November 15, 2017 marks the official opening of the Inuvik-Tuktoyaktuk Highway, a $299 million 140-kilometre all-weather gravel road leading to the Arctic Ocean. This highway represents the final link of a transportation network spanning across Canada, connecting its people from coast to coast to coast. Located at the top of the world in the Northwest…
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September 1, 2016, is the effective date of the Deline Final Self-government Agreement, the agreement (modern day Treaty) which established the Deline Gotine Government, Canada’s first and only community-based Aboriginal public government, located in Deline, Northwest Territories. Deline is a small Dene community (population 550) situated along the shore of Great Bear Lake in the Sahtu…
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Apparently it’s time for me to go back to “reality.” This is what people at home have been telling me; as if my round-the-journey I just returned from was nothing but a dream. My sabbatical is over, my time is up and now I have to live a “normal life.” (What is “normal” by the…
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For the past 5 weeks, I have been a visitor in my own hometown, Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. It’s a real strange feeling being here, not living in my own house, no Monday-Friday workweek to follow, no garden to tend to (and yet this is still my home). When I left Yellowknife in April for my…
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Husky dogs are resilient, tough, and beautiful animals. Many of them are raised as working dogs – for pulling sleds and racing. Northern people have relied on husky dogs throughout history; they are loyal, hard working, and can provide great companionship – especially during the cold winters! While they are domesticated (some more than others),…
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Witnessing the Aurora Borealis is a magical experience, no matter where you are. In Yellowknife, Northwest Territories – Canada, the Aurora Borealis (aka “northern lights” in the northern hemisphere) appear at night time (this is pretty obvious), and generally between the months of late August to March. I won’t attempt to get into the scientific…
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