PLAIN LANGUAGE MAPS OF GLACIAL LANDSCAPES WEST OF HUDSON BAY: TRANSLATING SCIENCE INTO RELEVANT INFORMATION FOR INUIT COMMUNITIES IN NUNAVUT, CANADA

Accessibility and uptake of geoscience knowledge by northern communities have traditionally been limited partly due to the technical nature of geological maps and accompanying datasets. For example, standard surficial geology maps use a complex legend to classify glacial materials and landforms and are useful to scientists and the mineral exploration industry, but are less known, accessible and available in non-technical language to local Inuit communities. Recent geoscience programs by government agencies working in northern Canada (e.g. GEM-GeoNorth) now include significant components of community engagement, communication and outreach activities to inform land-use planning and support decision-making by Northerners for climate-resilient and sustainable infrastructure and resource development. In the Kivalliq Region of central mainland Nunavut, innovative and user-friendly plain language maps for non-specialists in surficial geology have been produced for coastal communities with interest in a large area covered by a GEM- GeoNorth glacial history synthesis project on the west side of Hudson Bay (Naujaat, Baker Lake, Rankin Inlet, and Arviat). Here we discuss how we prepared simplified maps and illustrations of selected surficial map units and landforms surrounding the communities and how these products can be used to provide meaningful knowledge and useful data to land users, local prospectors, and teachers. In accordance with the Government of Canada’s Open Data policy, the outreach material, selected digital surficial geological datasets, and annotated photographs will be made freely available online for community members and any other interested party. This will increase the awareness of surficial geoscience within the local communities, who live on, traverse, and have a deep understanding of the landscape, making it more inclusive, culturally relevant, and impactful.