Inuit Culture of North Canada

Peter Irniq is a longtime resident of the Kivalliq Region of Nunavut in Canada's Northwest Territories and a member of the indigenous Inuit peoples. He will be in Ames to build three inuksuit, or "signposts of the north," in local parks between September 18 and October 1. Inuksuit are large monuments often made of unworked stone that have been used by the Inuit people as guides in the Arctic, marking trails, caches of food, nearby people, or the migration routes of caribou. Irniq, a former representative in the Northwest Territories legislature, has served as the executive director of the Inuit Cultural Institute and in the Department of Education, Culture and Employment for the Government of Northwest Territories. His most recent post with that agency is Deputy Minister of Culture, Language, Elders and Youth, where his mandate is to protect traditional Inuit culture and language.