Threats to Inuvialuit lands

• Prize
  Shortlist
• Photographer
  Natalya Saprunova, France
• Category
  Arctic / Antarctic
• Studio
  Natalya Saprunova Photographe
• Website
  https://natalyasaprunova.myportfolio.com/work
• Instagram
  @natalya.saprunova

In Canada, permafrost-ground frozen for thousands of years—is thawing at an alarming rate due to climate change. This is especially visible in the Northwest Territories, where Indigenous communities face severe erosion, collapsing ground, and widespread infrastructure damage. As the land vanishes, mercury trapped in the frozen soil is released into the ocean, threatening marine ecosystems and traditional food sources. These changes are not only environmental but deeply cultural, and some communities, like the Inuvialuit, may soon be forced to relocate—becoming Canada’s first climate refugees.

Natalya Saprunova is a documentary photographer based in Paris, originally from Arctic Russia. She began as a photojournalist in 2007 while studying to become a French teacher. After moving to France in 2008, she worked in marketing before returning to photography in 2016. A graduate in Documentary Photojournalism from EMI-CFD Paris in 2020, she focuses on identity, environment, climate change, youth, femininity, and spirituality. Since 2016, she has also taught photography at Graine de photographe in Paris.

Awards Canon Woman Photojournalist grant winner at Visa Pour l'image, UNICEF Photo of the Year prize, Marilyn Stafford FotoReportage Award winner, Lucie Foundation award, Ann Lesley BarTur Photo Award Judges' Choice, LensCulture Critics' Choice, Zeke SDN award winner, Rencontres Photographiques de Boulogne-Billancourt winner