There's a close connection between how people live, particularly in smaller and more isolated northern communities, and environmental health. POLAR made a strategic investment with the Government of the Northwest Territories, starting about two years ago. It came into effect this year. They began to look at a variety of perspectives on what's driving the extreme variability in Barren-ground caribou populations. Those programs, funded through that collaboration, were done in a way that really provided communities with the opportunity to play a leadership role.
I believe seven programs were funded. The majority of those programs focused on community perspectives on what was changing on the landscape and what was changing with animal behaviour. They looked at some of the influences potentially driving the health of some herds versus other herds. It was a program that was conceived in response to pressure coming from communities that were asking questions about what was happening and what was driving changes in the caribou population.