ABSTRACT
Nunavut (Figure 8.1) was created in 1999 following years of negotiation between the people living in the most northern part of Canada, the Inuit, and the Canadian government. These negotiations led to the settlement of land claims and the establishment of a new territory with its own government. In practical terms this means that the Inuit, 82 per cent of the population, have gained a form of selfgovernment. Today the 26,750 inhabitants of Nunavut (based on the Census of 2001) live in approximately 26 small and medium-sized settlements across the territory (Nunavut Bureau of Statistics, 2002). In the formal economy in terms of employment and contribution to GDP, the service sector is most important. However, both the formal and informal economy depend for a large part on natural resources, varying from wildlife to minerals, gas and oil. The Inuit of Nunavut, like other indigenous peoples worldwide, have adopted sustainable development as a development strategy that would allow them to regain a balance between the environment and human activities. The creation of Nunavut has been discussed widely among social scientists, focussing on the importance for the identity of the Inuit (Merritt et al., 1987; Cameron and White, 1995; Soubliere, 1999). Scientists and inhabitants alike agree that with this new territory, 'the Inuit of Canada's central and eastern Arctic are back in the driver's seat' (Soubliere, 1999, p. 2).
