WEBVTT

00:00:04.041 --> 00:00:06.291
(ice breaking)

00:00:36.917 --> 00:00:39.750
(Inuit throat singing)

00:01:06.542 --> 00:01:09.290
(narrator): The Arctic.

00:01:09.291 --> 00:01:11.998
The top of the world.

00:01:11.999 --> 00:01:14.124
Three months of warm weather,

00:01:14.125 --> 00:01:15.998
nine months of freezing cold.

00:01:15.999 --> 00:01:20.249
And that\'s just the way
the Inuit like it!

00:01:20.250 --> 00:01:23.332
When winter comes
and the sea turns to ice,

00:01:23.333 --> 00:01:27.332
their territory
becomes twice as large.

00:01:27.333 --> 00:01:30.792
The horizon seems limitless.

00:01:31.750 --> 00:01:34.083
(birds cawing)

00:01:36.999 --> 00:01:39.792
(dogs whimpering)

00:01:48.000 --> 00:01:51.165
The Inuit have been living
on this land

00:01:51.166 --> 00:01:52.833
for thousands of years.

00:01:52.834 --> 00:01:53.916
At the turn of the 20th century,

00:01:53.917 --> 00:01:58.457
barely 5,000 Inuit
lived in the Canadian Arctic.

00:01:58.458 --> 00:02:02.834
Today,
there are more than 45,000.

00:02:10.999 --> 00:02:16.666
Meeka Mike is one of only
a few female guides in Nunavut,

00:02:16.667 --> 00:02:19.582
the autonomous territory
of the Inuit.

00:02:19.583 --> 00:02:21.124
For the past week,

00:02:21.125 --> 00:02:22.165
the dogs have been sick.

00:02:22.166 --> 00:02:24.833
Meeka depends on them
to earn her living.

00:02:24.834 --> 00:02:27.998
Their strength
sapped by a virus,

00:02:27.999 --> 00:02:29.998
they are unable to run
or draw the sled.

00:02:29.999 --> 00:02:34.041
They need fresh meat
to get stronger again.

00:02:35.333 --> 00:02:37.374
Meeka must get 110 seals

00:02:37.375 --> 00:02:40.917
every year to feed them.

00:02:47.250 --> 00:02:50.707
Most people
living in the Great North

00:02:50.708 --> 00:02:51.998
practice subsistence hunting
and fishing.

00:02:51.999 --> 00:02:54.833
Meeka had no trouble
getting some friends together

00:02:54.834 --> 00:02:56.999
to go on the trip.

00:03:20.708 --> 00:03:24.749
Meeka hunts with a partner,
Joshua Kango.

00:03:24.750 --> 00:03:25.998
Like Joshua,

00:03:25.999 --> 00:03:28.666
Pauloosie was born in an igloo.

00:03:28.667 --> 00:03:30.040
He and Mishima

00:03:30.041 --> 00:03:33.708
round out the team.

00:03:35.834 --> 00:03:36.625
To them,

00:03:36.626 --> 00:03:40.332
hunting and fishing are as much
a source of pleasure

00:03:40.333 --> 00:03:42.999
as they are a necessity.

00:03:45.959 --> 00:03:48.750
- Look, a seal just came out!

00:03:59.542 --> 00:04:02.207
(narrator): Hunting, fishing...

00:04:02.208 --> 00:04:03.083
Waiting.

00:04:03.084 --> 00:04:06.082
Always waiting for the animal
that will feed them.

00:04:06.083 --> 00:04:12.125
Always in their minds,
the memory of famines of old.

00:04:15.625 --> 00:04:18.291
- Over there, a seal.

00:04:20.125 --> 00:04:23.165
(narrator): It has only been
a short time

00:04:23.166 --> 00:04:25.749
since the introduction
of Western values

00:04:25.750 --> 00:04:27.040
disrupted the flow of tradition.

00:04:27.041 --> 00:04:31.583
Recently, a new source
of turmoil has emerged.

00:04:32.500 --> 00:04:35.124
- Did you see any caribou
in the mountain?

00:04:35.125 --> 00:04:39.999
(narrator): The environment
has become less predictable.

00:04:47.041 --> 00:04:51.542
- As soon as it starts to
warm up, the ice melts quickly.

00:05:14.667 --> 00:05:19.208
I was afraid the ice would crack
and I would fall into the water.

00:05:25.250 --> 00:05:26.582
(narrator): As a child,

00:05:26.583 --> 00:05:29.998
Pauloosie lived in this region
with his family.

00:05:29.999 --> 00:05:34.707
He still wears the mittens his
father gave him 20 years ago,

00:05:34.708 --> 00:05:39.917
made from the skin
of a polar bear he hunted.

00:05:55.500 --> 00:05:58.040
- I see some snowmobiles
over there.

00:05:58.041 --> 00:05:59.749
- Far away?

00:05:59.750 --> 00:06:02.208
- Yes, quite far away.

00:06:04.000 --> 00:06:08.040
(narrator): Hunting
is so essential to survival

00:06:08.041 --> 00:06:09.374
that every good hunter

00:06:09.375 --> 00:06:12.833
is rewarded
with the respect and gratitude

00:06:12.834 --> 00:06:15.083
of the community.

00:06:16.542 --> 00:06:19.791
At the heart of the Inuit
people\'s ability to survive

00:06:19.792 --> 00:06:25.542
is an intimate knowledge of the
environment and its wildlife.

00:06:29.291 --> 00:06:32.083
- Is this where you grew up?

