Please note that Baker Lake was chosen out of all of Nunavut to do a community led food assessment.
Niqitsiavut is a Community Led Food Assessment that is funded by Food First Newfoundland and Labrodor. It is a 2 year pilot project that created the food program inventory, environmental scan, asset gap analysis and food action plan report. Such reports includes what is happening food wise, why this is happening and what can be done to address food security issues. Community consultations included exposure events at the stores, office, schools, radio shows and home visits. Niqitsiavut also partnered up with Trent University to do a household food baseline survey in November 2015.
Due to Food Action Planning, a food empowering program called Niqitsiavut Community Kitchen was created. A Community Kitchen teaches food safety, food handling, food preparation, and budgeting. The program develops or increases healthier eating habits. Niqitsiavut encourages a traditional diet as wild game may have the most highest nutritional value.
Niqitsiavut will remain active until 2017. Should funding opportunities arise then the project may continue.
Motivating a vulnerable community to empower themselves food wise.
Understanding traditional game is not shameful as some believe this image is portrayed that if you eat wild game then you are poor.
Receiving information on edible plants and understanding why wild game diets have decreased.
Hearing the famine survival stories from 1954-56
Completing a food baseline survey
Creating a Community Kitchen
Community Consultations on what is happening food security wise, why is this happening and most importantly asking and acting on what can be done about it.
Requesting traditional diet including edible plants. Attempting to gain knowledge as to why some wild game is not harvested as they did in the past. Due to sensitivity the elders or those who have traditional knowledge shared very little knowledge.
Understand that Baker Lake is a inland community therefore sea mammal diets is very limited.
Baker Lake Northwest Territories X0C 0A0 Canada
Clara Tuutalik Noah
