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Hamilton Spectator
3 days ago
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
Nunavummiut leader named as first Arctic ambassador since 2006
Canada's Arctic ambassador, a role long left vacant, was named on July 24 as Prime Minister Mark Carney announced that Iqaluit's Virginia Mearns will take over the position. Mearns, who had been serving as the Qikiqtani Inuit Association's (QIA's) senior director of Inuit relations, follows now-Governor General Mary Simon as only the second person to assume the title. 'Virginia's appointment is a milestone achievement — not only for QIA and Nunavut but for all Inuit and Canadians,' a press release from the QIA stated. Mearns previously worked as an associate deputy minister at the Government of Nunavut. She was also the assistant director of Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated before her time in government. Carney made the announcement during a meeting with Inuit leadership in Inuvik. The federal government first announced its intention to revive the Arctic and circumpolar ambassador role in December 2024. The position was cut in 2006 as a cost-saving measure after Simon had carried out the duties. The federal announcement also promised to open consulates in Greenland and Alaska. 'Ambassador Mearns will advance Canada's polar interests in multilateral forums, engage with counterparts in Arctic and non-Arctic states, and serve as a representative in our diplomatic corps,' Minister of Foreign Affairs Anita Anand said in a July 24 press release. Mearns will officially begin serving in her new role on Sept. 15. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
24-07-2025
- Politics
Iqaluit resident Virginia Mearns named Canada's Arctic ambassador
Headlines Latest News Podcasts (new window) Mearns' appointment Thursday is the latest development in Canada's new Arctic foreign policy Virginia Mearns has been named Canada's Arctic ambassador. She currently serves as senior director of Inuit relations at the Qikiqtani Inuit Association and has previously held senior positions with the government of Nunavut. Photo: Virginia Mearns/Facebook Prime Minister Mark Carney has named Virginia Mearns, who is Inuk and who has held prominent positions with Inuit organizations, as Canada's Arctic ambassador. Carney made the announcement Thursday morning during an Inuit-Crown partnership committee meeting in Inuvik, N.W.T. Mearns, who lives in Iqaluit, currently serves as senior director of Inuit relations at the Qikiqtani Inuit Association and has previously held senior positions with the government of Nunavut, including as the deputy minister of executive and intergovernmental affairs. Mearns has also spent over a decade in various roles with Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. Mearns' appointment Thursday is the latest development in Canada's new Arctic foreign policy (new window) released in December. Canada has also committed to opening new consulates in Alaska and Greenland, supporting science and research in the Arctic and discussing Arctic security with foreign ministers in other northern countries. With files from David Thurton Flames may re-release toxic chemicals in historical mining areas, though risks are unknown: researcher Justice Carroccia says she didn't find complainant's evidence 'credible or reliable' 40 minutes ago Trials & Proceedings After years of complaints in Ontario, Steven Ravbar and Matthew Carapella have resurfaced in B.C. CBC News found several produce ads with conflicting country of origin information Ability to remove watermarks show a systemic vulnerability in defense against deepfakes, says researcher 5 hours ago Artificial Intelligence
Hamilton Spectator
24-07-2025
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
Mark Carney names Arctic ambassador in meeting with Inuit leaders
OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney appointed Nunavut's Virginia Mearns as Canada's first Arctic ambassador on Thursday, as his Liberal government seeks to strengthen ties between Ottawa and the country's north at a time of increased geopolitical instability. Carney made the announcement behind closed doors after kicking off a summit with Inuit leadership in Inuvik, N.W.T., that's meant to focus on the implementation of Ottawa's controversial major projects law. 'There are new threats that have emerged, physical threats, virtual threats, tangible threats,' the prime minister said alongside eight members of his cabinet. 'We take those threats seriously, we take our responsibility to defend all Canadians seriously. It's the first thing we think about when we get up in the morning.' Mearns is senior director of Inuit relations for the Qikiqtani Inuit Association, an organization that represents more than half of Inuit living in the Canadian Arctic. She has held a number of roles within the Nunavut government, including in intergovernmental affairs. Her new position was created under former prime minister Justin Trudeau's government, when then-foreign affairs minister Mélanie Joly unveiled a new Arctic foreign policy plan in December. The plan notes that the position was established 'to ensure that the Canadian Arctic remains a region that is stable, prosperous and secure,' to advance Canada's polar interests, to work with Arctic and non-Arctic states, and to raise the profile of Indigenous rights in the region. Mearns will start in the role on Sept. 15. Arctic security is only part of Thursday's wide-ranging agenda. Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami president Natan Obed, who is co-chairing the meeting of the Inuit-Crown Partnership Committee with Carney, said Thursday that he also planned to raise key priorities like supports for children, the housing crisis in the north, and the need for essential community infrastructure. 'We come, as Inuit, understanding that the government of Canada will always have priorities, and the Inuit will always have priorities. Where we meet in the middle is where we can do the best work,' Obed told Carney. The primary reason for Thursday's summit, however, is the Building Canada Act, part of a contentious law known, prior to its passage, as Bill C-5. The legislation was introduced to respond to Canada's trade dispute with the United States, and was rushed through Parliament in June. It grants Ottawa temporary powers to sidestep environmental laws and regulations to fast-track 'nation-building' projects like pipelines, ports and mines. The law, and its hasty introduction, prompted criticism that it was putting Indigenous rights and environmental protections at risk. 'Really, what the act does is it creates conditions for the federal government to be more effective and efficient in our part of the partnership,' Carney said. 'For too long the attitude in Ottawa has been, 'Why should a project be done?' as opposed to …'How do we help the project to move forward?'' Thursday's gathering is the prime minister's second of three such meetings. Last week, he met with hundreds of First Nations leaders in Ottawa to air out grievances and chart a path forward after the law's passage. Carney suggested at that meeting that he was focused on implementing the law in partnership with First Nations rather than amending it, and pledged to participate in further regional consultations. While some chiefs left the confab expressing cautious optimism about the closed-door discussions, others left the summit early, believing the federal government's attempts at consultations were hollow and flawed. Carney is set to meet with Métis leadership at a later date.
