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Articles by Corey Larocque
Six months to fix foster care failures is a tall order
Six months isn’t much time to fix a problem that has festered for 15 years. But that’s the task ahead for the Government of Nunavut after the federal auditor general presented a scathing report on the state of foster care in Nunavut, pointing to “fundamental weaknesses” that have persisted for years. Deputy auditor general Andrew Hayes presented the report titled Foster Care in Nunavut on Tuesday.
Minority government outcome stalls PQ referendum pledge
It’s hard to believe Nunavik is a hotbed of Quebec separatist sentiment, but there you have it. The region’s newly elected member of the Quebec national assembly is Sonia Caron, of the separatist Parti Québécois that won a minority government in Monday’s provincial election. Fortunately, the PQ’s failure to form a majority government means it will be much harder for the its leaders to deliver on their key promise to hold a referendum on Quebec’s future within Canada during its first term.
Education must continue to be the counter to denialism
Survivors, advocates emphasize need to confront attempts to deny, downplay residential school history, impact Residential school survivor Jack Anawak holds the Survivors’ Flag during the sixth annual National Day for Truth and Reconciliation gathering in Iqaluit on Wednesday, hosted by the Qikiqtani Inuit Association. The event was held indoors due to rainy weather.
Emphasis on listening should be Kivalliq Trade Show’s export across the North
Fast-paced change means it’s more important than ever to hear other perspectives Delegates to the Kivalliq Trade Show listen as Rankin Inlet Mayor Harry Towtongie welcomes participants Monday night in the hamlet’s community hall. The theme of the three-day business event was Naalagit: Listen. Political and business leaders including Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. president Gloria Uluqsi and Sen. Nancy Karetak-Lindell tailored their remarks to talk about the importance of listening.
NTI president extols the power of an ‘informed Inuk’ at Kivalliq Trade Show
Gloria Uluqsi borrows trade show theme to talk about what it means for Inuit to listen and to be heard Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. president Gloria Uluqsi speaks to a crowd at the Kivalliq Trade Show in Rankin Inlet on Tuesday. (Photo by Corey Larocque) The world is changing fast and there’s sudden interest in the Arctic, including pressure to mine Nunavut’s natural resources and to develop infrastructure projects to support Arctic security and sovereignty.
Musicians, models hit the stage in Rankin Inlet
Slide show | Event highlights the work of creators across Nunavut’s Kivalliq Region Christine Piungualaq Tootoo, a throat singer from Rankin Inlet, performs Tuesday for a crowd of about 300 at the Kivalliq Trade Show’s entertainment night. It took place the second day of the three-day event. (Photo by Corey Larocque) The Kivalliq Region’s talents were on full display Tuesday at Rankin Inlet’s community hall, where about 300 attendees took in the Kivalliq Trade Show’s entertainment night.
Bold moves signal Nunavut, Ottawa are looking past U.S.
As longtime partner becomes less reliable, Ottawa, GN and NTI show signs of working around neighbour to the south Nunavut Premier John Main, centre, poses in Toronto Monday at the Canada Investment Summit, where financiers across the globe were invited to discuss investment opportunities with project proponents across Canada.
Love is everywhere at Baffin chamber business awards
Arctic Fresh’s co-CEO Albert Netser celebrates birthday with his company’s Business of the Year Award Arctic Fresh Projects general manager Evan Schellenberg, left, owner Rhoda Recinos, and co-CEO Albert Netser accept the Business of the Year award from Baffin Regional Chamber of Commerce president Udlu Hanson, right. Hanson handed out the award at a gala dinner Thursday at Iqaluit’s Aqsarniit hotel and conference centre.
‘News’ site forces journalists to face future with AI
Emergence of artificial intelligence ‘correspondent’ purporting to be Inuk woman a troubling development in northern journalism We News, a website that publishes artificial intelligence-generated articles based on news reported by journalists, uses this AI-generated illustration — including subjects’ blurred-out faces — in its post about Inuit leader John Amagoalik’s bid to secure funding for health care that would allow him to stay at home in Iqaluit.
