Teaching Notes: Silak: Ice and Consciousness. The Arctic and Climate
Change
by
Lori Lambert
Salish Kootenai College
Issues/Topics
1. Impacts of climate change in the Arctic
2. Animals of the Arctic ecosystems affected by climate change
3. Aspects of Arctic ecosystems
4. Polar bear adaptations
5. Inuit culture in a changing Arctic environment
Learning Objectives: Students will:

Analyze how the elements of Inuit culture depend on Arctic climates

Analyze information on human caused climate change in the Arctic.

Describe the adaptations of polar bears for life in the Arctic environment.

Discuss how people and animals in the Arctic can adapt to climate change

Brainstorm ways that we can all save energy and reduce our carbon
footprint.
Intended Audience: This case is suitable for use in undergraduate or graduate courses in
Native American and Indigenous Studies, Geography, Environmental Studies, Wildlife
Management, and Meteorology.
Implementation and use: The instructor is responsible for setting out a framework for
understanding the basic history, context and issues presented by this case. Depending on
the level of knowledge and familiarity with climate change, Indigenous knowledge,
Arctic environments, and Arctic wildlife, it may be necessary to prepare a pre-assignment
and/or provide a lecture in advance so the students will have the basic knowledge to work
a case set in the Arctic. A list of additional resources is provided at the end of the case
that may be useful.
This case can be taught in a 50-minute class or in a longer class if time is available. One
approach would be to divide the students into small groups to discuss the questions and
finish the class with a general discussion period.
The case can also be presented as an interrupted case in which students complete one
section of the case and then move on to the next section.
Teaching the Case through further research and student mapping exercise:
Another approach described below in which students read the case and then work in
groups with maps to research areas of the Arctic where a warming climate is having the
most visible effects.
Students could also work in groups that include information about changes in weather
patterns due to the increase in greenhouse gases and how it affects a climate change.
Students could research the human activities, which produce greenhouse gases; where
levels are in the greatest concentration and how they affect Arctic environments through
wind currents and sea currents. Students could create a map of where the gases are
coming from, tracing the wind flows and oceanic currents that would be affected. What
industries are emitting the highest volume of greenhouse gases?
Analyze information about climate change and make plans to create change in the lives of
their families and themselves Such changes could be, for example, driving less and
maybe using bicycles or scooters to get around; changing light bulbs to all neon light
bulbs; unplugging computers, cell phone chargers, shutting lights off when leaving the
room. .The students can think of other “environmental good habits.”
Indigenous Knowledge activity
One group could interview elders from their area and ask questions concerning
Indigenous knowledge in their own area and how they predict the weather, how they find
directions by looking at nature, how they know when to plant their crops.
Students could present their findings in a power point or a research paper.
Invite native scientists to the class to speak about their work and how they blend native
science with western science.
Wildlife activity
Research the route that polar bears migrate to the Churchill Area and create a map of
their migration from the sea ice.
Research other populations of polar bears and present information on their well-being.
Make inferences about which birds will continue to migrate to the Churchill area and
why.
In Canada, polar bears are listed as a species of “Special Concern” under the Species at
Risk Act. In the U.S. the polar bear has been listed by the US Fish and Wildlife Service
as “threatened” under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. What do these listings mean for
the future of the Canadian and U.S. polar bear populations? How do you think the polar
bear can be saved if their habitat is too warm for them to survive in the Arctic?
Ethics activity: “The United Nations”
Set up a global arena to discuss how the people of earth can come together to save Arctic