00:06:36.917 --> 00:06:38.457
- When I was a child,

00:06:38.458 --> 00:06:41.916
I lived over in that direction.

00:06:41.917 --> 00:06:44.333
That\'s where I lived.

00:06:49.917 --> 00:06:51.999
(gunshot)

00:06:55.208 --> 00:06:59.166
(narrator):
The first seal of the day.

00:07:17.083 --> 00:07:18.749
Mishima must get to the seal

00:07:18.750 --> 00:07:22.959
before it sinks
to the bottom of the water.

00:08:18.917 --> 00:08:22.332
The Inuit\'s language,
their culture, their art,

00:08:22.333 --> 00:08:24.165
their technology...

00:08:24.166 --> 00:08:25.749
All derive from sila.

00:08:25.750 --> 00:08:30.749
Sila is the Inuit word
for temperature or atmosphere;

00:08:30.750 --> 00:08:34.625
it also means
\"intelligence of the world.\"

00:08:36.375 --> 00:08:40.249
- Everything that happens
in the world, in the planet,

00:08:40.250 --> 00:08:42.749
happens here first.

00:08:42.750 --> 00:08:44.582
That\'s how it works.

00:08:44.583 --> 00:08:48.249
We are the health barometer
for the rest of the world,

00:08:48.250 --> 00:08:49.457
the health indicator.

00:08:49.458 --> 00:08:53.998
And because we\'re a people
who live off the ice and snow,

00:08:53.999 --> 00:08:59.541
we see the most minute
of changes, immediately.

00:08:59.542 --> 00:09:01.791
\'Cause we\'re on the land
every day,

00:09:01.792 --> 00:09:04.165
hunting, fishing, gathering.

00:09:04.166 --> 00:09:07.499
(narrator): Sheila Watt-Cloutier
is the grandmother of young Lee

00:09:07.500 --> 00:09:11.124
and President of the Inuit
Circumpolar Conference,

00:09:11.125 --> 00:09:13.998
which works to strengthen ties

00:09:13.999 --> 00:09:16.998
between the world\'s
150,000 Inuit.

00:09:16.999 --> 00:09:19.958
- He\'s named
after his grandfather,

00:09:19.959 --> 00:09:24.250
and then
his two great-grandfathers.

00:09:33.999 --> 00:09:38.998
If the snow and ice are melting
right before our eyes

00:09:38.999 --> 00:09:40.416
and right under our feet,

00:09:40.417 --> 00:09:44.541
and our hunters
are now falling through the ice,

00:09:44.542 --> 00:09:45.958
it\'s because it\'s unpredictable,

00:09:45.959 --> 00:09:49.124
where what you see on
the surface is not necessarily

00:09:49.125 --> 00:09:52.791
what the ice really looks like
through the depth of it.

00:09:52.792 --> 00:09:58.541
If it\'s melting from underneath,
then all the rules are changing.

00:09:58.542 --> 00:10:01.375
So how do we deal with that?

00:11:05.041 --> 00:11:06.916
(narrator): Joshua\'s campsite

00:11:06.917 --> 00:11:08.749
is accessible by land and water

00:11:08.750 --> 00:11:11.833
and often serves as a refuge
for lost hunters

00:11:11.834 --> 00:11:13.998
or those caught by a storm.

00:11:13.999 --> 00:11:15.998
It has neither key,

00:11:15.999 --> 00:11:18.125
nor lock.

00:11:36.041 --> 00:11:37.916
Far from the bustle of Iqaluit,

00:11:37.917 --> 00:11:43.125
the camp is a place
that inspires dreams of plenty.

00:11:50.708 --> 00:11:53.125
(throat singing)

00:12:04.999 --> 00:12:07.125
(ice breaking)

00:12:18.500 --> 00:12:21.333
- Here, you can breathe easy.

00:12:22.041 --> 00:12:23.749
Every time I come here,

00:12:23.750 --> 00:12:26.917
I feel a sense of well-being.

00:12:31.500 --> 00:12:35.165
(narrator): Meeka has found
a stream of fresh water.

00:12:35.166 --> 00:12:37.290
It\'s the best water

00:12:37.291 --> 00:12:39.666
for making tea,
pure like the water

00:12:39.667 --> 00:12:42.998
her father drank
before it was affected

00:12:42.999 --> 00:12:44.249
by pollutants.

00:12:44.250 --> 00:12:45.998
Meeka likes travelling,

00:12:45.999 --> 00:12:48.249
especially in Italy.

00:12:48.250 --> 00:12:49.582
But what she wants most

00:12:49.583 --> 00:12:52.998
is to follow in the footsteps
of her ancestors

00:12:52.999 --> 00:12:54.499
and lead an autonomous life,

00:12:54.500 --> 00:12:58.542
a life like before
the white man came.

00:13:09.999 --> 00:13:13.082
- Many of us
are starting to think deeply

00:13:13.083 --> 00:13:15.124
about these issues.

00:13:15.125 --> 00:13:16.416
Why have we come

00:13:16.417 --> 00:13:21.998
from such a highly independent
way of living to now,

00:13:21.999 --> 00:13:22.999
highly dependent,

00:13:23.000 --> 00:13:27.416
be it to substances,
institutions, processes...

00:13:27.417 --> 00:13:29.291
You know?

00:13:32.875 --> 00:13:37.998
We have the highest
suicide rates in North America.