‘Eerie, but gorgeous’: The $50,000 J.S. Crawford ‘Unity 1’ transport truck mural that moved Niagara residents after 9/11
Editor’s note: This article has been transcribed from the Review’s print archives for the first time. It represents real-time reporting after the terrorist attacks in the United States on Sept. 11, 2001. The text remains unaltered. From front pages and untold local stories to exclusive photos and archival coverage, the Niagara Falls Review revisits the people, stories and moments that left a lasting impact on our region after 9/11.
No woman should face harassment from taxi drivers
Iqaluit student deserves credit for identifying issue, seeking solutions A Caribou Cabs manager says the company implemented a training program for drivers to avoid potential problems with drivers making passengers uncomfortable. Meanwhile Iqaluit woman Rosalie DeMaio is hosting a community meeting Thursday to discuss alternatives to taxis, saying unwanted advances by some drivers make women feel unsafe.
Nunavut needs auditor general’s help on drinking water
Improvements are desperately needed, money is flowing; news of an auditor general’s report is welcome Canadian Armed Forces personnel work in Iqaluit in 2021 for Operation Lentus. The operation used specialized water purification equipment after the city’s water supply was contaminated with diesel fuel. Canada’s auditor general plans to examine the management of Nunavut’s drinking water.
Just build it already!
Federal ministers are great at doling out funding, but at least 1 reader wants to see results Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Rebecca Alty announces $155 million in funding for infrastructure in Nunavut at a July 23 news conference. Alty is flanked by several Nunavut politicians, including, from left to right, Nunavut deputy Premier George Hickes, Minister Responsible for Nunavut Housing Corp. Cecile Nelvana Lyall, and Iqaluit Mayor Solomon Awa.
Buy Canadian? Bring it on
What’s good for Canada is often good for Nunavut and Nunavik. So, as the federal government pushes its Buy Canadian policy to use Canadian-made materials in the construction of new public works projects, it creates a new opportunity for the North. Federal Public Works and Procurement Minister Joël Lightbound announced Tuesday the government had picked Inuit-owned Arctic Fresh Projects Inc. to build a $35.6-million, 23-unit apartment building in Iqaluit.
Kotierk’s Nutrition North review puts onus on Ottawa to act
After two years of examining subsidy program, it’s time for Liberal government to move ahead with reform Dan Vandal, left, is the former northern affairs minister who launched an external review of the Nutrition North program in 2024. The government picked Aluki Kotierk, centre, to conduct the review. It’s now up to Arctic and Northern Affairs Minster Rebecca Chartrand, right, to decide if and how the federal government will reform the food subsidy program.
Waiting for a plan
An astute reader pointed out the irony that Friday’s Nunatsiaq News homepage had a news story about the rejection of the Nunavut Land Use Plan as well as a feature about an upcoming production of the play Waiting for Godot in Inuktitut. Waiting for Godot is a famous play by Irish writer Samuel Beckett. Artist Tatanniq Idlout translated it into Inuktitut and started holding auditions this week for a production to hit the stage next spring in Ottawa.
We’re good now, right? — The new word between ITK and Ottawa
Natan Obed’s comments signal a shift in relationship between national Inuit organization and federal government Prime Minister Mark Carney, left, and Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami president Natan Obed deliver opening remarks Tuesday before co-charing a meeting of the Inuit-Crown Partnership Committee in Kuujjuaq. (Photo by Dominique Gené) Was it a false alarm?
Obed’s Arctic security message has separatist undertones
Talk of Inuit ‘looking for other partners’ an alarming twist on national unity front Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami president Natan Obed, left, moderator Rob Russo of the Economist and Makivvik Corp. president Pita Aatami discuss Arctic sovereignty, defence and security during ITK’s Nilliajut conference in Ottawa on June 19.
CBC’s ‘increased presence’ in local news would expand ‘predatory’ practice
Senate report wants beefed-up role for broadcaster in local news but not at expense of established players The Senate’s transportation and communications committee is calling for an “increased presence” for CBC in local news but doesn’t want it to come at the expense of established news organizations. (File photo) Maybe we should have said it louder.
Education, not jail time, is answer to residential school denialism
Senate votes down Sen. Nancy Karetak-Lindell’s proposal, leaving awareness the battleground against ‘downplaying’ harms Sen. Nancy Karetak-Lindell makes the case to include residential school denialism in a new law aimed at combatting hate. The Senate voted against her amendment that would have seen people guilty of downplaying the harms caused by residential schools with up to two years in jail.
