Jennelle Doyle is of Inuit ancestry and comes from Churchill Falls, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. She graduated from Memorial University of Newfoundland with a Bachelor of Arts, majoring in History and French, with a focus on Indigenous history and northern topics.
With high hopes for the future, Jennelle considers her internship the key to her professional future and development. It is also an important part of her own cultural revival as an Inuk of the NunatuKavummiut. Throughout the course of this program, she hopes to discover more about the arctic and international indigenous issues before perusing a master’s degree.
The Internship, titled Labrador Institute International Indigenous Intern, is funded by the Labrador Institute (a division of Memorial University of Newfoundland), International Grenfell Association, NunatuKavut Community Council and Nunatsiavut Government. It is offered to Indigenous university graduates from Labrador with backgrounds in arctic and indigenous subjects.
Comprised of a 4-month period abroad, this internship is split evenly between UArctic International Secretariat in Rovaniemi, Finland and the Indigenous People’s Secretariat in Tromso, Norway, with two months in each location. Its main objective is to increase awareness of Indigenous and northern cultures and the prevalent issues within northern societies in Canada.
Upon returning home, Jennelle will provide valuable insight into the ways that higher education, work experience and experience abroad can benefit Indigenous youth in Labrador. At the same time, she will encourage Indigenous youth to pursue a higher education. This will be implemented through a one-month community engagement period where she will give presentations to Indigenous youth in Labrador, including at least one university or college class.
The Labrador Institute of Memorial University is a leading centre of research, education, policy, and outreach by and for the North. We are a division of Memorial University located in Labrador. The Labrador Institute operates with a permanent staff, as well as a number of associated researchers and postdoctoral fellows affiliated with various schools including medicine, folklore, education, soil science, biology, marine science, geology, archaeology, history, geography, and anthropology.