Mobilization of Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit for polar bear co-management: qualitative analysis of a Nunavut Wildlife Management Board public hearing

Inclusion of Indigenous knowledge in polar bear (nanuq [Inuktut]; Ursus maritimus) conservation and management decisions remains an enduring challenge. The Nunavut Wildlife Management Board (NWMB) held a series of public hearings on polar bear management from 2007-2018 that featured substantial quantities of Inuit knowledge, observations, and perspectives on different polar bear sub-populations. Qualitative analysis of those hearing transcripts offers a rigorous method to access that documented knowledge and to support its meaningful incorporation into decision-making. Here we apply this approach to the NWMB’s 2013 Foxe Basin polar bear public hearing as a case study, identifying three primary themes: 1. there are more polar bears now than in past, 2. polar bears are entering communities and endangering human lives, and 3. Inuit feel their knowledge is not being adequately utilized in decision-making. We demonstrate how such analysis can systematically and transparently mobilize Inuit knowledge, and assess how these particular themes might contribute to both the substance and the legitimacy of polar bear co-management decisions.