2010: Year of the Inuit

2010 Year of the Inuit is an educational campaign spearheaded by Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, the national organization representing Canadian Inuit. Its goal is to increase awareness among the general Canadian population about issues facing the Inuit of Canada and celebrate Inuit accomplishments and achievements.

January

12th Inuit Knowledge Centre Launched.

14th A Taste of the Arctic National Gallery of Canada.

30th First NHL Hockey game broadcast on TV and radio with Inuktitut play-by-play. Charlie Panigoniak and Annie Ford did the commentary from Yellowknife for a game played in Ottawa between the Senators and the Montreal Canadians.

February

12th Opening Ceremony Vancouver Olympics Inuit are there to welcome the world’s athletes. The Inukshuk is the symbol for the games. National Inuit Leader Mary Simon attends the opening.

24th Inuit day at 2010 Aboriginal Pavilion at the Vancouver Olympics.

March

8th Arctic Scholarships launched in collaboration with Students on Ice and International Polar Year. Geared to High School students across Canada, these scholarships offer a once-in-a-lifetime experience in the Arctic in August 2010.

17th First National Inuit Early Child Education gathering “Nutaqavut Sivuniksavut” in Goose Bay, Labrador.

26th Labrador launch of the documentary based educational resource, Staking The Claim: Dreams, Democracy and Canadian Inuit.

26th-29th Muskrat Jamboree, Inuvik NWT. Annual Winter Festival.

31st Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit (IQ): a celebration of Inuit knowledge and awareness raising day at Acadia University, Wolfville, NS

April

1st World Premiere of White Archer by John Houston in Inuktitut at the Canadian Museum of Civilization.

1st-11th Anniversary of the creation of the Nunavut Territory.

1st-26th Anniversary of the creation of Pauktuutit Inuit Women’s Association.

2nd-5th Mad Trapper Jamboree, Aklavik NWT.

7th-12th Toonik Tyme in Iqaluit, Nunavut. An annual winter festival.

16th-19th Beluga Jamboree, Tuktoyaktuk, NWT. An annual winter festival.

May

1st-8th Pakallak Time, Rankin Inlet NU. Annual winter festival.

25th-17th Anniversary of the Nunavut Land Claim Agreement.

June

5th-26th Anniversary of Inuvialuit Final Agreement.

11th Second anniversary of Canada’s Apology to aboriginal victims of residential school abuse.

19th Midnight Sun Fun Run, Inuvik NWT.

21st National Aboriginal Day. In Ottawa the theme will be Inuit.

July

3rd week of July Bill Joss Open Celebrity Golf Tournament, Ulukhaktok NWT

9th-18th Great Northern Arts Festival, Inuvik NWT.

August

Mid-August Aqpik Jam, Kuujjuaq Nunavik. Annual music festival.

September

13th Third anniversary of the passage of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in New York. Canada, USA, Australia, and New Zealand voted against it. Australia has since changed its vote. Canada declared it intended to change its vote on March 3, 2010.

25th National Inuit Leader Mary Simon delivers the Hurtig Lecture at the University of Alberta as part of a series of speeches to students during 2010 Year of the Inuit.

October

7th Mary Simon speaks at Carleton University in Ottawa as part of a series of speeches to students during 2010 Year of the Inuit.

November

1st-39th Anniversary of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, founded in 1971 at the Inuit Tapirisat of Canada.

7th Inuit Day as declared by the Inuit Circumpolar Council (ICC).

11th-35th Anniversary of the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement.

December

1st Nunatsiavut Day. The Nunatsiavut Government officially came into being on December 1, 2005.