Publication bans need not feel like a law school exam
Figuring out publication bans shouldn’t make a judge draw a comparison to a law school exam. Yet that’s how Justice Christian Lyons described the “unique case” of a man charged with sexual assault who managed to get a court order preventing him from being identified — even though he shouldn’t have gotten that “discretionary” ban. The case might make Nunavummiut wonder if there’s a weakness in the understanding of publication bans within the criminal justice system.
As Baffinland goes, so goes Nunavut
While mining company goes through restructuring, its fate remains key to territorial economy Baffinland Iron Mines Corp., which is more than $1 billion in debt, has had its creditor protection extended from May 25 to June 5, according to Ontario Superior Court of Justice records. (File photo) Baffinland’s Mary River Mine is a bit like Nunavut’s General Motors — so integral to the territory’s economy that the company’s success goes hand in hand with its fortunes.
Nunavik must act on police reform to restore confidence
An audit of the Nunavik Police Service offers plenty of advice for improving policing in the region, but will the proposed changes be enough to make a difference? And can they be implemented fast enough to restore public trust and to prevent more shootings of Inuit by police officers? It should make for an interesting discussion at the Kativik Regional Government’s upcoming council meeting, set for the week of May 25.
Nunavik’s ‘bossy little old lady’ leaves enduring legacy
Mary Simon taught Canadians about ajuinnata when they really needed it Gov. Gen. Mary Simon poses for a photo at Rideau Hall on Monday, Sept. 29, 2025, one day before the 2025 National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. (Photo by Mike Carroccetto, special to Nunatsiaq News) Canadians now know about ajuinnata — thanks to Gov. Gen. Mary Simon. She introduced many of us to the Inuit concept of perseverance or never giving up shortly after she became governor general in 2021.
Banishment might be made-in-Nunavik solution region needs
Desperate times call for desperate measures. That appears to be what’s behind Makivvik Corp.’s recent announcement that it’s considering how to potentially banish from Nunavik’s 14 communities the troublemakers involved in drug-trafficking or bootlegging alcohol. The idea came up during the three-day meeting of all of Nunavik’s public organizations held in Montreal in mid-April.
Ottawa needs to move on to Plan B for Nutrition North review
It’s time for the federal government to go to Plan B for reviewing the effectiveness of Nutrition North. Aluki Kotierk’s long-awaited external review of the grocery subsidy program is almost a month overdue, the government’s hand-picked representative leading the review hasn’t been in touch in weeks, and there are too many questions the government can’t or won’t answer. The deadline was March 31. As of Wednesday, there was still no sign of that report.
Sanikiluaq students get out-of-this-world experience
Could one small question from a student be a giant leap for student-kind? Five Sanikiluaq students — Elisapee Arragutainaq, Cindy Alariaq, Laureen Ippak, Tina Novalinga and Logan Arragutainaq — took part in last week’s question-and-answer session with astronauts on the Artemis II mission to the moon. They asked Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen what he eats in space.
Sorry seems to be the slowest word
For a government that brags about how fast it moves when it comes to nation-building projects, Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Liberals have been slow to offer an apology for the RCMP’s spying on Indigenous leaders in the 1960s and 1970s. It has been more than a week since many Canadians learned — thanks to reporting by a team of CBC journalists — how extensively the RCMP kept tabs on hundreds of Indigenous activists 50 years ago.
Nunavik has highest number of MMIWG2S+ cases in Quebec
Nunavik has the most cases involving missing or murdered Indigenous women, girls and two-spirited people of all of Quebec’s regions, according to a new database unveiled Tuesday. Workers with non-profit organization Quebec Native Women and the University of Quebec in Outaouais, who have been working since 2023, released numbers they have compiled so far during an event in Quebec City.
MLAs broaden goals in favour of more general priorities for coming term
Specific aims, like aging with dignity and expanding housing, replaced by uplifting families, investing in a brighter future Nunavut Premier John Main, speaking in the legislative assembly March 19, says Nunavut’s cabinet ministers are “ready to live up to the challenges” that face them. The seventh legislative assembly spelled out its priorities in the Ikajuqtigiikta mandate, which will guide MLAs over the next four years, during its winter sitting.
