importance of porcupine caribou to her people. Recently, she was in Ottawa for the North American Caribou Workshop, a federal government-sponsored confer- ence held from Oct. 29-Nov. 2 aimed at engaging stakeholders, researchers, government and industry to discuss and share information on caribou management, conservation and recovery initiatives. It was at this conference that researchers revealed alarming figures of caribou populations. Caribou have been divided into 11 subsets, or “designated units” by researchers and the govern- ment. Most are now considered to be threatened or endangered. The barren-ground caribou – which thrive in the tundra – numbered at over two million in the early 1990s. Now, the figure is estimated to be about 800,000 (The porcupine caribou, so-called because they cross the Porcupine River in the Yukon, fall in this category). The decline of caribou populations is largely attributed to human activity. They are notoriously sensitive to disturb- ances to their habitat and migrational routes, usually caused by infrastructure like roads, railways and hydroelectric towers. They are also impacted by resource development such as mining and forestry. While being interviewed for this article, Netro was in Washington, D.C. to tell U.S. policy-makers to avoid gas and oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska. The site, located just across the Yukon-Alaska border, holds the calving grounds of the vast porcupine caribou herd that her people rely on. “We must ensure we take care of them in every way that we can,” said Netro, who noted her community has pushed for continued protection of the refuge for 40 years. BorealandEastern MigratoryCaribou According to researchers, boreal and eastern migratory caribou are threat- ened and endangered, respectively. Both subspecies can be found in northern Ontario. The Ontario government estimates there are about 5,000 boreal caribou in the province, who live in the boreal forest year-round. TheUniversityofWindsorisdedicated tofurtheringIndigenouseducationand researchopportunitieswithspecial attentiontosocialjustice. Explorethepromiseandpossibility oftheUWindsorexperienceat uwindsor.ca 9197 Advocate Magazine Ad Summer 2018 Final.indd 1 2018-06-29 11:17 AM Painters  Drywall Finishers  Glaziers  Plasterers Signwriters  EIFS-Stucco  Hazardous Materials  Industrial International Union of Painters and Allied Trades DISTRICT COUNCIL 46 PROUD SUPPORTER OF THE CHIEFS OF ONTARIO PLEASE VISIT US AT WWW. IUPAT.ON.CA Drywall Finishers Drywall Finishers  Glaziers Glaziers DISTRICT COUNCIL 46 DISTRICT COUNCIL 46 SUMMER/WINTER 2018/19 – Chiefs of Ontario Advocate magazine   l   57