�� Community residents with years of experience can often find cost saving
measures for researchers. Once trained, they can also remove the need for
expensive field trips to undertake routine data collection, maintenance, and
monitoring.
– Community residents have experiences that can provide valuable insights for
refining research questions, interpreting study findings, communicating information, as well as applying research results.
– Local residents can provide observations and information on a broad seasonal
and long-term basis that is often not possible for southern researchers.
– Community residents, once involved in research projects, can help move
research to policy – providing a powerful voice to articulate research findings
at various decision-making levels.
As stated previously, Inuit, by-and-large, support well organized and beneficial Arctic scientific research. This is particularly true when Inuit feel they are involved in the research, and that it contributes to improving situations not only for Northerners, but for
Canadians and the wider public audience.Therefore, researchers are encouraged to consider the following questions as you read the rest of the guide:
❖ What types of direct and indirect benefits could my project have within
a community?
❖ How can I positively engage community members in the research
process?
The process of answering the above questions may reveal ways in which research
projects can be developed in order to maximize the potential benefits to community
members and researchers. Therefore, the next section outlines some of the key issues for
researchers to consider as they move towards negotiating a research relationship, involving communities at an appropriate level within project stages, applying for a research license, and/or developing a communication strategy.
6
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N EGOTIATING R ESEARCH R ELATIONSHIPS W ITH I NUIT C OMMUNITIES