00:13:37.999 --> 00:13:40.457
The answers lie,

00:13:40.458 --> 00:13:42.624
in my opinion,

00:13:42.625 --> 00:13:44.124
in our culture,

00:13:44.125 --> 00:13:45.998
our hunt, our food.

00:13:45.999 --> 00:13:49.040
All of those answers
lie in our tradition

00:13:49.041 --> 00:13:50.374
and our culture,

00:13:50.375 --> 00:13:51.999
because when our children

00:13:52.000 --> 00:13:54.874
are traditionally taught
on the land,

00:13:54.875 --> 00:13:56.998
they are taught not only

00:13:56.999 --> 00:13:58.749
the technical skills

00:13:58.750 --> 00:14:00.916
of surviving on the land,

00:14:00.917 --> 00:14:02.998
you are taught character,

00:14:02.999 --> 00:14:04.998
you are taught to be patient,

00:14:04.999 --> 00:14:06.833
to be bold under pressure,

00:14:06.834 --> 00:14:09.791
to be able to handle stress,

00:14:09.792 --> 00:14:11.416
to be courageous,

00:14:11.417 --> 00:14:12.958
to be creative.

00:14:12.959 --> 00:14:17.999
All things required
to survive life.

00:14:19.333 --> 00:14:21.541
(scratchy voices over radio)

00:14:21.542 --> 00:14:23.958
(narrator): The surface area
of the Arctic

00:14:23.959 --> 00:14:26.666
represents one-third
of the area of Canada.

00:14:26.667 --> 00:14:29.998
Two-million square kilometres,

00:14:29.999 --> 00:14:33.999
and 21 kilometres of asphalt.

00:14:36.999 --> 00:14:41.541
Pangnirtung, or Pang,
Meeka\'s native village,

00:14:41.542 --> 00:14:43.874
is located one hour by plane,

00:14:43.875 --> 00:14:46.124
or one week by dogsled,

00:14:46.125 --> 00:14:48.500
from Iqaluit.

00:14:54.999 --> 00:14:57.834
(dog barking, child screaming)

00:15:02.792 --> 00:15:04.958
This is where Meeka grew up.

00:15:04.959 --> 00:15:09.332
She knows everyone
in this village of 1,200 souls.

00:15:09.333 --> 00:15:12.583
She has come
to visit her father.

00:15:22.125 --> 00:15:25.624
Meeka and her father are
passionate about technology...

00:15:25.625 --> 00:15:29.165
The old kind and the new.

00:15:29.166 --> 00:15:32.333
These are the tools of survival.

00:16:04.500 --> 00:16:07.458
- I think they\'re finished.

00:16:15.750 --> 00:16:18.083
I can see very well.

00:16:24.999 --> 00:16:29.666
On the plains, long ago,
we used them like sunglasses.

00:16:29.667 --> 00:16:34.250
They prevented us
from going blind from the snow.

00:16:34.875 --> 00:16:37.958
- Were all glasses
made the same way?

00:16:37.959 --> 00:16:42.542
- I remember that glasses were
made out of caribou antlers.

00:16:53.583 --> 00:16:55.541
They\'re just fine!

00:16:55.542 --> 00:16:57.500
(laughter)

00:17:05.041 --> 00:17:09.959
- In the photo, we see my dad
and my younger brother.

00:17:10.999 --> 00:17:14.998
When we were young,
we would observe our father.

00:17:14.999 --> 00:17:17.542
That\'s how I learned.

00:17:19.500 --> 00:17:23.542
We camped all summer long
and we hunted caribou.

00:17:25.999 --> 00:17:29.500
Now, I ask him questions
when I need to.

00:17:32.792 --> 00:17:37.500
As a child, I learned from
my mother how to dry out hides.

00:17:39.750 --> 00:17:42.707
She showed me
how to help her make mittens

00:17:42.708 --> 00:17:45.041
and the linings of boots.

00:17:50.667 --> 00:17:53.542
She died when I was young.

00:17:55.792 --> 00:18:00.375
Today, I try to remember
hw she would have done things.

00:18:04.999 --> 00:18:07.333
- It doesn\'t fit very well.

00:18:08.250 --> 00:18:10.959
How does it work?

00:18:12.667 --> 00:18:14.959
Like this, maybe?

00:18:19.750 --> 00:18:21.332
Quite a can-opener!

00:18:21.333 --> 00:18:24.750
It doesn\'t want to co-operate.

00:18:25.458 --> 00:18:27.792
(can-opener whirring)

00:18:35.999 --> 00:18:38.666
(laughter)
(phone ringing)

00:18:38.667 --> 00:18:40.582
- We are a people
that are very resilient.

00:18:40.583 --> 00:18:43.332
We are a people
that are very adaptable.

00:18:43.333 --> 00:18:47.457
Because we have always adapted
to changes in weather,

00:18:47.458 --> 00:18:50.417
in all of the seasons and so on.

00:18:51.417 --> 00:18:52.582
I mean, to be able

00:18:52.583 --> 00:18:55.666
to build homes
out of snow warm enough

00:18:55.667 --> 00:18:58.207
for your babies
to sleep in naked,

00:18:58.208 --> 00:19:00.542
that\'s ingenuity!

00:19:08.834 --> 00:19:10.165
With everything that we have,

00:19:10.166 --> 00:19:13.082
we\'ve been able to survive
for a millennia.

00:19:13.083 --> 00:19:14.958
But you know,

00:19:14.959 --> 00:19:17.542
adaptation has its limits, too.

