Voting at 16

When I was in high school I started to get interested in the land claims.  I joined the Baffin Region Inuit Association, BRIA - Youth committee as a secretary treasurer and eventually became President.   The majority of the population of Nunavut Inuit were youth, and the voting age for all Inuit Associations was set at 16. 

In the beginning I didn't know how a meeting was conducted.  I had no voting privledges and sat as an observer.  Luckily a board director mentored me along and explaining what the Article was pertaining to or why it was important to Inuit.  Luccassie Ivalu of Igloolik took me under his wing and with the President at the time Pauloosie Keyootak, I found support to learning the ropes. 

With the youth committee being new to BRIA, I wanted to help the youth understand more about how things were conducted and why, it was important that we learn the rules.  So before I resigned, and with the support of BRIA staff, we held a Baffin wide youth meeting with 2 representatives from the 13 communities that make up Baffin region. 

There are 3 regions in Nunavut and have regional Inuit Associations; Kivalliq Inuit Association, Kitikmeot Inuit Association and Baffin, now Qikiqtani Inuit Association with the majority of population and landmass.