Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in late January of this year, more than 150 harvesters, biologists, regulatory officials and elected leaders met in Inuvik to tackle the critical issue of a declining caribou herds. Those three days of discussions were preceded by a similar meeting in Yellowknife a month earlier, and since then by other meetings among industry and community groups. The strong show of participation in Inuvik, the respectful and businesslike tone and the debates and the wide range of consensus delivers a crystal clear message, Mr. Speaker, that northerners are united on the need and the urgency to take decisive action to protect the caribou.
Delegates at the Inuvik summit delivered more than 20 recommendations on what to do. These ranged from reductions in harvesting to the need for more training, awareness of responsible harvesting practices, to comprehensive monitoring and reporting of harvest levels. That's just a few of the consensus points they delivered.
Later this week, Mr. Speaker, there will be yet one more critical set of meetings when the Wekeezhii Renewable Resources Board holds its hearing into the issue. As the statutory resource board designated by the Tlicho settlement, I am confident that their findings will present further good direction on what should be done. Now, Mr. Speaker, the duty and the responsibility to translate all these recommendations into concrete actions falls on this government. We are the agency with the mandate, resources and the authority to take action.
Mr. Speaker, our government must not be timid. This Assembly needs to heed the messages sent by that unprecedented gathering in Inuvik and the recommendations yet to come from Wekeezhii. We must back them up with equal resolve and determination. We must show that we, too, will do our part as stewards of the
caribou and everything they mean to our people in the Northwest Territories, Mr. Speaker.
---Applause