Agnico Eagle's Meadowbank gold mine is one of the many located on Inuit-owned land in Nunavut. Courtesy of Agnico Eagle.

In late July 1991, negotiators with the federal government and the Tunngavik Federation of Nunavut (TFN) sat in the community hall in Coppermine, N.W.T., on the cusp of a monumental achievement–the completion of a comprehensive agreement that assigned ownership over each square metre of land in the future territory of Nunavut.

This last of six regional land-selection meetings included a 24-hour negotiating session. “Nobody seemed to be really tired, even though it was right around the clock. It was very important,” said James Eetoolook, vice-president of Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. (NTI), Nunavut’s birthright corporation. Eetoolook watched his body language – sluggishness might betray weakness and open the window for government negotiators to offer smaller or less valuable parcels of land. “We had to be on alert.”