Resilience, warmth, leadership.  These words come to mind when I recall the Labrador Inuit we met during our latest Action Canada working conference. Like the rugged, beautiful landscape we trekked, the Inuit of Nunatsiavut shared their immense beauty of spirit despite the daily challenges they face.

What we saw and heard was striking. Our time in Nain with members of the Nunatsiavut Government, and workers in their one and only medical clinic, revealed barriers to health unheard of for most Canadians.

Imagine living in a community where the closest obstetrical or palliative care is an hour away by plane. Imagine your family nearly twice as likely to suffer from diabetes, and five times more likely to struggle for enough food than the average Canadian. Here, Inuit youth are 30 times more likely to take their own lives than youth in the rest of Canada. Life expectancy is decades too low.

Lack of housing, lingering effects of residential schools, domestic violence, and geographical isolation all pose challenges to health care – a reality we can’t ignore.

Yet the Nunatsiavut Government is fighting back. Rec centres and programmes getting youth back to the land are emerging. Local role models are leading the way with resilience and creative innovation to transform a community from within.

Nakkumek, Labrador – thank you — for this lifetime of lessons I took away after a few short days in your presence. I hope we can all understand how to give back to you to make an even stronger and healthier Canada.

-Jane Thornton, ’15

Photo:  Jenny Merkuratsuk, Hebron National Historic Site