Lanita Thrasher

I am a board member with the Tuktut Nogait National Park representing the GNWT in our board and as a whole; we are a cooperative management board. Also, I've made some interesting and memorable trips to Tuktut Nogait National Park that were very educational.

My fondest memory in the park was canoeing across Hornaday Lake that took all afternoon in a catamaran. On the way to the East end of Hornaday Lake, I caught a huge lake trout that took a long time to catch. It is my fondest memory because I spent two weeks in Uyarksivik trying to catch a huge fish, people caught monsters there as well.

I got to see so many beautiful sights. On a canoe trip, I saw the beaches along the Hornaday River that stretch for most of the two-week trip and the water was turquoise from the sand. I was also looking at a 500-year-old caribou blind, and right next to this blind were fresh caribou tracks. My favourite location in the park is the stretch of sandy beaches on the Hornaday River, it was incredibly beautiful in the morning with a coffee.

Tuktut Nogait is special because it helps provide us with caribou to eat and also gives us so many reseach insights. There is the Sahtu Extension in the park, and it is very beautiful as well.

The Park means security to me because it gives a blanket to the fragile caribou population, and we are now considered in the yellow level and out of the red for the Bluenose-West population. For our culture, it definitely plays a huge role in keeping our culture rich because of the caribou, without caribou we would be lost because it's the best food in the world.

We can now look at a quarter of a century worth of our own data regarding the caribou numbers which was the main reason the park was established, for the young caribou. 25 years ago, we had the opening celebrations to TNNP, and it feels like it was not too long ago that our park has been made for the caribou.

Ageing nicely, some fossils were found there that were considered at the time of discovery that they were the world’s oldest fungus nearly a billion years ago. One major local accomplishment is also the establishment of the Marine Protected Area to the west of Paulatuuq. It is very important to protect ecosystems where species we rely on for subsistence make a home or migrate.

came together to negotiate and educate community members about the benefits of such a protected area for our tuktut years before it was established.

In the very beginning, community members were concerned about the possible disturbances on which the fragile caribou species population relies for growth, grazing, migrating, and where the caribou give birth. Volunteers

We can honour those Elders who negotiated Tuktut Nogait National Park by remembering them and recalling their stories of the process and any stories that they shared about a long time ago or lessons that we can use today. I think they would be very proud of the park today because it helps give us a whole new perspective of our land that we share with the caribou. Last year I saw a herd of caribou and I counted 20 nurrait (calves), and I think the Elders would feel the difference they've made by making a park.

In the future I would like to see more studies done on the caribou population regarding its connection to the geese. In the mid-1900s the caribou population as many Elders remember was high, and at the same time geese were not very populated. Now, all over the north, the caribou population is much lower, and the geese population is overpopulated. Geese and caribou share at least 5 of the same species of plant for their diet on Banks Island, and a half a century of overpopulation and its impact on vegetation on the tundra has to play a role in the change of plant food for caribou. In the future, I hope that we can learn more about the land regarding permafrost, invasive species, and the impacts climate change has.

ADVICE FOR THE NEXT GENERATION

Find opportunities to see our beautiful land. Speaking of opportunities, don't give up on your dreams and work hard for what you want in life. Always remember where you come from and never forget your culture. Learn as much as you can about your culture because it is very interesting. Learn about your rights and the past negotiations about the IFA and Tuktut Nogait.

TUKTUT NURRAIT TANMAAQTARVIKTIGUN UQALIAQSAQ NAITTUARAALUK

TUKTUT NOGAIT IN ONE WORD