This presentation discusses Inuvialuit whaling in the context of marine conservation policies and Indigenous resurgence, arguing for understanding the hunting of whales and other animals in terms of the local idiom of sharing.
Paper long abstract:
The Inuvialuit of the Western Canadian Arctic are skilful hunters, and the annual beluga whale hunt in the Arctic Ocean constitutes a key moment in their annual round of traditional subsistence activities. Based on ethnographic research since 2017, this presentation discusses Inuvialuit whaling in the context of marine conservation policies and Indigenous resurgence. It argues for understanding the hunting of whales and other animals in the local idiom of sharing. As is widespread among hunter-gatherer groups around the world, people are obliged to share with each other, but they also share with the non-human environment that provides for them. The example of a regional marine protected area illustrates the commonalities and differences between ideas and practices geared at respecting animals, based on sharing on the one hand and conservation on the other. The presentation proposes that Inuvialuit whaling is a form of respecting animals, where killing is an integral part of sustaining life rather than its violent end. Life, in this understanding, does not inhere so much in individual bodies as in the larger web of life, which cannot be based on antagonism but is firmly grounded in mutuality.