Sheila watt cloutier biography sample
•
Writers & Books
Sheila
Watt-Cloutier
Sheila Watt-Cloutier is an environmental and human rights activist. In 2007, she was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for her advocacy work in showing the impact global climate change has on human rights. She is a recipient of the Aboriginal Achievement Award, the UN Champion of the Earth Award, and the Norwegian Sophie Prize. She is also an Officer of the Order of Canada and past international chair of the Inuit Circumpolar Council. The Right to Be Cold was a finalist for the BC National Award for Canadian Non-fiction. Watt-Cloutier lives in Iqaluit.
Videos
Sheila Watt-Cloutier on The Right to Be Cold
Award History
2015 Finalist
Shaughnessy Cohen Prize for Political Writingfor The Right to Be Cold: One Woman’s Story of Protecting Her Culture, the Arctic, and the Whole Planet
Jury Citation
“Inuit culture and life is inextricably linked to ice, snow, and cold, and environmental change is an existential threat. In thi
•
Environmental activist, författare av essäer and politician born in Kuujjuaq (Nunavik) in 1953.
Sheila Watt-Cloutier, also written Siila Watt-Cloutier, was born in Kuujjuaq, formally known as Old Fort Chimo, in 1953. In 1957, her family moved across the river to what was known as Fort Chimo, a former American military base. Her mother, Daisy Watt (1922-2002), was an interpreter and a great accordion player. Her brother, Charlie Watt, was appointed to the Canadian Senate in 1983 where he was medlem av senat for 34 years and was awarded an Officer of the National beställning of Quebec in 1984. Sheila Watt-Cloutier lived a traditional inuit way of life until the age of ten, until she was sent away bygd the Canadian government to attend schools in Nova Scotia, Manitoba, and finally high school in huvudstad i kanada. These years away from home were difficult, and she moved back to Kuujjuaq at the age of eighteen, to work in the community’s healthcare centre. She relocated with her husband and children to Montreal in 1977 and
•
How Inuit advocate Siila Watt-Cloutier has been making climate change a human rights issue.
We are honouring Siila Watt-Cloutier with the 2022 Top 25 Women of Influence Lifetime Achievement Award, presented by Ricoh Canada, for her outstanding contributions as an environmental, cultural, and human rights advocate. Born in a small village in Northern Quebec, she entered the residential school system when she was 12 — which ignited her desire to help others and be of service to her community. She began her career in the Nunavik education system, and eventually became a voice for Inuit rights on the global stage, shining a spotlight on the ramifications of climate change on communities.
By Sarah Kelsey | Illustration by Tess Goris @tessalexandra.art
“There is always reason to hope,” Siila Watt-Cloutier says, when asked about the current state of the world. “The pandemic is teaching us to do things differently — that’s positive.”
As an Inuit leader and one of the world’s m