A consultation activity was conducted in 2022 with Nunavik Inuit on the desired qualities of their habitat. To do so, they were given booklets to fill out. Nine themes were addressed in an attempt to understand the realities and aspirations at three scales of habitat : house (pulaarvik, porches and windows), neighborhood (subdivision, neighborhood, community space) and community (choice of housing, control of housing, life outside the village). Each theme was covered by four to five questions.
The booklets were filled with illustrations, drawings, Inuit voices and a variety of questions.
« There's different ways that we have to do research. There's different ways to get Inuit to feel comfortable to share their information. This is such a cool and innovative tool, you can color and draw in it. That's culturally us. We're artists. » (Olivia Ikey, 2022)
A total of twenty-five questionnaires have been collected. The majority of the respondents were :
Kangiqsualujjuaq (20) and Kuujjuaq (5)
Women aged 35 with two children (20)
Leaseholder (12), living in a duplex or single house (20) with her spouse (16)
Office worker (20) with high school diploma (13)
Previously lived in Montreal (14)
Owns a vehicle (21)
No cabin (17)
Here's the complete results :
Since the sample is not very large, it is not possible to draw typical profiles.
However, some trends can be observed.
« A huge porch and pulaarvik is a must. When we gather, there are at least 20 to 30 people minimum. »
« Good housing is suicide prevention. It helps with well-being. »
« Construction loaders aren't supposed to bulldoze the land. We can try innovative ways to live with it. »
« As locals, we know what we need most. we need options for learning how to build. »