and stuff like that. We always use that.
That’s the only way.
If you want to try and make sure that you have quota in any given animal, narwhal, polar bears, or any other animal that is perceived endangered, you always go back to Inuit societal values, but in this government, perhaps it’s only perceived.
We try to ensure that Inuit societal values are not only embedded in the statutes of the government. People say “embedded,” which means firmly established. That’s not good enough.
We want to make sure that Inuit societal values and beliefs are enshrined in the statutes, meaning it is preserved, protected, and ensured, for the people in the judicial system to interpret in the end that it’s preserved and protected. So I want to make sure that when we talk about societal values, we not only talk about societal values, but we make sure they’re enshrined in the statutes that we pass in this House. I think the only way that we can ensure that is through the Department of Culture and [Heritage].
We’re putting a lot of faith in the minister.
I know that he is more than capable of ensuring that Inuit societal values, through his department, are passed on to the ministers. By the same token, his deputy minister is more than able. He believes in Inuit societal values.
I believe that Mr. Awa, through the bureaucracy, is more than able through the minister. I say that through you, Mr. Chairman. He’s more than able and he knows and understands what the societal values are all about.
So I want to ensure that my friends over there at the witness table, through me and the people of Nunavut, do everything they can to make sure that our beliefs and values, while recognizing that we are a public government, are enshrined.
(interpretation) Mr. Chairman, I’m urging the minister and his deputy because I know that they are very capable.
At times, I’m sure that everything they request is not going to be approved by cabinet, but they do have the authority.
We talk about Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit not only in Ottawa or the United Nations or in Europe. We should not only pay lip service, but practise Inuit societal values in our House.
So I’m urging your department to work hard so that it could be set up.
First of all, I would like to say that I’m sorry, but we’re doing our best and we’re working our best to include Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit here in this House. We want to make sure that it is visible and being used.
We’re doing our best to make sure that Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit is being used within the government and in this House.
I have a few questions, not many. First of all, I would like to make a comment.
The $1,157,000 the department is going to be using doesn’t seem adequate because of this very discussion that we’re having.
The money for Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit doesn’t seem to be adequate at all and it seems like our bark is bigger.
The sky’s the limit for Inuit societal values and Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit to be implemented into the government departments.
For that reason, my question is: what criteria are being used for IQ days? Exactly how are IQ days used?
If a day is set aside, do you have criteria and who approves them? Is it the manager or the director that approves them?
I think my deputy would be in a better position to respond to that question since he deals with them on a daily basis.
First of all, based on the budget the member referenced in his question, this is my own opinion, but that amount is fairly low when you talk about a budget set at slightly lower than $1.2 million, with only two employees in the IQ division.
It is obvious that as we continue to work on the IQ issues and with future priorities laid out by the government, the amount of work required for compiling these issues for further integration into government operations will increase. I’m only making this comment, but hopefully we would have to come back for supplementary appropriations based on the amount of work required to implement IQ further.
To use this example, just for the legal requirements of the Inuit Language Protection Act, we had to requisition further funding to implement these provisions. I expect this to also occur in this field as we move further down the line.
Now, regarding the identification of the Cultural Immersion Day related to Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit, including the criteria the member made his query on, each department and agency develops their own criteria. As each department has different requirements and the criteria are adapted to each department based on their needs.
To cite this example, if I were to designate an IQ day within the Department of Culture and Heritage, perhaps I would provide a directive around family kinship or the need to foster a good working relationship, even without going on an outing outside of the city or the land to go fishing. This can occur within an office setting, an outside venue, such as a park, and each department has discretion to plan out their activities and themes.
At least within the department I am responsible for, when we start planning for the Cultural Immersion Day, as the head of this department, I have to approve this activity.
I assume that is the same in other departments. These days have to be approved by the departmental deputy minister and then the employees can partake in this IQ day upon approval.
Yes, I understand it a little bit more.
The Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit program primarily seems to be for the government departments.
The Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit Katimajiit deals with the government departments, but as a government, we deal with the departments.
When it comes to Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit, if there is somebody or a group who wants to do something in the community, then they ask for funding.
The Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit Katimajiit have talked about what has to be done.
I understand a little bit more. If you’re going to have an IQ day, for instance, the managers plan what they want to do and go out on the land, do they just go ahead and do what they want to do and there are no criteria put in there? It seems like they can misuse Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit by doing something else.
Some people don’t go out on the land or hunt during IQ days. Is there a lecture program that can be put out there?
It’s hard to know what they are doing when there are no criteria.
I will have my deputy respond to that question, Mr. Chairman.
Like I said, the government departments are able to write down what they want to do or do what they want to do out on the land during IQ days.
In regard to Mr. Curley’s question, whether there is a lecture program or not, there is one that happens.
A while ago, when there was an IQ day, they had a lecture program where they brought in two elders who told stories about when Iqaluit was a smaller community, what people did, and what kinds of traditions they had.
That is the kind of stories that the two elders told and they talked about what changes happened, what happened in the early days of Iqaluit and the latter part of Iqaluit days.
There were quite a few people who wanted to be involved in the lecture.
What we do is we have lecture programs, inviting elders in, and if they want to talk about something like hunting, they can bring in hunting experts. If the theme is on the historical background of Iqaluit as an Inuit area and its development as a community, then we would invite an elder specifically knowledgeable of the history of Iqaluit’s development over time.