00:19:23.250 --> 00:19:25.374
- It\'s not the best piece
of wood.

00:19:25.375 --> 00:19:27.959
It\'s a little long.

00:19:28.999 --> 00:19:32.582
(narrator): Inuit knowledge
is passed on by example.

00:19:32.583 --> 00:19:33.624
Meeka likes to say

00:19:33.625 --> 00:19:37.082
that her father
is her favourite book.

00:19:37.083 --> 00:19:39.333
(saw running)

00:19:51.291 --> 00:19:55.375
- Hey, thanks!
Thanks, neighbour.

00:19:57.000 --> 00:20:00.416
(narrator): After spending
his entire life in Pangnirtung,

00:20:00.417 --> 00:20:06.249
Jamesee Mike has forged
tight links with the community.

00:20:06.250 --> 00:20:07.041
Without being asked,

00:20:07.042 --> 00:20:10.332
a neighbour brings over
a little something for supper:

00:20:10.333 --> 00:20:13.083
some delicious Arctic char.

00:20:24.250 --> 00:20:27.417
(voice over radio)

00:20:36.999 --> 00:20:38.666
Alienation,

00:20:38.667 --> 00:20:40.499
loss of cultural identity:

00:20:40.500 --> 00:20:42.541
for the people
of the Great North,

00:20:42.542 --> 00:20:44.998
these are severe threats.

00:20:44.999 --> 00:20:46.998
Pangnirtung is a dry village:

00:20:46.999 --> 00:20:49.958
alcohol and drugs
are prohibited.

00:20:49.959 --> 00:20:54.125
Despite the ban,
the menace is ever-present.

00:20:55.750 --> 00:20:58.124
Lack of work
is a constant problem,

00:20:58.125 --> 00:21:00.374
and suicide claims new victims

00:21:00.375 --> 00:21:02.582
with depressing regularity.

00:21:02.583 --> 00:21:06.499
Meeka has lost too many
friends and family members

00:21:06.500 --> 00:21:10.041
to not feel concerned.

00:21:22.166 --> 00:21:27.125
- This is where I grew up.

00:21:27.917 --> 00:21:32.290
Since my childhood, we\'ve
been through a lot of upheaval.

00:21:32.291 --> 00:21:34.416
We would go to school
like Whites,

00:21:34.417 --> 00:21:36.249
but whenever we went home,

00:21:36.250 --> 00:21:39.333
we were completely Inuit.

00:21:39.959 --> 00:21:43.998
I know that I felt
very confused.

00:21:43.999 --> 00:21:46.749
We didn\'t know which was best.

00:21:46.750 --> 00:21:51.998
Now, I realize that the Inuit
way of life is very good.

00:21:51.999 --> 00:21:54.917
Everyone helps each other out.

00:21:58.083 --> 00:22:01.332
I don\'t want us to forget
who we are

00:22:01.333 --> 00:22:02.998
and how we survived.

00:22:02.999 --> 00:22:03.999
But sadly, today,

00:22:04.000 --> 00:22:08.500
we are neglecting our traditions
a little too much.

00:22:46.999 --> 00:22:48.749
(narrator): For 4,000 years,

00:22:48.750 --> 00:22:50.749
Inuit civilization has thrived

00:22:50.750 --> 00:22:52.040
around Cape Dorset.

00:22:52.041 --> 00:22:57.000
Its open waters make it possible
to fish here all year round.

00:23:01.834 --> 00:23:04.998
Charged with energy,
this volcanic land

00:23:04.999 --> 00:23:06.998
has witnessed the birth

00:23:06.999 --> 00:23:09.541
of many shamans and artists.

00:23:09.542 --> 00:23:15.625
Today, Cape Dorset art is
the most valued in the Arctic.

00:23:28.083 --> 00:23:28.999
Mr. Namoonai Ashoona

00:23:29.000 --> 00:23:32.499
is one of the most revered
elders in the region.

00:23:32.500 --> 00:23:33.624
People call upon him

00:23:33.625 --> 00:23:38.667
when they want to decipher
the codes of ancestral life.

00:23:40.999 --> 00:23:44.916
He comes from a long line
of hunter-artists.

00:23:44.917 --> 00:23:46.165
His unfailing memory

00:23:46.166 --> 00:23:51.125
makes him a valued guide
for the entire community.

00:23:57.458 --> 00:23:58.458
- There!

00:23:58.459 --> 00:24:02.874
At the top, that\'s the flame
of the oil lamp...

00:24:02.875 --> 00:24:07.125
which we call ikummariastsiaq.

00:24:23.458 --> 00:24:24.958
We, the Inuit,

00:24:24.959 --> 00:24:27.749
were part of one big family...

00:24:27.750 --> 00:24:29.874
with our grandparents...

00:24:29.875 --> 00:24:32.542
There were a lot of us.

00:24:38.708 --> 00:24:40.874
We took good care of the dogs.

00:24:40.875 --> 00:24:45.250
We trained the dog-teams.

00:24:50.333 --> 00:24:51.998
Our only tools were our teeth.

00:24:51.999 --> 00:24:56.083
That\'s how we helped
our father out, as men.

00:25:02.083 --> 00:25:05.916
We would play with the bones.

00:25:05.917 --> 00:25:07.416
That\'s all we had to play with.

00:25:07.417 --> 00:25:12.750
Bones from seals,
walruses and caribou.

00:25:22.583 --> 00:25:25.958
The toys were a way
to put into practice

00:25:25.959 --> 00:25:28.082
what we learned
from our fathers,

00:25:28.083 --> 00:25:30.999
and girls from their mothers.