CBC
24-07-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Iqaluit resident Virginia Mearns named Canada's Arctic ambassador
Prime Minister Mark Carney has named Inuit leader Virginia Mearns as Canada's Arctic ambassador. Carney made the announcement Thursday morning during an Inuit-Crown partnership committee meeting in Inuvik, N.W.T. Mearns, who lives in Iqaluit, currently serves as senior director of Inuit relations at the Qikiqtani Inuit Association and has previously held senior positions with the government of Nunavut, including as the deputy minister of executive and intergovernmental affairs. Mearns has also spent over a decade in various roles with Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. Mearns' appointment Thursday is the latest development in Canada's new Arctic foreign policy released in December. Canada has also committed to opening new consulates in Alaska and Greenland, supporting science and research in the Arctic and discussing Arctic security with foreign ministers in other northern countries.
Hamilton Spectator
16-07-2025
- Hamilton Spectator
Private yachts can still travel through the Northwest Passage undetected
Inuit guardians are on the front lines of maintaining sovereignty over the Northwest Passage, but small yachts are still allowed to travel through Nunavut's waters undetected, experts told a conference in Iqaluit on June 26. Because Inuit monitoring teams don't have enforcement capabilities, any ships entering restricted waters in environmentally sensitive areas are simply referred to federal authorities, the Arctic Sovereignty and Security Summit heard. 'We observe and report because we don't have the power to observe a vessel unless Transport Canada comes in to do that kind of work, so we still have a gap there,' said Daniel Taukie, the Inuit Marine Monitoring Program coordinator at Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated. The summit heard several accounts of Inuit spotting vessels they didn't recognize, and asked experts where these ships were coming from. Unidentified vessels being spotted by local residents are likely private yachts that have turned off their tracking beacon, called an automated identification system (AIS). 'It's not mandatory for the smaller vessels to have AIS, but many have it due to safety reasons,' Steven Lonsdale, senior program manager at the Qikiqtani Inuit Association, told the audience. 'If we want to change that, we need to change the regulations.' Lonsdale said he's advocated for mandatory AIS on all ships in the Northwest Passage in the past, but that's still not a reality. However, the federal government will require all vessels to have permits before entering some marine conservation areas in the near future, Lonsdale said. Most of the pleasure craft are going to Eastern Baffin Island, and the High Arctic generally, to observe the mountains and lakes, according to Taukie. Both Taukie and Lonsdale praised Transport Canada and Parks Canada as productive partners in monitoring the Northwest Passage. Lonsdale explained how Inuit guardians, or Nauttiqsuqtiit, are using traditional knowledge and modern science to facilitate enhanced maritime situational awareness for Transport Canada. Nauttiqsuqtiit have learned the skills to survive in the wilderness, where they can use digital mapping software. 'They can create a digital fence anywhere, and if a ship is to cross that digital fence, they receive an alert on their cellphone as a text or an email,' Lonsdale said. Nunavummiut communities and Transport Canada then receive updates from the Nauttiqsuqtiit on where vessels are heading. The software only works, however, if the ships have their AIS system turned on. That remains a legal requirement for all maritime transport, apart from small pleasure craft, Taukie and Lonsdale explained. The cooperation between the federal government and Inuit peoples on monitoring the Northwest Passage and remaining stewards of the land is vital, said Suzanne Lalonde, professor of international law at the University of Montreal. Canada's claim over the Northwest Passage as internal waters — as opposed to an international shipping route — remains an open debate on the global stage. 'I'm worried that Canada's legal position, which is based on, founded on Inuit use and stewardship, might be tested,' Lalonde said. The most likely challenge against Canadian and Inuit sovereignty over the Northwest Passage is likely to come from the U.S., according to Lalonde. Sightings of unknown vessels in open or restricted waters cause concern among Nunavummiut communities, Jeannie Ehaloak, a former mayor of Cambridge Bay, told the summit. 'There was one summer where there was a big silver yacht or a ship that came into Cambridge Bay, and it just sat there, nobody came off, nobody got on,' Ehaloak said. 'Why were they there? Do we know who they are? Do we know what they're doing here?' Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
