Andy Carpenter
Protecting environment his life's work
By Heather Andrews Miller
Windspeaker Writer
Andy Carpenter has been recognized for a lifetime of dedication
to sustaining the wildlife and environment of the Inuvialuit
region. The National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation (NAAF)
has named him as the recipient of its Environment Achievement
Award for 2005. Carpenter, now in his 70s, has held many positions
of leadership over the years and has been an advocate for protective
measures for the land and wildlife of the north as the oil industry
and other southern interests became established there.
Donna Kaogak can
recall her father's involvement in issues pertaining to the land
since her childhood days.
"I can remember missing him because he was away a lot, and
at the time that upset me. But now, as an adult, I understand
that the work he was doing benefited us all, and I am so proud
of him," she said. Her father was a full-time trapper and
a hunter and helped the whole region in regards to the animals
and the environment in general.
"We hunted traditionally to take only enough meat for our
families. When quota systems came in he worked hard to ensure
we still had enough for ourselves but the wildlife was protected."
In the 1970s, he became head of the Sachs Harbour Hunters and
Trappers Committee and was a driving force in the establishment
of an agreement between the community, the government of Canada
and the private sector that limited industrial activities to
the winter months. This became the basis for the ...
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