00:25:34.250 --> 00:25:35.998
It wasn\'t perfect...

00:25:35.999 --> 00:25:40.917
but I find it was more efficient
and healthier.

00:25:43.458 --> 00:25:45.916
When food and fat
was available...

00:25:45.917 --> 00:25:48.958
we kept warm
with the fat in winter...

00:25:48.959 --> 00:25:51.750
and the sun in summer.

00:25:53.458 --> 00:25:57.125
That\'s how it was,
and life was good.

00:26:12.083 --> 00:26:15.040
(narrator): Kuv, one of the best
hunters in the region,

00:26:15.041 --> 00:26:18.332
has invited Namoonai Ashoona
to go hunting with him.

00:26:18.333 --> 00:26:20.374
Kuv\'s own father died young,

00:26:20.375 --> 00:26:23.874
and he likes having an elder
at his side on his trips.

00:26:23.875 --> 00:26:26.207
But it\'s expensive
to leave the village.

00:26:26.208 --> 00:26:27.749
In the Arctic,

00:26:27.750 --> 00:26:29.791
gas, the boat and supplies

00:26:29.792 --> 00:26:33.582
cost twice as much
as in the South.

00:26:33.583 --> 00:26:35.165
For some, going on a hunt

00:26:35.166 --> 00:26:38.666
has become an activity
they can no longer afford.

00:26:38.667 --> 00:26:39.291
Mr. Ashoona

00:26:39.292 --> 00:26:44.166
has not been able to leave
the village in five years.

00:26:48.792 --> 00:26:52.998
Also going on the hunt
is Kuv\'s son, Toby.

00:26:52.999 --> 00:26:54.749
The young generation of Inuit

00:26:54.750 --> 00:27:00.041
needs elders who will pass on
the ancestral knowledge.

00:27:01.999 --> 00:27:04.458
- I\'m thrilled!

00:27:08.667 --> 00:27:09.998
Because of my health,

00:27:09.999 --> 00:27:14.083
I haven\'t been able to come
in a long time.

00:27:14.999 --> 00:27:17.999
I\'m happy to be here again.

00:27:23.583 --> 00:27:27.874
We\'re heading for the place
where I grew up.

00:27:27.875 --> 00:27:29.959
(gunshot)

00:27:31.999 --> 00:27:33.624
(narrator): A seal.

00:27:33.625 --> 00:27:36.999
The group will eat well tonight.

00:28:11.041 --> 00:28:12.582
- This lake...

00:28:12.583 --> 00:28:13.999
was full of water.

00:28:14.000 --> 00:28:16.499
The level was much higher.

00:28:16.500 --> 00:28:17.998
Now it\'s almost dry.

00:28:17.999 --> 00:28:22.166
I don\'t know why the water level
has dropped.

00:28:35.750 --> 00:28:38.500
I just don\'t understand it.

00:28:52.208 --> 00:28:54.833
(narrator): \"This is where
Kuv raised his family

00:28:54.834 --> 00:28:57.290
before going to live in town.
For many Inuit,

00:28:57.291 --> 00:29:01.207
living in a house
has become a necessary evil.

00:29:01.208 --> 00:29:06.208
But the camps
are where real life happens.

00:29:11.834 --> 00:29:14.916
The canvas of this tent is new.

00:29:14.917 --> 00:29:15.998
Kuv had to replace it

00:29:15.999 --> 00:29:18.998
when a polar bear tore it
a few weeks ago.

00:29:18.999 --> 00:29:22.040
It was the third time
in two years.

00:29:22.041 --> 00:29:26.125
Only the old door
survived the attacks.

00:29:38.999 --> 00:29:40.707
After a 30-year absence,

00:29:40.708 --> 00:29:44.750
Mr. Ashoona
is back on his old land.

00:29:52.750 --> 00:29:55.166
(throat singing)

00:30:31.834 --> 00:30:34.166
(radio static)

00:30:40.792 --> 00:30:43.416
In the isolated communities
of the Great North,

00:30:43.417 --> 00:30:47.207
radio acts as a web
to join them together.

00:30:47.208 --> 00:30:52.917
The danger of getting lost
weighs constantly on the hunter.

00:30:53.417 --> 00:30:58.040
Kuv is known as someone who
never refuses a distress call.

00:30:58.041 --> 00:31:02.207
He holds the record for
the most rescues in the region.

00:31:02.208 --> 00:31:06.916
The unpredictable climate of
recent years has kept him busy.

00:31:06.917 --> 00:31:10.208
(tinny music on radio)

00:31:12.250 --> 00:31:16.791
- Nature and the climate
are changing;

00:31:16.792 --> 00:31:20.333
even the wind
has changed directions.

00:31:24.750 --> 00:31:25.874
Before,

00:31:25.875 --> 00:31:29.750
we would observe
everything around us.

00:31:34.959 --> 00:31:37.707
Today, we still try to do that.

00:31:37.708 --> 00:31:41.082
But because the weather
is changing,

00:31:41.083 --> 00:31:43.998
we are concerned...

00:31:43.999 --> 00:31:46.542
for our environment.

00:31:50.125 --> 00:31:54.959
Things have become
unpredictable.

00:31:57.708 --> 00:32:00.999
We don\'t really understand...

00:32:05.250 --> 00:32:06.791
I don\'t know

00:32:06.792 --> 00:32:08.833
what\'s happening...

