Inuit know who Inuit are.
Nunatsiavut is under threat. A fraudulent group claiming its members to be an Inuit collective are laying claim to land where Labrador Inuit have lived for millennia.
The Nunatsiavut Government spent 30 years negotiating the Labrador Inuit Lands Claims Agreement with the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador and the Government of Canada. Throughout the years of preparation, research, and negotiation that led to the agreement’s signing in 2005, NunatuKavut Community Council (NCC) did not identify its members as Inuit. NCC rejected any ties to Labrador Inuit and Inuit of Canada, identifying explicitly as the Labrador Metis Association.
Today, NCC weaves a different tale, now claiming to be an Inuit collective.
Our task was to launch a major public-facing campaign to set the record straight. We set out to craft a campaign that Nunatsiavut beneficiaries could feel proud of: to protect their land, their way of life, and their identity as Labrador Inuit.
The first piece of the puzzle was framing the campaign narrative. Rather than emphasize perspective or opinions, we knew the importance of centering the indisputable facts. Instead of the campaign voice coming directly from the Nunatsiavut Government and risking dismissal as a difference of opinion, we opted to give voice to the Land herself: for Land to speak truth to what she has witnessed over millennia.
By centering the Land, we were able to centre the unique relationship between Labrador Inuit and Nunatsiavut—which translates to ‘Our Beautiful Land’.
The beauty of the unique tundra landscape was infused into the campaign visuals, with the brand colours and shapes inspired by lichen native to Nunatsiavut.
Our team travelled to Nunatsiavut with award-winning filmmaker Jason van Bruggen to produce a cinematic-style campaign video for advertising on broadcast television and social media platforms.
The video features prominently on the custom made campaign website alongside facts, archival photography, and testimonials from Labrador Inuit to convey one simple truth: Inuit know who Inuit are. It’s time for the rest of us to follow their lead.
