Increasing Engagement in the Canadian Arctic

Project Goals

Through the Global Arctic Leadership Initiative (GALI), the Government of Canada is supporting the Arctic Mayors’ Forum project that aims to increase their engagement with communities in the Canadian North. From 2024-2026, the Arctic Mayors’ Forum will work to connect with Canadian stakeholders, and collaborate with them to ensure that voices from Canadian communities are represented within the Arctic Mayors’ Forum. This is a key priority for AMF, and in turn is beneficial to Canada’s Arctic communities – both large and small. By being AMF members, Canada’s most northern residents will have a seat at the table place to express their unique views across Arctic borders and globally.

Actions

  • Reaching Canadian communities in the Arctic: It is often difficult to reach the local governments in small communities where mayors work part-time or on a volunteer bases. An increase in capacity within the Arctic Mayors’ Forum Secretariat will make it easier for us to connect with and engage communities with limited capacity. Building the AMF membership in Canada is essential to making sure that the Forum is representative of the Arctic.
  • Reducing financial barriers for Canadian municipalities interested in joining the Forum: Although we are proud to charge low member fees, we want to eliminate any cost for new Canadian municipalities who have expressed that the membership fee poses a barrier for their participation.
  • Engaging Indigenous peoples/communities and youth: We are committed to ensuring that Indigenous people have autonomy to decide who and how they are represented in the Arctic Mayors’ Forum. Through this project we hope to scope a leadership project in the North that is geared towards the needs of Canadian and Indigenous youth.

Workshops

Arctic Change 2024

Workshop: Exploring Arctic Youth Leadership

AMF co-hosted a scoping workshop with UArctic and the Harvard Kennedy Arctic Initiative in December 2025 at the Arctic Change conference in Ottawa. Over 20 youth, community members, and leaders joined a conversation about what opportunities exist, and what opportunities are missing for young people in the north.

Our vision was to ensure that Arctic youth are central to these discussions, shaping the future of leadership programming based on their experiences and aspirations. By involving stakeholders from the outset, we aim to co-design a program/project that empowers Arctic youth to develop their leadership potential and contribute meaningfully to their communities. 

We are committed to complementing, not duplicating, existing efforts and welcome collaboration with those already active in this field. Together, we hope to create an impactful initiative that addresses the unique needs of Arctic youth. 

Moderator: Jennifer Spence

Takeaways

  • It is impossible for youth to take advantage of opportunities when basic needs like housing, healthcare, nutrition, and so on are not being met. It is critical that these needs are met so that young people in the North can thrive.
  • Youth crave relationships with elders and leaders in their communities. Programs that connect young people to people with lived and/or professional experience in the North are important.
  • Knowledge is often a barrier. People in the Arctic are often not aware of all of the programs and opportunities that exist. Getting the information to local leaders, like teachers, principals, and guidance counsellors is important to increase engagement with under-represented youth.
  • The fly-in-fly-out culture in the North often means that trainers have very little understanding of what is going on in the communities they are working in. Programs often lack communiity-specific components that make leadership more empowering and transformational.


Arctic Youth Conference 2025

Side Session: Building our Future: Calling on youth perspectives to shape the future of an Arctic Leadership Program 

This side event at the Arctic Youth Conference was designed to steer the Arctic Mayors’ Forum, UArctic, the Harvard Kennedy School Belfer Center Arctic Initiative, and the World Reindeer Herders Associations collaborative work towards the development of an Arctic Leadership Program that will support Arctic Youth build sustainable, resilient, and thriving futures in the Arctic. By actively including diverse youth perspectives in the development of the Arctic Leadership Program we seek to ensure that youth are truly at the center of the project from its inception, guiding us in creating the program that will best serve them. 

The session explored what ‘leadership’ means to Arctic youth, the skills and competencies that are important to leadership in the North, and what people empower youth in the Arctic and encourage them to be involved.

Moderators: Jennifer Spence, Carter Ayasse, and Juhán Nikolaus Wuolab Wollberg

Takeaways

Question 1: What characteristics define you as an Arctic leader?

  • Indigenous youth face unique and challenging barriers when it comes to accessing leadership opportunities, which often conform to colonial/western understandings of leadership. It may take bravery and resillience for Indigenous youth to participate.
  • Young leaders are “social engineers,” creating positive change while balancing the pressures of living between two worlds.
  • Leadership is rooted in a strong sense of purpose, self-love, and a commitment to building a better future, not just achieving immediate results.

Question 2: What kinds of skills/competencies would you like to have for future leadership/tools in the toolbox?

  • Future leadership programs should include Indigenous knowledge, worldviews, and land-based cultural programming.
  • Youth need real, action-oriented opportunities to lead, contribute to their communities, and envision positive futures.
  • Programs should promote mindfulness, self-awareness, confidence, and mental well-being, while ensuring space for youth connection through councils, events, and youth-led initiatives.
  • Sustainable leadership depends on mentorship, intergenerational knowledge transfer, and reducing reliance on a few high-energy individuals.

Question 3: Who or what helps you feel confident – empowers you to be involved? 

  • Confidence and empowerment come from strong cultural roots — ancestors, family, land, traditions, and a desire to protect future generations.
  • Trusting, community-driven relationships are essential; sustainable empowerment must be built with communities, not imposed upon them.
  • Youth need spaces where they see themselves reflected, feel safe to contribute, and witness real action and follow-through from conversations.
  • Barriers such as tokenism, exclusion from decision-making spaces, and Western-centric systems must be addressed to truly empower youth voices.