You are browsing the archives of 2009 September.

The first class of Unama’KIDS graduated at a ceremony in Eskasoni and joined a new group of kids that will be involved in next year’s project. The focus of the day was eels and we looked at the species from a traditional and a scientific point of view. Blair Bernard showed how to spear, clean [...]

We have many neighbours: people, plants, animals and all the wonders that occupy the land and water. We share the earth’s resources (including water), often without any plan for the future that ensures our shared water resource is clean and available to all. A watershed plan focuses on water and is a tool that identifies [...]

UINR is working with Parks Canada to study the population of American eel in Cape Breton Highlands National Park. Throughout June, UINR staff will catch, measure and release elvers (young eels) as they enter the rivers and brooks between Ingonish Beach and Neil’s Harbour. The project is looking at the migration of the elvers from [...]

Hubert Nicholas must have salt water in his blood! He’s been out on the ocean fishing for as long as he can remember. He started working professionally as a fisherman’s helper in 1988 and eventually became Captain of his own commercial fishing business. Over the years, he’s fished lobster, snow crab, herring, rock crab, tuna [...]

The Cape Breton Highlands have always been known as traditional Mi’kmaq hunting grounds. In fact, a Mi’kmaq hunter recently found a 4500 year-old arrowhead there, evidence that Mi’kmaq hunted there for thousands of years. However, in the 1800s, moose disappeared from Unama’ki and this ancient relationship came to an abrupt end that lasted for almost [...]

Notes from UINR’s Executive Director Lisa Young Welcome to our 5th year of the UINR MARTEN! Our quarterly newsletter has been very successful in getting the word out on our activities at UINR. Not only do we deliver a copy to every household in the five Mi’kmaq communities in Unama’ki, we distribute copies far and [...]

When UINR needs to twist someone’s arm, we know who to send. Mark MacPhail, UINR’s Director of Forestry just won his fourth gold medal in the Canadian National Arm Wrestling Championships! So next time you need a little persuading…Fisheries and Oceans Canada are working on a new Memorandum of Understanding with UINR that will lay [...]

We’re on a mission! Take thousands of people, put them on an island for four days with no sewage system and no where to dispose of their garbage and you can imagine what is left behind. This was the scene every year at the annual Chapel Island Mission in the small community of Potlotek. Back [...]