A Yellowknife project to give Indigenous youth help with their careers and lives has won $500,000 at the Arctic Inspiration Prize awards ceremony.
The initiative – named Cheko, Youth Empowerment Project – is designed to help young people become more employable and gain life skills “through land-based learning, mentorship and industry connections.”
“Thank you for believing in our project,” the Cheko team told organizers as they accepted the cheque at an Ottawa ceremony broadcast live via Cabin Radio’s website.
The largest prize, $1 million, went to a Yukon First Nations-led project that will establish a “culturally rooted birth and reproductive health centre” in Whitehorse. A proposal to build a virtual reality hub in Whatì missed out.
Other $500,000 winners included an Inuit-led alternative education program in Nunavut to “support neurodiverse youth in achieving their full potential,” and a project to support the next generation of Elders in Inuinnait communities.
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A Nunavik project in which the Qimutjuit Men’s Association will unite youth and Elders together through harvesting camps received $425,000. Organizers gave $223,000 to a Baker Lake-based initiative to “combat rising Type 2 diabetes through traditional Inuit practices, health education and local empowerment.”
Five youth-led projects each received $100,000.
They are:
- a youth dog sledding club in the Beaufort Delta;
- a Dehcho council for youth climate leaders;
- a bid to create a pan-territorial youth network;
- the Northern Laughter Movement, a week-long youth gathering focused on humour and storytelling; and
- a documentary following young Gwich’in hunters in the Peel watershed.
A Nunavut traditional sewing and beading program involving youth and Elders received $90,000.
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Cheko was the NWT’s biggest win at the 13th annual Arctic Inspiration Prize awards ceremony.
“Indigenous youth have called for culturally grounded learning that prepares them for meaningful careers,” reads a description of the project.
“Youth are paired with Indigenous and industry mentors for career guidance and cultural teachings. Cheko supports both employment and entrepreneurship, ensuring participants leave with tangible skills, certifications, and professional networks.”
Rebecca Alty, who was Yellowknife mayor at the time, nominated Cheko for the award. Alty was sworn in as minister of Crown-Indigenous relations not far from the ceremony on Tuesday.
