Throat-Singing Duo from Nunavut Wins Pan-ArcticVision Competition

On October 12, the throat-singing duo known as Iva and Angu won in the Most Arctic Song category at the 2024 Pan-ArcticVision competition, held this year in Nuuk, Kalaallit Nunaat (Greenland). The duo includes Nunavut musicians Ivaluarjuk Kathleen Merritt, from Kangiqliniq (Rankin Inlet), NU, and Charlotte Qamaniq, from Iglulik, NU. Inspired by the popular European singing competition Eurovision, Pan-ArcticVision is a song contest that brings together circumpolar peoples from across the Arctic to foster a pan-Arctic identity and community through music. Rather than representing countries, participants represent their home regions from across the circumpolar North. This marks the second year of the competition, which debuted in Vadsø, northern Norway, in 2023. Pan-ArcticVision aims to change host locations each year, with Iva and Angu’s win securing Nunavut as the host region for the 2025 competition.


Etua Snowball’s Children’s Book Shortlisted for Quebec Writers’ Federation Literary Award

Author Etua Snowball’s children’s book, The Wolf Pup (2024), has been shortlisted for the Janet Savage Blachford Prize for Children’s and Young Adult Literature, an award part of the Quebec Writers’ Federation (QWF). Published earlier this year by Inhabit Media, The Wolf Pup tells a story of a young boy who befriends an Arctic wolf pup while at camp in the summertime and is based on a memory from the author’s own childhood. From Kuujjuaq, Nunavik, QC, Snowball has received multiple awards throughout his life, including a Prime Minister’s Award for Teaching Excellence and a Citizenship Award. The QWF awards honour the best of English-language literature in Quebec in eight different categories ranging from poetry to non-fiction with each award including a prize of $3,000. Winners will be announced on November 12.


Inuit Film Festival Debuts at Emily Carr University

The inaugural Inuit Film Festival premieres at Emily Carr University of Art + Design in Vancouver, BC, on November 1. The one-day festival features a selection of short and feature films by acclaimed Inuit filmmakers asinnajaq, Lindsay McIntyre, Glenn Gear, Lucy Tulugarjuk and Carol Kunnuk. A reception will follow the screenings and will include a live performance by Inuit throat-singing duo PIQSIQ (Tiffany Ayalik and Inuksuk Mackay). The event is hosted by Emily Carr’s Aboriginal Gathering Place, a community hub for Indigenous students.


New Documentary Examines Inuit Perspectives on Mining in Nunavik

A new documentary titled Nunatta Ataani examines the economic, environmental and cultural impacts of the mining industry on Inuit living in Nunavik. The film looks at the complex roles of Inuit prospector guides in the 1800s early mining explorations. It also features a number of interviews with Inuit living in the region, including workers, industry leaders, elected officials and more, for nuanced perspectives on the topic. Mining has long been an important topic for Inuit living in Nunavik, especially as the industry begins to pick up after a slow period. “The mining industry is settling in our region, whether we like it or not,” says Tunu Napartuk, former chairman of the Nunavik Mineral Exploration Fund (NMEF) board, a nonprofit organization that aims to increase Inuit participation in mining exploration. “The real question is whether we will remain mere spectators... or if we take control and decide how our lands will be used and developed.” Nunatta Ataani premieres on YouTube on October 25 at 7:30 p.m. ET.