The Project Lead, Margaret Ireland, organized the Project Working Group consisting of seven members from JMR, and consultants from PACTeam Canada. An initial working group meeting was held on July 13, 2010. PACTeam Canada delivered a presentation to the working group about climate change in general, and the current and potential impacts climate change may have on the people and the environment of northern Canada, to demonstrate how climate change is linked to new and existing environmental, economical, cultural, and social changes that affect the health of people, communities, and wildlife in northern Canada. The discussion at the meeting also focused on:
- The goals, and objectives, and activities of this project;
- The role of the working group;
- How health is being, and can be impacted by climate change, and;
- Some initial observations and discussions about current impacts being observed and experienced in the community or out on the land.
A community open house was arranged by the Project Working Group at the JMRFN Band Office on July 14, 2010. Posters explaining climate change and future climate projections, and its impacts to the health of the community, people, culture, and the environment of the JMRFN were displayed in the gymnasium and videos about climate change were shown. Members of the working group were also available to answer any questions members of the community who attended the open house had about the project and climate change.
A one page handout was also put into each community member’s mailbox at the Band Office informing them of this project, its purpose, and the need for community support for researching and responding to climate change (see Appendix 1).
3.1 Establishment of a Project Working Group and Community Open House