Montreal native Michele Ernsting has reported extensively on the Inuit and Indigenous tribal communities across Canada. In this program, she introduces us to three women, three generations of an Inuit family, in Northern Canada. Their moving stories illustrate how the lives of the Inuit people have changed thanks to "progress." She then travels to the North-West reaches of the continent to bring us the story of Sila, considered the most powerful element in the lives of the Inuit people living in the arctic. We hear voices from across the generations, from young children to an Inuit elder who describes Sila as the natural forces which push and pull a person through life. Part 1: Life is changing quickly. It's something people say all over the world but it seems an understatement for the Inuit people of the Canadian Arctic. Just a few generations ago most Inuit families lived in tents in small nomadic communities. They followed the migrations of sea mammals and caribou. This was how Naqi Echo lived until the late 1950's when she and her family traveled hundreds of miles to Iqualuit. Back then this Canadian airbase on Baffin Island was unlike anything Naqi had ever seen. Since then the population has swelled to almost 6000 and the city is now the capital of the Territory of Nunavut. People now live in houses or apartments and work or collect unemployment benefits. The peaceful life of the tundra has been lost for all but a few weeks of the year, when many families take their home-made tents back out onto the land. This is the story of one such family: Naqi, her daughter Mary and her grand-daughter Naomi. Part 2: Once upon a time, what seems like a long time ago, Sila was the most powerful force in the lives of the Inuit people of the Canadian arctic. Two generations ago, most Inuit lived as nomads. They depended on highly honed skills to hunted caribou, seal and whale. They depended on good weather to get them safely through another season - in other words they depended on Sila. An Inuit elder might describe Sila as the natural forces which push and pull a person through life. It takes years of observation and a deep knowledge of the Inuktitut language to understand this rich concept. But in one generation the Inuit language and culture is under pressure from another overwhelming force, the English language and southern culture. In this program we explore the meaning of Sila.

Montreal native Michele Ernsting has reported extensively on the Inuit and Indigenous tribal communities across Canada. In this program, she introduces us to three women, three generations of an Inuit family, in Northern Canada. Their moving stories illustrate how the lives of the Inuit people have changed thanks to "progress." She then travels to the North-West reaches of the continent to bring us the story of Sila, considered the most powerful element in the lives of the Inuit people living in the arctic. We hear voices from across the generations, from young children to an Inuit elder who describes Sila as the natural forces which push and pull a person through life. Part 1: Life is changing quickly. It's something people say all over the world but it seems an understatement for the Inuit people of the Canadian Arctic. Just a few generations ago most Inuit families lived in tents in small nomadic communities. They followed the migrations of sea mammals and caribou. This was how Naqi Echo lived until the late 1950's when she and her family traveled hundreds of miles to Iqualuit. Back then this Canadian airbase on Baffin Island was unlike anything Naqi had ever seen. Since then the population has swelled to almost 6000 and the city is now the capital of the Territory of Nunavut. People now live in houses or apartments and work or collect unemployment benefits. The peaceful life of the tundra has been lost for all but a few weeks of the year, when many families take their home-made tents back out onto the land. This is the story of one such family: Naqi, her daughter Mary and her grand-daughter Naomi. Part 2: Once upon a time, what seems like a long time ago, Sila was the most powerful force in the lives of the Inuit people of the Canadian arctic. Two generations ago, most Inuit lived as nomads. They depended on highly honed skills to hunted caribou, seal and whale. They depended on good weather to get them safely through another season - in other words they depended on Sila. An Inuit elder might describe Sila as the natural forces which push and pull a person through life. It takes years of observation and a deep knowledge of the Inuktitut language to understand this rich concept. But in one generation the Inuit language and culture is under pressure from another overwhelming force, the English language and southern culture. In this program we explore the meaning of Sila.