SILA for SIKU Launch! New Weather Tools, Services and Indigenous Environmental Terminology for SIKU 2.0

Lucassie Arragutainaq, Lisi-Kavik Mickiyuk, Joel Heath & SIKU Nunangat Outreach Team
Arctic Eider Society, Qikiqtait Centre Building 410 no 234 Sanikiluaq, NU X0A 0W0 
SIKU: The Indigenous Knowledge Social Network launched in 2019 and has over 30,000 users across 130+ Inuit and First Nations communities in Canada, Alaska and Greenland. The SIKU app provides tools and services to land users supporting subsistence hunting, safety and knowledge transfer, while the web platform project management tools support communities running their own climate change monitoring, guardians programs and management of their lands and resources. SIKU goes the extra mile for Indigenous data sovereignty supporting full data ownership, access and control in a flexible framework to meet the unique needs of different Indigenous projects and organizations. Key information such as dangerous ice conditions can be shared broadly, while sensitive information can be kept exclusively to the user, project admins or vetted project members. We will share how projects across the north are using SIKU to support Indigenous-led programs.  
The launch of SILA for SIKU builds on the existing 2.0 features including offline maps, satellite imagery and cutting edge GPS, as well as the Harvesters Activity Panel for tracking travel and subsistence activities throughout the year. SILA for SIKU updates the apps with a new navigation stack and Weather Menu that brings together daily, hourly and historical weather, marine forecast, tide charts, SmartICE data, remote weather stations, and integrated Windy, waves and northern lights forecast products. Indigenous Environmental Terminology profiles for weather, snow and the new Weather Post type facilitate using Indigenous knowledge and language systems to systematically and quantitatively document and classify observations and knowledge in real-time, at the frontlines of climate change in the north. SIKU automatically links up weather data to all posts made on SIKU, facilitating climate analysis for projects. These new features combined with our Project Management framework support a leading role for northern communities in climate change adaptation, research and monitoring, facilitating Indigenous self-determination at scale. 

Join us for the exciting launch of SILA for SIKU weather and climate features at Arctic Change 2024!!