Nunavut needs good, reliable information — quickly
Media and government must work together to combat misinformation Premier John Main speaks to MLAs in November, shortly after the start of the seventh legislative assembly. The early days of a new assembly are an ideal time for MLAs and the Government of Nunavut to review how it provides information to the news media in the territory. (File photo by Jeff Pelletier) There’s an old expression that a lie can travel halfway around the world before the truth puts on its shoes.
How will Idlout feel at home in Liberal caucus?
Nunavut MP must walk back criticism she heaped on Carney and Trudeau governments for 4 years Nunavut MP Lori Idlout smiles as Liberal MPs applaud her in the House of Commons on Wednesday. On her first day in the Liberal party’s benches in the House, she asked a question about food security during question period. The newly minted Liberal crossed the floor this week after more than four years as a member of the NDP caucus.
Nunavut hits the ice at Arctic Winter Games
Under-19 female, under-18 male hockey teams drop opening games in round robin tournament on 1st day of Whitehorse Games Mika Simic of Nunavut’s U19 female hockey team circles the offensive zone during a game against Team Alberta at the Canada Games Centre in Whitehorse, Yukon on Sunday, March 8, 2026. (Photo by Dustin Patar, special to Nunatsiaq News) Two Nunavut hockey teams hit the ice at the Arctic Winter Games in Whitehorse on Sunday, even before the event’s opening ceremony was held.
Does Gjoa Haven’s water disruption constitute an emergency?
Reluctance to declare local state of emergency signals hamlet has situation under control Repairs to a water main break discovered Jan. 15 remain ongoing in Gjoa Haven, with Transportation and Infrastructure Nunavut saying it is too early to provide a timeline for a full fix.
Kinngait teens explore what Ottawa has to offer
5-day trip exposes participants to post-secondary options, pro hockey and a bit of shopping Amelia Ottokie works on a painting during an Ottawa trip for 10 of the hamlet’s youth. The group checked out post-secondary options the city has to offer. Gisille Ashoona works on a painting in the background.
Fast-track this, Mark Carney!
While the Liberal government focuses on ‘major projects,’ Inuit Child First Initiative languishes in uncertainty Indigenous Services Minister Mandy Gull-Masty, centre, poses with members of the Kativik Regional Government council on Feb. 19 in Kuujjuaq, where she announced a one-year extension of the Inuit Child First Initiative. (Photo by Dominque Gené) Since Prime Minister Mark Carney is so eager to fast-track things, how about the Inuit Child First Initiative?
Not just Arviat Strong … Arviat Smart
Doing its homework results in Kivalliq hamlet winning right to host university campus Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated president Paul Irngaut, left, ITK president Natan Obed, Kivalliq Inuit Association president Kono Tattuinee, and Arviat Mayor Joe Savikataaq attend a press conference in Ottawa on Feb. 11, announcing Arviat as the location for the main campus of Inuit Nunangat University.
Algonquin journalism program crucial to covering news in the North
This is the wrong time for college to cut journalism program Algonquin College journalism students Blaire Waddell, left, and Itunu Olayiwola learn their craft by doing some filming for a class at the Ottawa college in 2024. Journalism is one of 30 programs the college is considering cutting as it tries to reduce costs. (Photo by Arty Sarkisian) In a world rife with disinformation, fake news and artificial intelligence, Canadians need more journalists to help sort out what’s real — not fewer.
Ottawa must be able to do 2 things at once
NDP press conference underlines need to handle both defence and social policies without conflating them Nunavut MP and NDP defence critic Lori Idlout speaks at a news conference Wednesday beside interim party Leader Don Davies. They are calling on the federal government to cancel the purchase of American fighter jets that they say will put Canadian sovereignty at risk.
What to do when public figures get into legal trouble?
Jeremy Tunraluk’s NTI resignation tests higher standard for public figures, presumption of innocence Jeremy Tunraluk, who resigned earlier this month from his position as president of Nunavut Tunngavik Inc., says the organization’s board doesn’t understand the presumption of innocence. The board says Tunraluk didn’t live up to the higher standard of conduct expected of Inuit leaders.
