She wanted to open a tattoo shop, now changing for the better is what she’s working to make permanent with her work in the charitable sector. Killulark Arngna'naaq is an Inuk who is originally from Baker Lake, Nunavut, but grew up in and now lives in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. The last of her high school years were spent in Ontario. She’s been back in the North for eight years.

In her day job as one of the few Inuk Chartered Accountants in Canada, Arngna’naaq’s the senior manager for the MakeWay Foundation in Yellowknife, a nonprofit organization building partnerships to help communities and nature thrive together. Working with and supporting local Indigenous communities in the territory, she also advocates for Indigenous issues, policy, language revitalization and identity. Networking partnerships between governments and NGOs, she balances on the land skills with her keen understanding of legislation. The work is varied and lets her help charities across the North too.

As part of her educational journey, Arngna’naaq started a joint major in Business Administration and Cultural Studies at Trent University but dropped the cultural studies. After an aptitude test encouraged her to become an accountant, she went on to do her Masters in Management and Professional Accounting with the University of Toronto as the first Indigenous applicant. The program had all the courses for a CA designation condensed into 27 months.  She obtained her CPA CA designation through the Institute of Chartered Accountancy Ontario.

Her master’s program was life changing and challenging. Arngna’naaq lacked downtime and unlike her peers, she didn’t have parents who were professionals. While it was challenging, she was stubborn and made it through. In the future, she would like to do an Inuktitut immersion program but for now she’s focused on her son’s education.

Arngna’naaq was conditioned growing up that she could have support to go to post secondary and she wanted to learn to operate a tattoo and piercing shop. She later realized she didn’t have artistic talent and worked as an accountant until she found the role she flourished in. “I haven't done accounting in eight years now, but I still use the skills that I developed … every day, they're so useful,” she confides.

Outside of her education, Arngna’naaq was part of the Jane Glasgow Northern Fellowship, where she had the opportunity to take part in the two year program bringing together Northerners four times to learn about policy and write papers together. Before the birth of her son she was involved as treasurer or director with various organizations but she’s been focused on her family the last few years with only recent efforts to volunteer again. She’s also won an Indspire award in a youth recipient category.

Beyond the classroom walls, Arngna’naaq has learned and grown the most on the tundra on ATVs with her dad, learning to skin and hunt caribou and to navigate. She’s also learned in her sewing room, making clothing for herself, making mistakes and learning from them. She’s someone who learns best when her hands are busy, by doing things, listening and interacting rather than reading textbooks.

Her advice to those facing unexpected changes in where their life is taking them in terms of their education and or career is “I think changes are really good learning opportunities... Life is a journey, so unexpected changes can lead to growth. It can lead to learning even what you don't want. It's a useful lesson sometimes…. It's good to just keep learning and growing and change is how that happens.”

As far as Indigenous students considering leaving their home community to pursue their education, her advice is, “It may be a little scary and intimidating, but it's awesome, and the worst that could happen is you would just leave and go home, but the best that could happen you would check it out, grow, learn a little, and then maybe go home or not.” She sees value in leaving one's community, while it's not always feasible for everyone, and at the same time, with the advent of online learning, it’s also not always necessary.

Thinking of exclusionary policies and systems that get in the way of Northern students accessing resources that can be hard to read, Arngna’naaq encourages students not to give up.  “I would suggest trying to stick it out and trying to understand what things are saying, because then you're fighting against systems that are not designed for us to succeed,” she urges, reflecting on how she used to be overwhelmed by policies and legislation and now regularly interprets them.

If Arngna’naaq could give her younger self advice it would be, “putting in the hard work is worth it.” Looking back she feels like she could never go through her master’s degree or her Chartered Accountancy designation given how much hard work is involved but now she has more freedom and control over what she does in her life and she’s happy.

To balance mental health and wellness, Arngna’naaq recommends, “Just be kind to yourself. Things are hard. Capitalist oppression is hard.” She preps her coffee ahead for her morning self. “Just figuring out little things that show your self kindness helps better manage stress and prepare for things,” she continues.

When it comes to inspiration, her son inspires her. “What he sees at our home, how he sees me behave, that's all going to contribute to who he is as an adult, and I want him to be a happy, awesome, adult… and that's probably why I continue to only be able to work in the charitable sector because I want him to be in a world where there aren't as many barriers that he'll face, I hope, as he grows up,” she beams. She has big plans to make them both snowsuits.

In closing, Arngna’naaq shares her final words of wisdom, “always be gentle with yourself, and I wish I hadn't applied so much pressure on myself to try to figure out what I wanted when I was so young, and I should have just enjoyed being young.”

Once upon a time Killulark Arngna’naaq dreamed of opening a tattoo shop, now she’s dreaming of permanent change for the better through her work in the charitable sector. An aptitude test sent her in the direction of accounting but learning to navigate on an atv from her dad has been among the most precious guidance she’s received. Familiar with both land and legislation, she’s doing her part to make the world a better place.

Thanks to Alison Tedford Seaweed for authoring this article.