NASTC Instructors and Staff

Paulusi Novalinga is President of Nunavik Arctic Survival Training Center. Mr. Novalinga serves as President of the Nunavik Hunting, Fishing, and Trapping Association and is a former mayor of Puvirnituq. Ten years ago, he saved the lives of two young Inuit and received a commendation and medal from the province of Quebec for his bravery. He is a sergeant in the Canadian Rangers and an accomplished carver.

Aisara Kenuajuak is a member of the Board of Directors and an instructor at NASTC. A former sergeant in the Canadian Rangers, he has also served as Mayor of Puvirnituq and town manager. He teaches traditional Inuit culture as an instructor for the school heritage program and is an accomplished hunter. An expert dog musher, he owns a dog team and travels frequently all across Nunavik. He has won igloo building competitions in Nunavik and Nunavut.

Jakusi Ittukallak is a member of the Board of Directors and an instructor at NASTC. He serves in the Canadian Rangers and is a manager and guide at a local fishing camp. He is captain of his own 40 foot boat and can survive on land and sea in all conditions. A renowned carver, he has traveled extensively around the world including to Russia and USA to showcase his talents. He is fluent in English and Intuttitut.

Peter Ittukalak is a member of the Board of Directors and an instructor at NASTC. He teaches survival skills and traditional navigation and is one of Nunavik’s most famous carvers. He has traveled to Italy to showcase his professional skills in igloo building and carving. He also is vice president of the Puvirnituq Co-op, a church leader, and a corporal in the Canadian Rangers. At the 2003 Puvirnituq Snow Festival, he took first prize for the best ice sculpture and for the fastest time in singles igloo-building.

Adamie Sivuarapik is a member of the Board of Directors and a navigation and survival instructor at NASTC. He teaches traditional navigation skills and how to use a map, compass, and GPS. He can build igloos and survive in all Arctic conditions. A corporal in the Canadian Rangers, he is highly skilled in the use of weapons and has competed three times in the national sharp-shooting competitions. He was a skipper of a 40-foot community boat and manages Internet connectivity for Puvirnituq. He is fluent in English and Intuttitut.

Nungak Kuanunack is an Elder and has served as a NASTC instructor and guide for the last three years. He is an expert on a snowmachine and canoe and knows the land so well that he travels regularly across Nunavik without the aid of a map. He is also a cultural instructor at Puvirnituq’s school Heritage Program.

Davidee Irqumia is an Elder and NASTC instructor. He is an expert igloo builder and navigator and is heavily involved in the school Heritage Program in Puvirnituq.

Lizzie Sivuarapik is an Elder who has served as a NASTC instructor for the last three years. She is one of the few certified female trainers in Nunavik and teaches food for survival and traditional northern living. A talented and accomplished craftswoman, she makes many things with her own hands like clothes, ropes, and fishing hooks using materials from animals and the land.

Thomasie Sivuarapik is an Elder and instructor at NASTC. He is an expert dog musher and finished first in Nunavik’s most famous dog race, the Ivakkak, in 2001. He can survive in the most extreme conditions, as he famously demonstrated once when he lost his dog team in a fierce Arctic blizzard and returned alive to tell the story. He is skipper of his own 40-foot boat and can travel all across the Hudson cost without the help of radar or maps. He is a Canadian Ranger and is a top hunter and fisherman. He is also an accomplished actor and has starred in feature-length movies. He can imitate the sounds of any northern animal and is well known for his professional carvings. He is fluent in English and Inuktitut.

Qalingo Tukalak is a NASTC instructor, a Canadian Ranger, a former pilot, and a church leader. He is also an accomplished entrepreneur and runs a successful smoked fish plant in Puvirnituq. An expert navigator, he can travel across land and sea without the aid of a map. He teaches GPS, map and compass use, and igloo construction. He is fluent in English and Intuttitut.

Aliva Tulugak is a NASTC instructor and an expert hunter and fisherman. He has an intimate knowledge of the land and can travel across sea and land without maps or GPS. He is a skipper of a 40-foot boat and owns and operates a successful fishing and hunting camp. He has traveled extensively around the world, including to South Korea and the United States. He is heavily involved in many local technical projects in Puvirnituq. He has built runways for ski planes and for Medivac airlifts. He is fluent in English and Intuttitut.

Juanasi Tulugak is a rope expert and NASTC instructor. He is the nation’s most senior Master Corporal in the Canadian Rangers and has served as a Rangers instructor for the last 30 years where he teaches all kinds of knots and roping techniques. He is captain of a 40-foot boat and has traveled all across the Hudson Bay region on land and sea, day and night. He also teaches igloo construction and navigation.

Mario Aubin is Chief Instructor and Program Coordinator at NASTC. For twenty-six years, he served in the Canadian Forces leading search and rescue expeditions and training senior Canadian Forces and RCMP officials in Arctic survival. He has participated in or led over 250 expeditions across Northern Canada. In 1992, he completed a grueling 10,000 km trans-Arctic expedition by snowmachine. He raced ice canoes competitively for ten years and has traveled on multiple summer canoe expeditions.