8 Hours Away!

In 8 hours we begin the long journey (18 hours in transit) to Iqaluit. 

The work began months ago and Janice Isberg has been leading the charge.  The baton has recently been passed to the delivery team.  Steve Simon, Jim Lapp and I (Colleen Starchuk) are armed with all of Janice's planning and good work as we step into a 5 day Hazardous Waste Workshop designed to support communities in the far north.  The very far north...  Iqaluit is the gathering point and 5 other northern communities from the territory of Nunavut will participate.  Our commitment to our team is to bring everyone's hard work to life and make it relevant for our participants.

As we step into this adventure our greatest hope is that the knowledge, practices and advice that we have to offer from our vantage point below the treeline can be adapted to life in the far north.  We know we will be on a steep learning curve as we consider the unique circumstances that our participants face in their own communities and we fully expect that we will need to 'think outside the box' as we reflect on what they face.

This blog is an opportunity to document our experiences and learning as well as keep our extended team in Edmonton informed as we progress through the next 5 days.

We will be leaving Edmonton's balmy +1 C later today and arriving in Iqaluit to face a temperature somewhere between -27 and -35 C.  We will see 8 hours and 38 minutes of sunlight, a pleasant surprise for me as I'm excited to see what life is like in this northern town.

All for now!
Colleen