YLS 2023: Reflections

Iqaluktuuttiaq (Cambridge Bay) Nunavut. Photo Credit: Brandon Pludwinski

Several months have now passed since the 2023 Youth Leadership Summit in Iqaluktuuttiaq (Cambridge Bay), Nunavut. Looking back, it's hard to avoid the thought of wildfire evacuations and the associated anxiety, stress and grief many of us experienced during that time. We know that for participants of YLS 2023, these thoughts were at the forefront.

Day one of the gathering coincided with the official evacuation order from the city of Yellowknife and several other NWT communities. This meant only a fraction of the registered participants were able to attend. However, for the small group who were able to gather, the teachings and discussions throughout the week held extra significance. 

The Summit began with a facilitated workshop at the Canadian High Arctic Research Station (CHARS)​, led by Sarah Newton, who helped the group identify individual and collective core values for grounding discussions of climate change in the north. Those values were: Adaptability, Respect, Sharing & Resilience.    

2023 Youth Leadership Summit Participants and Facilitators.

Now, these values will of course look different depending on who is applying them, and where. But in all cases, they inform how we connect with new people, ideas, and situations.

Having to adjust in the case of this year's summit certainly gave us a unique situation (if we can call it that). But it ended up being a valuable opportunity to put some of those values mentioned above into practice. Expectations had to shift. We needed to adapt, but we also needed to ensure we were still working toward the shared goals of the group. 

Going Deep

We talk about gatherings like these being a place where youth can build their capacity to confront climate justice struggles with strength and resilience. But how does that even happen?

We definitely have the potential to mark a poignant shift for people at these events, but this likely can't happen if we only come for a shallow exchange of ideas.  

The goal of YLS is to leave feeling energized by new connections, so that our efforts can be sustained once everyone heads back to their home communities - which is why youth are encouraged to share their vulnerabilities, to speak openly about anxieties, and to talk about the grief they experience witnessing drastic ecological changes in the lands they live.

Reflecting on what he witnessed as an organizer for this year's gathering, Brandon Pludwinski of Ecology North noted how, "Some [participants] found comfort in being heard, some found comfort in hearing others, and some found comfort in knowing that they’re not alone." 

Uvayuq, Nunavut. Photo Credit: Brandon Pludwinski

These summits are vital because they gather people of varied backgrounds to share a common emotional thread. They allow us to explore the connections that only show up when we're given the chance to tell our stories openly in the presence of others.  

That isn't to say that these threads erase what's distinct however. Our differences are important, because we are each uniquely capable of bringing something new into our awareness of what climate change is, how it connects to other struggles we face, and how we each might respond to it.

When we see the ways others are responding to distressing ecological changes where they live, we can be motivated. We can recognize that though we might feel a heaviness, we can all still move with a sense of commitment to our values, by sharing the weight together.   

Who's Got the Map?

This point is particularly powerful when given the opportunity to learn from Inuit Elders invited to the gathering. Elders spoke to participants of times in living memory when they could plan according to an understanding of the transitions between the seasons year to year. Now they note that the ice may not be thick enough to go out hunting when they used to, threatening access to traditional foods, and making travel more risky. 

But there also seemed to be a welcome sense of assurance. Participant, Juutai McKitrick reflected on how "the North has always been a place of struggle", adding that Inuit societal values prompt us to "look at what we can do." 

There's a sense of humility and respect in that, but also... perhaps a call to experiment. To share ideas, and to keep on moving, finding out through collaborating and learning together what it is we can in fact do.

We have these paths of connection available to us, through story, and memory, and conversation that can strengthen and renew us in order to meet uncertain roads ahead with wisdom at our back. 

Presentation at Kitikmeot Heritage Society. Photo Credit: Brandon Pludwinski

I'll close with a quote from YLS 2023 facilitator Sarah Newton: 

"The value in experiences like this cannot just be measured in the time that’s spent together, as time can take on strange shapes in the land of the midnight sun when a group is connecting at the heart level, or in the distance you travel to get to a strange land. It’s in the strength of the connections you build and the things you take with you on the journey forward." 

So let's continue to do all we can to expose the systems, mindsets and behaviours that harm our planet's capacity to heal. But as we do, let's also remember to stay open to the unexpected connections that form as we venture down pathways, new and old - together. ​​

Iqaluktuuttiaq (Cambridge Bay), Nunavut. Photo Credit: Brandon Pludwinski