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March 20, 2015 - Ottawa, Ontario - Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada
The Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, Minister of the Environment, Minister of the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency and Minister for the Arctic Council will host the Circumpolar Mental Wellness Symposium in Iqaluit, Nunavut, from March 25 to 27, 2015.
Canada made the promotion of mental wellness in circumpolar communities a priority under its Arctic Council chairmanship. The Circumpolar Mental Wellness Symposium marks the culmination of this priority. Delegates will include Indigenous representatives, researchers, youth, and policy-makers. The symposium, which will be a forum to discuss ways to improve mental wellness among Arctic peoples, takes place over three days, with a special focus on mental wellness and youth.
Opening remarks will be delivered on March 25 by Minister Aglukkaq along with Paul Okalik, Minister of Health from the Government of Nunavut, and Duane Smith, President of the Canadian Inuit Circumpolar Council.
Canada’s Arctic Council chairmanship initiative on mental wellness has identified culturally appropriate best practices for suicide prevention and shared them with community leaders across the circumpolar world.
The symposium is being organized by the Government of Canada, the Government of Nunavut and the Inuit Circumpolar Council, which are working in partnership with Norway, Denmark, the United States and Russia. The symposium is supported in part by Bell Let’s Talk.
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