A few photos from a qallunaat in Pangnirtung

From the end of June until August 6 I am participating in the University of Manitoba’s summer program in Pangnirtung, Nunavut (on Baffin Island, north of Iqaluit). The program focuses on the environment, Inuit society and learning Inuktitut. We are camped out on a hill behind Pang and have access to a school in town where we eat, go to class, and hang out with the many people who come to visit us here. We spend a couple of hours each day in class but much of our time is spent meeting people and exploring the area.
I have been in Pang for a week so far (the previous week was spent in Winnipeg at the university and several days were spent travelling here).

Already I feel I have learned so much. I’ve been particularly interested in the effects of climate change here and am so, so lucky to have professor Ian Mauro teaching the environmental component of the program. He is doing groundbreaking research with filmmaker Zacharias Kunuk O.C. (Fast Runner) into the observations Inuit peoples have made about the changing environment. They are finishing up a film titled “Qapirangajuk: To Spear Strangely” which will be released in the fall (info and media here – http://www.isuma.tv/lo/en/inuit-knowledge-and-climate-change). We are fortunate to have been able to preview the film this week and it is phenomenal. Many people in different places in Nunavut have noticed that the positions of the sun rise, the north star and the moon have shifted over their lifetimes and claim the earth has tilted. This is a really big deal. There are two causes Ian explained for such an observation – the warming of the oceans has caused them to expand (with heat, molecules move faster and take up a larger volume) changing their positions on earth, shifting the position of the earth. NASA has recorded a change in the tilt in the earth due to ocean thermal expansion, though they claim it would not be noticeable. Another climactic change that would cause a perception of the earth tilting is the warming of the atmosphere. As the atmosphere warms, the molecular density changes, changing the way light is refracted through the atmosphere. This refraction also causes the sun to ‘rise’ earlier (it appears above the horizon when it is not yet above the horizon). Again, this causes more warming.

The climate has warmed double the global average in the Arctic. It is warming faster than any other ecosystem.
The changes are noticeable. Even in the ten years since Ian first came as participant on this program, the summer finger glaciers students once slid down have disappeared. Trails through Auyuittuq National Park that existed for decades have collapsed due to permafrost melting. People are finding that seal skins are deteriorated and thinner now. Some seals have burned, furless skin. Everything is thawing, melting earlier. Multiyear ice is disappearing. People are having skin problems due to changing sunlight.

As mentioned, due to climate change, the permafrost (the permanently frozen earth that makes up the land here) is melting. Here, the melting is so substantial that the permafrost by the river in Pang collapsed in 2008 taking with it the old bridge and the new bridge they were in the process of replacing it with. I have photographs posted wherein you can see how the earth has shifted downward and crumbled. You can also see the remnants of the old bridge and the level at with the banks of the river once were (level with the buildings)

Aside from the damage to homes and other structures, another downside to permafrost melting is that it is largely composed of peat – a carbon sink. As the permafrost melts, the carbon is released from the peat, effectively speeding up climate change.

There are many effects of climate change here, these are just the few I’ve learned about so far (and know very, very little at that). I recommend checking out the website for the film (link above). I haven’t had the chance to really look at it, but I hear there is footage and more to read.

It is an amazing privilege to be here.. there’s something to be said for standing in one place and have your professor explain -The permafrost is melting. See? This is what happened here and this is how the Inuit are struggling, adapting, rebuilding. –

Instead of posting photographs here as I usually would, I have left them in the zenfolio gallery. Linking in to the blog is terribly time-consuming on even a fast internet connection. So here they are!

http://hollynorris.ca/p971501125