Elders, youth meet in Iqaluit to talk climate change adaptation

Youth, elders and government officials are meeting in Iqaluit this week to come up with a plan on how to adapt to a changing climate.

Joanasie Karpik, one of dozens of elders and youth in Iqaluit this week for the meetings, says he has seen seasonal hunting grounds shrink in his hometown of Pangnirtung.

"What it will be in the future, we have no idea, no way to predict how it will behave," he said.

"But I can tell you that we've been impacted the most as a result of warmer temperatures."

Mark Hopkins, director general of Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada, said it's important to get local input.

"And then the other idea is to really sort of tap into these aspects of Inuit culture that really have been their strength in thriving in this kind of environment and rooting into that and helping that guide our way into the future so in a way it's connecting the climate and the culture."

This is the last in a series of pan-Northern meetings. The plan is to take all the information and come up with a united strategy that could help direct future investment on everything from where to build homes to how to improve food security.