Like I said, today was the environmental class' dump field trip. It was a 20-minute walk; halfway there we began to detect what awaited us at the end of our journey. The kids were amazed at what they saw: lots of plastic, aluminum, paper and cardboard, in addition to "waste" that could have easily been reused. A whole box of new clothes, price tags still on them, had been dumped, as well as an entire set of Canadian law books. Though they did not get an interview with an employee, the kids shot a lot of video of the piles of trash and the seagulls which threatened to disgrace us at any moment.
The kids pose in front of the landfill sign
Logi films as Pia exclaims, "It smells like a giant diaper!"
I realized that I forgot to share my first major cultural faux pas with you! Last Friday, I went fishing with some of the elementary schoolers. A high school boy who works with me came as well, and as he is somewhat shy, I began to make conversation by asking about his heritage. Most people here, whether Inuk or white, are very open about their heritage. However, this kid is a foster child from the Northwest Territories. It did not occur to me that to ask him about his parents might make him uncomfortable. I felt pretty bad about it afterwards.
I was surprised to see how popular adoption and foster care is up here. If I had to guess, I would say that at least half, if not more, of the students live with someone who is not a parent. Many teachers are foster parents for their students, and I know of one Cambridge Bay family that has adopted 8 kids! Interestingly, many kids are not removed from the Cambridge Bay community when placed into foster care. My immediate thought was that it seemed like an awkward situation for the kids to be in the same community as their parents, but I suppose that could be a benefit as well. I really appreciate this part of Cambridge Bay culture. What a way for a village to raise a child!
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