So yes, this can occur in that manner.
Each department makes their choices of categories or themes for their Cultural Immersion Day.
We will go back to F-8. (interpretation ends) Culture and Heritage.
Total Operations and Maintenance. $1,157,000. (interpretation) Do you agree?
We will go back to F-3. (interpretation ends) Culture and Heritage.
Total Operations and Maintenance. $25,786,000. (interpretation) Do you agree?
Chairman (interpretation): Do we agree that the Department of Culture and Heritage is completed?
I will give you the opportunity at this time, minister, if you have any closing remarks.
Hon. James Arreak (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I would like to thank the members for their questions and for their comments when we were discussing my department’s budget.
I would also like to thank the staff that was in the Gallery for my department’s discussions.
Chairman (interpretation): Thank you, Minister Arreak. I thank your official, Mr. Awa.
We will move on to another department, the Department of the Environment.
I would like to remind the members that whoever is going to be the Chair of the Committee of the Whole usually says that he will give everyone of you a chance to make opening remarks for the minister’s opening comments and detailed question period is given to you during the page-by-page review of the departmental main estimates.
I would like to ask that members keep their preambles short.
Chairs of the Committee of the Whole have rules in order for the proceedings to continue properly. This is just to remind the members.
I was told that there are some refreshments for us. We will take a short 15-minute break and when we return, we will deal with the Department of the Environment.
>>Committee recessed at 15:43 and resumed at 16:03
We will continue with the (interpretation ends) Department of Environment. I would like to ask the Minister responsible for Environment, Minister Arreak, to go to the witness table to make his opening remarks.
You may proceed, Minister Arreak.
Bill 49 – Appropriation (Operations & Maintenance) Act, 2013-2014 – Environment – Consideration in Committee
Hon. James Arreak: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I am pleased to be here today to present my department’s business plan and main estimates for the 2013-14 fiscal year.
The Department of Environment’s proposed budget for 2013-14 is $23,994,000. This represents a $1.26 million increase from the 2012-13 fiscal year.
This increase is a combination of $327,000 in salary increases resulting from the new collective agreement, $826,000 in new money to increase overall government participation in the environmental assessment of major resource development projects in the territory, and $107,000 to hire an additional conservation officer for the community of Arviat.
In the 2012-13 fiscal year, we obtained over $3.4 million from outside sources for various projects and we expect to be equally successful in leveraging funds again in 2013-14.
They also uphold the Government of Nunavut’s obligations and areas of responsibilities under the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement that relate to the management of natural resources and ensure that the department’s many statutory obligations are fulfilled.
Avatittinnik Kamatsiarniq, or environmental stewardship, continues to be a key element of our departmental focus.
This includes working with government, business, and industry to ensure that industrial projects in Nunavut are undertaken in such a manner that negative impacts to the environment are minimized.
Through proactive pollution prevention initiatives and inspection and enforcement measures under the Environmental Protection Act, we will continue to monitor and protect the environment for current and future generations.
In the coming year, the Department of Environment will continue to promote leadership and best practices in environmental assessment by participating in the review of Kiggavik, Meliadine, and other development projects.
As I noted earlier in the sitting, I am pleased that the department has partnered with Nunavut Arctic College to deliver a new environmental assessment training course this winter.
We will provide ongoing training to the students of the Environmental Technology Program, who are the future stewards of Nunavut’s environment and to the Nunavut public service.
This will contribute to our local capacity to manage the wide range of new development projects being proposed in the territory.
This coming year, we will continue with the ongoing implementation of Upagiaqtavut, Nunavut’s strategic direction for climate change adaptation.
A draft Nunavut climate change adaptation action plan is presently being developed, and in cooperation with various stakeholders and Nunavummiut, and it will be finalized in 2013-14.
In the 2013-14 fiscal year, we will advance our development plans for potential parks in the non-decentralized communities of Kugaaruk and Clyde River, and continue with feasibility studies for possible parks in Sanikiluaq, Arviat, and at Napaaqtulik on Axel Heiberg Island.
The Government of Nunavut research vessel, Nuliajuk, completed another very successful research season in 2012, continuing with important turbot and Greenland shark research and bottom mapping near Pangnirtung, Qikiqtarjuaq, and Clyde River.
We also carried out a successful inshore, small vessel turbot fishing project in Pangnirtung to introduce open water fishing techniques used in Greenland, but new to Nunavummiut.
In 2013-14, we plan to undertake a number of projects related to market and product development for fish and fur within Nunavut.
Mr. Chairman, as you can see, the Department of Environment’s 2013-14 main estimates and business plan support the obligations and priorities of the Government of Nunavut and provide real benefits to Nunavummiut.
I will be pleased to take any questions you may have.
Hon. James Arreak: Yes, Mr. Chairman.
Thank you. (interpretation ends) Minister Arreak, for the record, please introduce your witnesses.
On my left is David Akeeagok, Deputy Minister, and to my right is Steve Pinksen, Assistant Deputy Minister Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I welcome you and your officials. (interpretation ends) Does the Chair of the Standing Committee on Community and Economic Development have comments?
I am pleased to provide opening comments on behalf of the Standing Committee on Community and Economic Development on its review of the 2013-14 main estimates and 2013-16 business plan of the Department of Environment.