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NSMA Guardianship Programs 

Indigenous Guardians monitor, manage and steward their lands, waters and ice. NSMA's Guardianship Program aims to connect members to the land and gather important information about the overall health of the ecosystem in their Traditional Territory. We run several programs that involve NSMA Guardians in fieldwork to investigate caribou, fish and water in the NWT. 

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Merging Advanced Technologies with Traditional Knowledge for Species at Risk Protection

This project aims to braid Traditional Knowledge with Western Science to investigate the presence of species at risk in the North Slave region. NSMA Guardians collect water samples for eDNA analysis, place game cameras and autonomous recording units (ARUs) and measure water quality levels each year. 

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NSMA Winter Road Monitoring Program

Each year, NSMA Guardians drive the Tibbitt to Contwoyto ice road in order to monitor Barren ground caribou in their winter range. We are particularly interested in investigating cumulative impacts and understanding the effect of vehicles, predators and noise disturbance on caribou. 

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Wildlife monitoring at Old Fort Rae (Dinàgà Wek'èhodì)

Old Fort Rae, located in the North Arm of Great Slave Lake within the proposed protected area of Dinàgà Wek'èhodì is a community camp used by NSMA members for cultural activities. NSMA Guardians and staff have monitor the wildlife at this important site several times a year  

Want to get involved?

We are always in search of NSMA members who have an interest in environmental monitoring and fieldwork. If you are interested in becoming an NSMA Guardian or if you have any questions about the Guardian program please contact wildlife biologist and Guardian program coordinator Orna Phelan at orna.phelan@nsma.net  

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