environments. Students will take the roles of: Heads of government, environment
ministers, fossil fuel industry representatives, environmental non-governmental
organizations (ngo’s) representatives, etc. Assign these roles to the students. Have
students research their points of view and present them in a forum. Make a decision about
the future. Is it economics versus environment? Who loses? Who wins? Who owns the
earth? Who is responsible for the well being of the Arctic environments? How do people
and industries in the non-Arctic areas of the world contribute to the climate change issue?
Green Tourism: This activity will require students to research the areas/group in
which they are assigned
Divide the class into groups:
1) Churchill townspeople who own businesses and hotels, taxi owners and bus owners.
Research how small business owners can contribute to the halt of climate change. Also
include the expense that this would cost.
2) Tundra tourist companies and buggy drivers whose vehicles use gasoline to take
tourists out to the places where bears frequent. The gas used contributes greenhouse
gases. Research the use of alternative fuels and how CO2 emissions affect climate
change.
3) Inuit People who have extensive knowledge of the polar bear migrations and their
lifecycle.
4) Scientists who research the lifecycle and migrations of polar bears in Hudson Bay.
(See additional references list.)
5) Wapusk Dog sled company: This Company is pretty earth friendly. But they do use
gasoline engines for their tour busses as well as heat their cabins with wood. Research
how hydrocarbons from wood burning stoves contribute to climate change.
After gathering information, come together in a town meeting to adopt policies for the
town for Green Tourism.
Additional References and Resources
Arctic Climate Impact Assessment. (2004) Impacts of a warming Arctic - Arctic climate
impact assessment, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Bielawski, E. (1996) Inuit Indigenous knowledge and science in the Arctic. In Nader, L.
(Ed) Naked science: Anthropological inquiry into boundaries, power and knowledge. (pp.
216-227) New York: Routledge
Chatier, B. (1994). A Birder's guide to Churchill Manitoba (ABA Lane Birdfinding
Guide #490) (Paperback). American Birding Assn; Revised edition (January 1994)
Dotto, L (2000).Storm warning: Gambling with the climate of our planet. Scarborough,
Ontario: Doubleday Canada
Derocher, A.E., Nicholas, J.L., & Stirling, I. (2004) Polar bears in a warming climate.
Integrative and Comparative Biology, 44:2, 163-176.
Jowit, J. Drought land will be abandoned in The Observer. London. November 2, 2008.
Kazlowski, S. (2008).The last polar bear: Facing the truth in a warming world. Seattle:
Mountaineers Book.
Lentfer, H. & Servid C. (Eds) (2001) Arctic refuge: A circle of testimony. Minneapolis:
Milkweed Editions.
McDonald, Arragutainaq, L & Novalinga Z. (Eds) 1996) Voices from the Bay:
Traditional ecological knowledge of Inuit and Cree in Hudson Bay bioregion. Ottawa:
Canadian Arctic Resources Commission
McMillan, A.D. (2004) First peoples in Canada (3rd ed). Vancouver: Douglas &
McIntyre.
Nelson, R. (1969) Hunters of northern ice. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Sterling, I. (2008). Public lecture, Churchill, Manitoba, November 2008.
Sterling, Ian (1998). Polar bears. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.
Soper, T. (2006) The Arctic: A guide to coastal wildlife, 2nd. Bucks, UK: Bradt Guides
Wenzel, G.W. (1999) Traditional ecological knowledge and Inuit: reflections on TEK
research and ethics. Arctic 52(2): 113-124.
World Wildlife Federation. Report to Congress, 2007
Internet Sites
Arctic Climate Impact Assessment http://www.acia.uaf.edu/
Arctic Research Consortium of the United States. http://www.arcus.org
Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna http://arcticportal.org/en/caff/
Defenders of Wildlife.
http://www.defenders.org/wildlife_and_habitat/wildlife/polar_bear.php
National Wildlife Federation Polar bears and global warming.
http://www.nwf.org/polarbearsandglobalwarming/
Polar Bears International. http://www.polarbearsinternational.org
SeaWorld Education Department.
http://www.seaworld.org/infobooks/PolarBears/home.html
The Arctic Is: Human-environment relationships in the Arctic. http://www.thearctic.is/
World Wildlife Fund: Arctic environment and conservation.
http://www.panda.org/what_we_do/where_we_work/arctic/