00:32:08.834 --> 00:32:10.874
to our world,

00:32:10.875 --> 00:32:13.125
our universe.

00:32:37.375 --> 00:32:40.333
(child imitating bird cawing)

00:33:08.542 --> 00:33:11.542
Here\'s a beautiful old knife.

00:33:17.041 --> 00:33:22.291
Very useful for the large,
hard part of the walrus.

00:33:28.708 --> 00:33:32.998
It\'s also very good
for cutting sealskin...

00:33:32.999 --> 00:33:35.875
and caribou.

00:33:36.999 --> 00:33:40.708
I\'m never without this knife.

00:33:56.792 --> 00:33:59.500
I\'ve had it for a long time.

00:34:00.999 --> 00:34:04.000
Since around 1930.

00:34:06.875 --> 00:34:07.916
Before I die,

00:34:07.917 --> 00:34:10.749
I\'m not going to say to someone,

00:34:10.750 --> 00:34:13.332
\"Here, it\'s for you.\"

00:34:13.333 --> 00:34:16.083
Some one will choose it.

00:34:17.999 --> 00:34:19.874
One of my sons,

00:34:19.875 --> 00:34:22.959
or one of my grandsons.

00:34:28.999 --> 00:34:32.582
- I hope we\'ll get there
before low tide.

00:34:32.583 --> 00:34:35.332
(narrator): Four-hundred
kilometres from Cape Dorset,

00:34:35.333 --> 00:34:38.207
Joshua and Meeka
are searching for food

00:34:38.208 --> 00:34:41.249
as the Inuit have always done.

00:34:41.250 --> 00:34:44.959
- You haven\'t seen any seals?

00:34:50.375 --> 00:34:51.791
- No!

00:34:51.792 --> 00:34:54.040
Not even any bearded seals.

00:34:54.041 --> 00:34:57.333
- The weather\'s not too good.

00:35:08.792 --> 00:35:13.082
(narrator): They are looking
for caribou to feed the dogs,

00:35:13.083 --> 00:35:15.207
who have not eaten in two days.

00:35:15.208 --> 00:35:17.998
But they won\'t kill
an old caribou,

00:35:17.999 --> 00:35:20.040
because it has very little fat.

00:35:20.041 --> 00:35:23.959
Gestating females
are also spared.

00:35:29.542 --> 00:35:30.998
- It\'s a great spot.

00:35:30.999 --> 00:35:32.749
Surely there are caribou
around here.

00:35:32.750 --> 00:35:36.791
Because there\'s plenty
of food for caribou over there.

00:35:36.792 --> 00:35:40.417
(Joshua singing)

00:35:57.834 --> 00:36:00.958
(narrator): Like many other
Inuit of her generation,

00:36:00.959 --> 00:36:04.332
Meeka has left Baffin Island
several times

00:36:04.333 --> 00:36:07.499
to try to make a life elsewhere.

00:36:07.500 --> 00:36:08.333
But like a compass,

00:36:08.334 --> 00:36:11.666
her heart keeps
pointing her back to the North.

00:36:11.667 --> 00:36:16.999
Now she has made up her mind:
she will never leave again.

00:36:29.917 --> 00:36:36.000
(whale song)

00:36:40.625 --> 00:36:43.916
The group must make it to camp
before night falls.

00:36:43.917 --> 00:36:46.999
Joshua does not like
the rough seas.

00:36:47.000 --> 00:36:48.416
Five years ago,

00:36:48.417 --> 00:36:52.207
four members of his clan drowned

00:36:52.208 --> 00:36:56.166
when a storm blew up
without warning.

00:37:02.959 --> 00:37:05.500
(voice over radio)

00:37:13.500 --> 00:37:16.125
(speaking Inuktitut)

00:37:19.000 --> 00:37:21.333
(voice over radio)

00:37:24.999 --> 00:37:27.290
- Okay, good. They\'re not lost.

00:37:27.291 --> 00:37:29.542
I understand.

00:37:32.208 --> 00:37:36.416
Because all the traditional
knowledge, the Inuit wisdom,

00:37:36.417 --> 00:37:39.332
to live
with this harsh environment,

00:37:39.333 --> 00:37:40.916
if all the rules are changing,

00:37:40.917 --> 00:37:44.040
and weather and conditions
are becoming unpredictable,

00:37:44.041 --> 00:37:47.374
we have a major challenge
on our hands.

00:37:47.375 --> 00:37:47.999
Major.

00:37:48.000 --> 00:37:51.791
And so we are learning
to use our traditional knowledge

00:37:51.792 --> 00:37:57.500
and partner with Western science
to deal with this issue.

00:37:58.750 --> 00:38:00.249
(narrator): In recent years,

00:38:00.250 --> 00:38:03.707
the scientific community
has begun to realize

00:38:03.708 --> 00:38:06.582
that the empirical data
of traditional knowledge

00:38:06.583 --> 00:38:08.834
has much to offer.

00:38:15.999 --> 00:38:17.999
- You wrote a lot
about the temperature,

00:38:18.000 --> 00:38:21.417
the climate, the changes
you observed in Pang.

00:38:30.208 --> 00:38:31.749
- That\'s true,

00:38:31.750 --> 00:38:34.166
I would write often.

00:38:38.999 --> 00:38:43.624
It used to be colder
when there was a lot of ice.

00:38:43.625 --> 00:38:47.374
The ice would form
earlier in the fall,

00:38:47.375 --> 00:38:51.165
not far from here, in Pang.

