Since many discussions have opened concerning the intellectual well-being of Canada’s Northern people, there seems to be negligence in writing about education in the realm of Northern Labrador. This concerns more specifically Nunatsiavut but many in Labrador fall under these same desponding conditions. Thus I’m writing this out of concern for my friends and family in the place of my birth. My comparison with other Northerly Canadian regions will be used to show inequalities between Northern regions though they all face similar challenges.
First, I’d like to discuss my personal experiences in education. I grew up in the United States, finishing high school in Florida and also in Massachusetts. This was a very formal education, allowing me to grasp a vast amount of knowledge through my studies and meeting some of the most enlightened of minds. This experience was a gift as teachers with years of experience that have taught many seasons in their institution, excelled in their fields.
This type of education is not typically offered for a Labradorian, or for many Northerners for that matter, bringing to question what advances have been made to improve education in Northern localities. There are few people who obtain education in relevant professions in Labrador, specifically for those who will lead Northern development and circulate their intellectual knowhow for aspirant learners.
This idea of constructing Northern intellectual property would be re-used for Northern community incentive to generate alternative forms of knowledge income, this being relevant coming already from a low knowledge income setting. Thus increasing creating job availability and shorting the distance from institutions of influence could potentially create a well educated, well taken care society.
These inhibiters are based upon unemployment rates, helping me reason the despondency of Northern Labrador, describing the availability for working conditions that vary within Canada’s North. First I’d like to start with the Yukon, with an unemployment rate is at 5.5%. The median income of working peoples in the Yukon is $26,500. This is considerably more than the rates of Labrador, where this rate exists somewhere between 25 to 35%, the median income $16,576. Nunatvut also has a high unemployment rate of around 22% but the median income is at $58,088 per year (discrepancies in this figure are Inuit vs. non-Inuit who actually obtain these salaries). The cost to get to a major city such as Montreal or Toronto from the Northern coast of Labrador is at a minimum cost $1000 for a one way ticket. This data is from Statistics Canada, Air Canada and Air Labrador. With these figures in mind and the costs of imported foods, you can see where this dilemma begins.
It has been reported in the news that great wealth has been received by Northern Labradorians i.e. the CBC report on the 12 million dollars in mining royalties that have been giving to residents of Nunatsiavut but, if you look more closely, much of that money is not for building long-term sustainable infrastructure. 1.7 million for a daycare centre, 1 million on a new ice arena!? Don’t get me wrong, these are all great things but there are more effective ways of using money in a more long term investment strategy.
I will finalize with this questions and concerns.
With these statistics in mind there should be more offered to equalize Northern Labrador with the rest of Canada or even Northern Canada via improved education, especially in legislation in land claims agreements.
With all this talk of Arctic sovereignty, it be important to connect with Canada’s most ancient inhabitants, Native and Western, and communicate with them at a more federal level adding to the claim of ‘use it or loose it’ or, what I believe it should read, ‘appraise it and liase it’.
First, I’d like to discuss my personal experiences in education. I grew up in the United States, finishing high school in Florida and also in Massachusetts. This was a very formal education, allowing me to grasp a vast amount of knowledge through my studies and meeting some of the most enlightened of minds. This experience was a gift as teachers with years of experience that have taught many seasons in their institution, excelled in their fields.
This type of education is not typically offered for a Labradorian, or for many Northerners for that matter, bringing to question what advances have been made to improve education in Northern localities. There are few people who obtain education in relevant professions in Labrador, specifically for those who will lead Northern development and circulate their intellectual knowhow for aspirant learners.
This idea of constructing Northern intellectual property would be re-used for Northern community incentive to generate alternative forms of knowledge income, this being relevant coming already from a low knowledge income setting. Thus increasing creating job availability and shorting the distance from institutions of influence could potentially create a well educated, well taken care society.
These inhibiters are based upon unemployment rates, helping me reason the despondency of Northern Labrador, describing the availability for working conditions that vary within Canada’s North. First I’d like to start with the Yukon, with an unemployment rate is at 5.5%. The median income of working peoples in the Yukon is $26,500. This is considerably more than the rates of Labrador, where this rate exists somewhere between 25 to 35%, the median income $16,576. Nunatvut also has a high unemployment rate of around 22% but the median income is at $58,088 per year (discrepancies in this figure are Inuit vs. non-Inuit who actually obtain these salaries). The cost to get to a major city such as Montreal or Toronto from the Northern coast of Labrador is at a minimum cost $1000 for a one way ticket. This data is from Statistics Canada, Air Canada and Air Labrador. With these figures in mind and the costs of imported foods, you can see where this dilemma begins.
It has been reported in the news that great wealth has been received by Northern Labradorians i.e. the CBC report on the 12 million dollars in mining royalties that have been giving to residents of Nunatsiavut but, if you look more closely, much of that money is not for building long-term sustainable infrastructure. 1.7 million for a daycare centre, 1 million on a new ice arena!? Don’t get me wrong, these are all great things but there are more effective ways of using money in a more long term investment strategy.
I will finalize with this questions and concerns.
With these statistics in mind there should be more offered to equalize Northern Labrador with the rest of Canada or even Northern Canada via improved education, especially in legislation in land claims agreements.
With all this talk of Arctic sovereignty, it be important to connect with Canada’s most ancient inhabitants, Native and Western, and communicate with them at a more federal level adding to the claim of ‘use it or loose it’ or, what I believe it should read, ‘appraise it and liase it’.
Comments
Post a Comment