Two Years of the Fund for Gender Equality Cohort

In May 2024, five Nunavut nonprofit and charitable organizations came together for the Fund for Gender Equality, a cohort made possible through partnership with Community Foundations Canada. Outside of Annauma's core priority areas, but deeply aligned with its values, it became one of the most memorable and insightful cohorts Annauma has hosted. Here are some of the stories we want to share with you.

The Iqaluit Amateur Hockey Association used its funding to open dedicated ice time for 51 young female players with 38 of them Inuit. A skills camp led by Professional Women’s Hockey League players observed something unique to the North: “the girls worked together and helped each other become the best they could be.” Shortly after, with much excitement, the Iqaluit Blizzards Minor Female team returned from a tournament near Ottawa with a silver medal. 

Qaujigiartiit Health Research Centre gathered six Elders from across Nunavut for three days of traditional storytelling in Iqaluit. The gathering studied traditional stories and reflected on the community’s role in passing them on today. For Director Ceporah Mearns, it was clear, “if we don’t, then they become lost.” The next step is to use these learnings to form a new Elders mentorship program.

Pitquhirnikkut Ilihautiniq / Kitikmeot Heritage Society's Elders-in-Training program ran four days a week for a year and a half, turning silent speakers into people whose daily language is now becoming Inuinnaqtun. The organization has since won the Arctic Inspiration Prize and is now focused on scaling and building a curriculum taught territory-wide, plus has secured a new partnership with Université du Québec à Montréal to develop the first-ever written grammar and online dictionary for Inuinnaqtun.

Ilitaqsiniq's first-ever women's leadership workshop, Leading in Our Own Way, brought 20 participants to Rankin Inlet for five days of learning, culture, and connection. The workshop reflects Inu-vation, Ilitaqsiniq's integrated approach to program design, constantly refined and improved, that infuses vitality into all of its programming. Participants have since earned promotions and stepped into new community roles. A highly-anticipated second workshop is already planned for Iqaluit this year. 
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At Qajuqturvik Community Food Centre, the Inuit Women's Circle grew so popular it now runs four times a week—and has since expanded into providing country food and on-the-land programming. As Executive Director, Joseph Murdoch-Flowers put it:

"Annauma funding has really been a catalyst to start something that others are looking at and building on."

Looking back, the numbers tell one story: $825,000 moved into communities across Nunavut, has supported a variety of initiatives benefiting Inuit women and girls. The cohort has now come to an end, but the relationships, generosity, and support for each other is still very much alive.