00:38:51.166 --> 00:38:53.998
But now the ice...

00:38:53.999 --> 00:38:56.290
A sort of floating ice,

00:38:56.291 --> 00:38:58.374
that we call killiminiq...

00:38:58.375 --> 00:39:01.542
Now it disappears sooner.

00:39:03.999 --> 00:39:06.332
(narrator):
Mr. Jamesee Mike\'s notebooks

00:39:06.333 --> 00:39:11.542
contain more than 40 years\'
worth of notes on temperature.

00:39:12.999 --> 00:39:15.749
They tell us,
among other things,

00:39:15.750 --> 00:39:17.499
that the amount of snowfall

00:39:17.500 --> 00:39:21.917
has changed significantly
since his childhood.

00:39:28.959 --> 00:39:30.457
As well, for some time now,

00:39:30.458 --> 00:39:33.541
the snow that is best suited
to building igloos

00:39:33.542 --> 00:39:36.999
has been found
to have soft inner layers.

00:39:37.000 --> 00:39:39.916
Some years,
it hardly snows at all,

00:39:39.917 --> 00:39:40.998
or it starts snowing too early.

00:39:40.999 --> 00:39:46.833
The formation of ice on the sea
and the traditional routes

00:39:46.834 --> 00:39:48.874
have become unpredictable.

00:39:48.875 --> 00:39:50.207
Several hunters

00:39:50.208 --> 00:39:52.917
have lost their lives.

00:40:00.000 --> 00:40:02.624
New visitors
are making their appearance.

00:40:02.625 --> 00:40:04.998
In various places
on Baffin Island,

00:40:04.999 --> 00:40:06.998
people have sighted robins,

00:40:06.999 --> 00:40:11.083
a species normally found
much farther south.

00:40:29.417 --> 00:40:30.457
In the Arctic,

00:40:30.458 --> 00:40:33.916
the balance between life
and death is precarious.

00:40:33.917 --> 00:40:35.998
A limited number of species
is present,

00:40:35.999 --> 00:40:38.332
so the slightest change

00:40:38.333 --> 00:40:40.998
disrupts the harmony.

00:40:40.999 --> 00:40:44.165
If temperatures rise
even a little,

00:40:44.166 --> 00:40:46.165
plants flower
earlier in the year...

00:40:46.166 --> 00:40:48.874
Out of sync
with caribou migration.

00:40:48.875 --> 00:40:51.082
The herds grow weaker,

00:40:51.083 --> 00:40:54.083
and the number of births
decreases.

00:41:00.542 --> 00:41:01.998
The hunter and the polar bear

00:41:01.999 --> 00:41:03.707
have a shorter
and shorter period

00:41:03.708 --> 00:41:04.998
in which to find their prey.

00:41:04.999 --> 00:41:09.542
The cycle of life
is thrown out of balance.

00:41:16.166 --> 00:41:18.959
(throat singing)

00:41:45.458 --> 00:41:47.875
(radio static)

00:41:57.959 --> 00:41:59.999
(voice over radio)

00:42:01.208 --> 00:42:02.998
A few hours from Cape Dorset,

00:42:02.999 --> 00:42:04.666
Kuv inquires
about the temperature

00:42:04.667 --> 00:42:07.541
before going out on the ice
to fish.

00:42:07.542 --> 00:42:10.082
Jimmy Manning\'s camp

00:42:10.083 --> 00:42:11.958
serves as the operations centre.

00:42:11.959 --> 00:42:15.624
Namoonai Ashoona
has fallen ill and is unable

00:42:15.625 --> 00:42:16.749
to go on the expedition.

00:42:16.750 --> 00:42:22.792
In his place, the artist Ojotak
has agreed to join the group.

00:42:32.999 --> 00:42:36.499
- Now we are faced
with monumental changes

00:42:36.500 --> 00:42:37.208
of environmental issues.

00:42:37.209 --> 00:42:42.707
Like the contaminants from afar
that come into our country food,

00:42:42.708 --> 00:42:44.582
and as a result,
affect our way of life

00:42:44.583 --> 00:42:47.332
and our health
and our well-being,

00:42:47.333 --> 00:42:50.833
and puts into question
our cultural way of life

00:42:50.834 --> 00:42:51.998
for the future.

00:42:51.999 --> 00:42:55.166
And now climate change
on top of that.

00:42:56.999 --> 00:42:58.457
Imagine for us,

00:42:58.458 --> 00:43:01.998
now facing detrimental issues,

00:43:01.999 --> 00:43:05.541
such as contaminants
in country food

00:43:05.542 --> 00:43:07.791
and our climate changing

00:43:07.792 --> 00:43:10.125
in very rapid ways.

00:43:15.250 --> 00:43:18.749
But because we are far
and few in the Arctic,

00:43:18.750 --> 00:43:20.374
it doesn\'t become as alarming

00:43:20.375 --> 00:43:23.874
for the average Canadian,

00:43:23.875 --> 00:43:28.124
or the average person,
who\'s not eating country food.

00:43:28.125 --> 00:43:30.499
For us, it\'s a matter of health,

00:43:30.500 --> 00:43:34.999
and it\'s a matter
of cultural survival, as well.

00:43:38.291 --> 00:43:41.874
- Here are
some polar-bear tracks.

00:43:41.875 --> 00:43:46.792
These may be the tracks
of a cub...

00:43:51.583 --> 00:43:55.959
because these ones
were made by a female.

