Covid-19 and the Arctic: A Challenge and an Opportunity
It is evident that the Arctic – A Global Health Perspective webinar series is an important platform for sharing knowledge as it offers a transdisciplinary look at key global health challenges and opportunities in the High North. In the fourth webinar of the series, we were joined by Dr. Jennifer Spence, Executive Secretary of the Sustainable Working Group (SWG) of the Arctic Council, for a presentation on Covid-19, Human Health and the Arctic. The SWG focuses on the human dimensions of the Arctic and seeks to enhance the health, social, cultural, and economic well-being of Indigenous peoples and Arctic inhabitants. In her talk, Dr. Spence presented the audience with an overview of the unique experiences of High North communities during the pandemic, common challenges throughout the region, and areas of opportunity to define change and set priorities for the future.
As the Covid-19 pandemic has brought extraordinary changes to our daily lives raising significant concerns across the world – implications are seen at the global, national, regional, and local levels. “The pandemic is a global shock to the system” Dr. Spence says, “which tests resilience at multiple levels.”. Highlighting the importance of how the pandemic is experienced locally, Dr. Spence emphasized that context and how decisions are made in response to the pandemic is crucial. Small remote communities of Indigenous peoples and rural communities are particularly vulnerable due to fragile and absent infrastructure, such as distance from healthcare centers, putting them at an increased health risk during a health crisis. Aware of the challenges that these communities face due to scarcity of resources and lack of infrastructure, Dr. Spence posed pertinent questions such as “how do you wash hand frequently when there is a lack of clean water?” and “how do you self-isolate in communities where there is a shortage and overcrowded housing?”. These questions provide us with insight into the importance of region specific advice and context driven solutions.
While the pandemic reveals the infrastructure deficits in the region, it also demonstrats the strengths and resilience of Arctic inhabitants and emphasizes their capacity to adapt. The Arctic peoples “continue to respond to Covid-19 in ways that are unique and relevant to the needs of the communities” says Dr. Spence. By drawing on local expertise in the region and taking into account traditional knowledge and community driven approaches, the Arctic experience and response is an opportunity to drive and define change.
Despite documented health disparities between the circumpolar north and other regions, the Arctic remains an underrepresented area in global health research. Over the coming weeks, the webinar series will continue to feature academics and specialists who will continue cover topics including Arctic governance, climate change, Covid-19, food security, migration, Indigenous rights and more.
The fifth webinar in the series, Country Food Security and Safety in the Canadian Arctic with Dr. Emily Jenkins, Professor and Department Head (Acting) in the Department of Veterinary Biology at the University of Saskatchewan will take place Monday March 8 at 10:00 a.m. EST
For more information and to register click here.
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