Exploring Inuvialuit youth food security experiences and supports in the Inuvialuit Settlement Region

Abstract

Background: The Inuvialuit Settlement Region (ISR) is in the Northwest Territories, Canada, and is the westernmost of the four Canadian Inuit regions. The ISR covers 906,430 km2 and includes six communities: Aklavik, Inuvik, Paulatuk, Sachs Harbour, Tuktoyaktuk, and Ulukhaktok. Today, Inuvialuit in the ISR are closely connected to and dependent on-the-land for physical, mental, spiritual, and emotional nourishment, which supports food security and well-being. Yet Inuvialuit youth face numerous barriers to participating in subsistence harvesting, and a growing body of literature documents a dietary shift away from country foods (CF) among younger generations. This is especially concerning as 69% of individuals aged 15 years or older in the ISR experience food insecurity. However, few studies have examined how Inuvialuit, including Inuvialuit youth, engage with CF and their relationships within the food web in relation to food security and well-being. While youth are the focus of the overall dissertation, Elders and families are also participants in this dissertation. Objectives: The purpose of this dissertation is to explore the web of relationships and experiences that shape the participation of Inuvialuit youth in the CF system, including the connection to the natural world, culture, and others, in order to generate community-driven evidence that fills gaps in the literature. Moreover, this dissertation aims to centre Inuvialuit knowledge holders through the co-production of knowledge, and use community based participatory action research (CBPAR) to conduct equitable and community-driven research. Methods: Using CBPAR, the studies in this dissertation employ diverse qualitative methods to conduct research with community members, including Community Research Leads (CRLs). Using a CBPAR approach provides an opportunity for research to move away from research on Indigenous communities to research with and for Indigenous communities and aligns itself with the National Inuit Strategy on Research. Photovoice, talking circles, and semi-structured interviews were used with purposive and snowball sampling of 11 Inuvialuit youth across all six ISR communities, 19 Elders in Aklavik, Paulatuk, Tuktoyaktuk, and Ulukhaktok, and nine families in Aklavik, Tuktoyaktuk and Ulukhaktok. Reflexive thematic analysis, using co-analysis methods, was used for all three studies. Results: Study 1 (Chapter 2) employed photovoice methodology, working with 11 youth participants who captured photographs of their CF experiences and shared ~5 photographs during semi-structured interviews. Through reflexive thematic analysis, our research team co-created five themes from the data: 1) CF supports Inuvialuit youth well-being; 2) preference for CF despite varied consumption and activity frequencies; 3) network of CF within communities; 4) strong foundational cultural knowledge and skills; and 5) cultural continuity. Study 2 (Chapter 3) brought together 10 youth from Study 1 and 19 Elders through talking circles to explore the relationship between youth, Elders, and intergenerational Inuvialuit knowledge (IK) transmission in relation to CF, food security, and well-being. In addition to semi-structured questions, photo-elicitation was used to initiate conversation between Elders and youth about the photograph’s subject matter and to invite storytelling (e.g., caribou harvest, goose roast for dinner). Our research team co-created four themes from the data: 1) fostering cultural connection and knowledge transmission through CF and family time; 2) emphasizing oral teachings as essential for well‑being; 3) recognizing the true cost of store‑bought food and goods; and 4) working together for community food security In Studies 1 and 2, family was identified as a crucial aspect of youth connection to CF and IK, in turn, supporting food security and well-being. As such, in Study 3 (Chapter 4), nine families (n = 28 participants) from Aklavik, Tuktoyaktuk, and Ulukhaktok were interviewed through semi-structured group interviews to explore the role of CF and family in the transmission of IK to support youth food security and well-being in the ISR. Our research team co-created four themes from the data: 1) learning on-the-land through experiences; 2) nourished by the land; 3) navigating barriers; and 4) the guiding principles for present and future generations’ well-being. Conclusion: Together, these studies examine Inuvialuit youth, Elders, and families’ experiences in the CF system, including identifying facilitators and barriers to accessing CF and IK. These studies make substantive contributions to the literature by documenting what Inuvialuit have long known – that CF is essential for youth, family, and community food security and well-being. Concurrently, these studies offer critical qualitative evidence that broadens the predominantly quantitative and store-bought-food-centered literature in the ISR. Adding to a growing body of literature, this research highlights that CF, along with the relationships it fosters with people, the land, culture, and community, supports food security while also nourishing the mind, body, and soul. This research employed a CBPAR approach, engaging community members at all stages of the research process and aligning with Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami’s National Inuit Strategy on Research and the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation’s ISR Research Data Strategy to ensure that Inuvialuit are included and respected as knowledge holders, thereby fostering respectful and beneficial research for Inuvialuit communities.