A limited amount of educational research is taking place in Nunavut and issues, questions, policies and practices lack a rigorous and substantive research base (Abele, 2009). Canada is the only Circumpolar country without a university situated in the North and while many collaborative partnerships support research taking place in Nunavut, mainstream researchers from universities located in the South continue to lead most educational research initiatives.

Increasing research capacity among Inuit educators in Nunavut in order to conduct research in Inuktitut and from an Inuit perspective is an important priority (ITK, 2011). There are now 23 Inuit educators holding Master of Education degrees from the University of Prince Edward Island, and 19 students are enrolled in an ongoing MEd program at UPEI, however, no Inuit from Nunavut have yet completed degrees at the doctoral level. As research capacity develops, Inuit can increasingly lead and direct educational research based on Inuit ways of knowing, doing and being. The Faculty of Education at UPEI is committed to supporting the ongoing development of research capacity in Nunavut. The Nunavut Education Team at UPEI is currently engaged in ArcticNet funded research projects, on the transformation of high school education and on university access, and also on a CURA funded project on Inuit leadership.