00:43:58.208 --> 00:44:04.542
Usually, the tracks beside hers
are those of a bear cub.

00:44:10.291 --> 00:44:13.125
(Inuit singing)

00:44:39.333 --> 00:44:41.708
(speaking Inuktitut)

00:44:43.000 --> 00:44:45.291
(voice over radio)

00:44:48.999 --> 00:44:52.000
(singing)

00:45:51.166 --> 00:45:54.541
(narrator): Inuit tradition
speaks of an iceberg

00:45:54.542 --> 00:45:55.998
as a living thing.

00:45:55.999 --> 00:45:56.999
\"Don\'t get too close...

00:45:57.000 --> 00:46:00.374
It\'ll grab you with its icy
hands and devour you!\"

00:46:00.375 --> 00:46:03.959
Even today, the taboo persists.

00:46:04.625 --> 00:46:07.416
In the midst of a frozen sea,

00:46:07.417 --> 00:46:10.290
the unstable structure
of an iceberg

00:46:10.291 --> 00:46:11.833
can collapse at any moment.

00:46:11.834 --> 00:46:13.998
But the iceberg
guards a treasure:

00:46:13.999 --> 00:46:16.416
the purest water in the world,

00:46:16.417 --> 00:46:19.999
hidden in its depths
for centuries.

00:46:26.208 --> 00:46:32.166
- When we get there,
we\'ll make some tea.

00:46:32.999 --> 00:46:37.500
It\'ll be good
to have a nice cup of tea.

00:46:42.500 --> 00:46:46.208
Look how beautiful it is!

00:46:49.999 --> 00:46:52.998
- You don\'t want to be here

00:46:52.999 --> 00:46:56.542
when the ice breaks
and collapses.

00:47:10.083 --> 00:47:12.666
(narrator):
The youngest in the group

00:47:12.667 --> 00:47:14.416
dare to break the taboo.

00:47:14.417 --> 00:47:15.624
Ojotak and Kuv,

00:47:15.625 --> 00:47:18.290
still attached
to the old beliefs,

00:47:18.291 --> 00:47:21.500
keep their distance
from the iceberg.

00:47:28.417 --> 00:47:30.917
(humming)

00:47:32.083 --> 00:47:34.998
- Hope it doesn\'t fall over!

00:47:34.999 --> 00:47:38.583
You\'re going to make me
a nice cup of tea.

00:47:48.417 --> 00:47:51.999
(dog barking)

00:48:05.708 --> 00:48:08.332
(narrator): Before
the pollutants of \"progress\"

00:48:08.333 --> 00:48:09.958
came to the Arctic,

00:48:09.959 --> 00:48:12.998
pure water was easy to find.

00:48:12.999 --> 00:48:15.499
Today, the Inuit\'s environment

00:48:15.500 --> 00:48:17.749
is in a state of siege.

00:48:17.750 --> 00:48:20.749
A cup of tea
made with pure water

00:48:20.750 --> 00:48:23.875
is roundly appreciated.

00:48:43.417 --> 00:48:46.625
(dogs barking)

00:48:47.875 --> 00:48:50.998
- The planet may look big
and seem big,

00:48:50.999 --> 00:48:53.875
but in reality, it\'s very small.

00:48:55.999 --> 00:48:59.290
We have to remain
very consciously aware

00:48:59.291 --> 00:49:02.250
that the connections are great.

00:49:07.375 --> 00:49:10.290
Do your part in helping us Inuit

00:49:10.291 --> 00:49:12.040
to stay on the land.

00:49:12.041 --> 00:49:15.874
Because we are
the natural guardians

00:49:15.875 --> 00:49:17.624
and we will guard the planet...

00:49:17.625 --> 00:49:20.040
Not just for ourselves,
but for you.

00:49:20.041 --> 00:49:24.457
Keep us on the land,
hunting and fishing,

00:49:24.458 --> 00:49:25.499
and we will guard it...

00:49:25.500 --> 00:49:29.542
Not only for us,
but for the rest of the world.

00:49:33.999 --> 00:49:35.749
(narrator): In the North,

00:49:35.750 --> 00:49:37.998
the length of a dog\'s tongue

00:49:37.999 --> 00:49:39.499
indicates
his degree of tiredness.

00:49:39.500 --> 00:49:42.998
If he\'s not too tired,
it\'s \"the little tongue\";

00:49:42.999 --> 00:49:44.541
if he\'s exhausted,

00:49:44.542 --> 00:49:47.916
he is said to have
\"the long tongue.\"

00:49:47.917 --> 00:49:50.332
Today, the Inuit
observe their environment

00:49:50.333 --> 00:49:52.707
and wonder if it\'s not doomed.

00:49:52.708 --> 00:49:56.999
Will it be able to resist
the upheaval of climate change?

00:49:57.000 --> 00:49:58.207
Will their culture succeed

00:49:58.208 --> 00:50:02.999
in adapting to the pressures
of Western progress?

00:50:05.708 --> 00:50:11.541
Once, night travellers knew
that under a clear sky,

00:50:11.542 --> 00:50:12.998
they would not get lost.

00:50:12.999 --> 00:50:17.040
All they needed to do
was follow the North Star.

00:50:17.041 --> 00:50:20.998
Can Polaris still guide
the People of the Ice

00:50:20.999 --> 00:50:23.999
in their coming journey?

00:50:37.000 --> 00:50:40.083
(singing)

00:50:51.333 --> 00:50:55.208
Captioning by CNST, Montreal