Adapting to the effects of climate change on Inuit health

Abstract

Climate change will have far-reaching implications for Inuit health. Focusing on adaptation offers a proactive approach for managing climate-related health risks-one that views Inuit populations as active agents in planning and responding at household, community, and regional levels. Adaptation can direct attention to the root causes of climate vulnerability and emphasize the importance of traditional knowledge regarding environmental change and adaptive strategies. An evidence base on adaptation options and processes for Inuit regions is currently lacking, however, thus constraining climate policy development. In this article, we tackled this deficit, drawing upon our understanding of the determinants of health vulnerability to climate change in Canada to propose key considerations for adaptation decision-making in an Inuit context.

FIGURE 1—

The Inuit Nunangat (Inuit homeland) in Canada. Source. Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (2008), ESRI (2012), and Statistics Canada (2006).

FIGURE 2—

Visual representation of key considerations for health adaptation in Inuit communities. Note. In (a), Arctic ice is melting at an unprecedented rate, emphasizing the need for management of current climate change health risks. In (b), community health systems have a central role to play in adaptation as they incorporate allopathic and traditional approaches to health and well-being, and here Apea Sodluapik from Pangnirtung’s Health Centre (Pangnirtung Nunavut, Northwest Territories, Canada) is speaking about climate change and health risks. In (c), for some Inuit, underlying socioeconomic and changing cultural factors are a root cause of vulnerability, and climate change can further stress individuals and families if, for example, ice conditions undermine hunting and associated food security. In (d), successful adaptation builds on sociocultural strengths, incorporating and promoting traditional knowledge and cultural values, like this hunter teaching his sons to secure food by catching walrus in Foxe Basin. In (e), ongoing health policy and programming must integrate a climate change lens, bringing adaptation solutions into the mainstream, creating proactive and flexible communities and institutions. Source. Ian Mauro (a), (b), (d), and (e) and James Ford (c).