Ottawa lines up partners to build 750 Nunavut homes
NTI’s Igluvut Corp., and Ottawa pre-fab construction company among first to get work on new project Frank Cairo, right, CEO of Caivan, an Ottawa homebuilding company, leads Nunavut Housing Minister Cecile Nelvana Lyall, left, and Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. president Paul Irngaut on a tour of the company’s warehouse in Ottawa. Caivan and NTI are among the first partners announced in a federal government plan to build 750 new homes in Nunavut.
Don’t put those placards away just yet
If you felt a rush of fresh air throughout the Arctic this week, it might have been the collective sigh of relief after U.S. President Donald Trump backed down from his threats to take over Greenland — “one way or the other.” “I don’t have to use force. I don’t want to use force. I won’t use force,” Trump said in a rambling 75-minute speech Wednesday to the World Economic Forum in Switzerland, walking back weeks of aggressive talk about the need for the United States to take over Greenland.
Words fail us on U.S. threat to Greenland
The times we live in are more than “spicy;” they’re scary. They’re more than “uncertain;” they’re deeply troubling. “Spicy” and “uncertain” were the words Natan Obed, president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami — the national organization of Inuit in Canada — used when talking about the threat Greenland is facing from U.S. President Donald Trump. If the U.S. thinks it can take over the vast, uninhabited lands of Greenland, Trump could make the same case against Inuit Nunangat and Canada, Obed said.
Stop the ride … We want to get off
Predictions of a roller-coaster ride in 2025 had no idea what was in store A boat passes in front of the Nuuk, Greenland, waterfront in September 2024. In the early days of 2026, the island nation’s fate is being hotly contested as a result of U.S. President Donald Trump’s talk about potentially taking it over by military force. (Photo by Corey Larocque) “Be careful what you wish for” could have been the lesson from 2025.
Let’s talk about that ‘social fabric’
A lot of people, organizations — including media — need to be part of conversation aimed at reducing violence Kativik Regional Government chairperson Maggie Emudluk, seen at a KRG council meeting in 2024, says Nunavimmiut need to talk about their “social fabric” after a police-involved shooting in Inukjuak on Dec. 20 sent a man and his young daughter to a Montreal hospital for treatment.
Public trust in policing starts with openness
The North has two new police chiefs and they both have several challenges in common ahead of them — they must help their police forces earn public trust, and demonstrate transparency and accountability. The RCMP’s Nunavut division held a change of command ceremony Dec. 10 to welcome its new commanding officer, Chief Supt. Kent Pike. And in late November, the Nunavik Police Service got a new interim chief, Jean-François Bernier. On their way in, they each had similar messages.
Iqaluit, make up your mind on taxing places of worship
Need for temporary relief of property taxes shows flaw in existing rule for taxing churches, other religious organizations Children’s shoes sit on the steps of St. Jude’s Anglican Cathedral in Iqaluit in 2021, tributes to the lives lost in Canada’s residential schools. The church’s role in the system is one reason the City of Iqaluit ended its property tax exemption for places of worship in 2022. (File photo by Dustin Patar) That’s a relief! Iqaluit city council has seen the light.
Elections Canada report on Nunavik fiasco short on reassurances
Agency’s report assigns blame, promises to do better but leaves you wanting more An Elections Canada report says a lack of planning and no local outreach are to blame for irregularities in Nunavik in the April federal election. (File photo by Cedric Gallant) You had one job, Elections Canada … Running smooth, fair federal elections is the whole reason for being for the independent, non-partisan agency of Parliament responsible for conducting federal general elections, byelections and referendums.
Lots of unfinished business on public safety committee agenda
Considering how Iqaluit’s public safety committee got its start, it’s a relief that city council spared it from being disbanded. There’s still a lot of unfinished business for the city committee that focuses on “current and emerging public safety issues.” In a nailbiter at Tuesday’s council meeting, Mayor Solomon Awa broke a tie, casting the deciding vote to keep the committee alive.
Looking back at MLAs in action, and an MP’s inaction
There was plenty of political news to go around this week, as we saw Nunavut politicians in action at the legislature and a Nunavut politician’s inaction in Ottawa. John Main emerged as the territory’s new premier Tuesday when MLAs went through Nunavut’s leadership forum, a nearly unique exercise in Canadian politics.
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