Brenda Jancke and Beth Kotierk, both of Nunavut, are among the latest appointees to the Nutrition North Canada Advisory Board.
Jancke is regional director for the Department of Family Services in Cambridge Bay while Kotierk is a lawyer who also serves as a board member of the Qajuqturvik Food Centre in Iqaluit.
They join fellow new board members Janice Grey-Scott and Dr. Sarah Jane Cook along with chair Nellie Cournoyea, who has been a board member since 2010, and vice-chair Gordon Harkness, a board member since 2015. Northern Affairs Minister Dan Vandal makes the appointments for three-year terms.
The Nutrition North Canada Advisory Board, its Indigenous Working Group and the Inuit–Crown Food Security Working Group provide direction to Nutrition North Canada.
The goal of Nutrition North is to make nutritious food and some essential items more affordable and accessible to Northerners in remote communities. This year’s federal budget proposes $163.4 million over three years to expand the Nutrition North Canada program.
“The Nutrition North Canada Advisory Board is an integral part of the program’s design and gives residents of isolated Northern communities a direct voice in the program,” the Government of Canada stated in a July 15 news release. “The board works closely with community members and program users to ensure that community perspectives are heard and considered. Appointing additional advisory board members from across Nutrition North Canada’s vast delivery area will both strengthen and amplify local expertise in the program.”