Member of the Order of Canada

• Awarded on: April 6, 2006
• Invested on: October 06, 2006

Cornelius Nutarak is a role model within his community and a guardian of Inuit customs. As a teenager, he began collecting stories from his family and elders and has since amassed a record of local life dating back to the beginning of the 20th century. He has visited classrooms to teach time-honoured skills such as how to recognize and interpret weather patterns, how to locate and hunt wildlife and how to prepare skins used for traditional clothing. He has also shared his knowledge through his frequent presentations on the radio. This respected elder has played a vital role in preserving the Inuit language and in celebrating the culture of Arctic peoples.