Breaking the ice in Churchill

Kayla Bornemann (2L) and Jessica Canard [JD/26] travelled Manitoba’s most northern town, Churchill, MB for six days, from September 25 – 30, representing the L. Kerry Vickar Business Law Clinic, at the University of Manitoba, Faculty of Law. They were to meet with and support Northern entrepreneurs in-person, as an outreach and Access to Justice activity but found they also learned from the entrepreneurs they had gone to help.

Widely recognized as the "Polar Bear Capital of the World" and the “Beluga Capital of the World”, Churchill is a subarcticport town in northern Manitoba, on the west shore of the Hudson Bay, roughly 140 km from the Manitoba–Nunavutborder, and approximately 1,000 km north of Winnipeg. As a prime location for viewing beluga whales, polar bears, the northern lights, it is a great location for tourism as well as environmental and scientific study. More than 50% of Churchill's population is Indigenous. Churchill has been entrepreneurial since its earliest days in the late 17th century, when the Hudson Bay Company established the first permanent settlement as a fur trading post at the mouth of the Churchill River.

This was the Business Law Clinic’s third trip to Northern Manitoba, after having sent representatives to Flin Flon and Thompson in August. 

Upon arriving late on a cold Friday night, they quickly learned that the town’s entrepreneurs and northern business are rooted in support, community and kindness. Noticeably, even though the group was split staying between two different hotels an employee at one inn, didn’t hesitate to first stop at the grocery store so they could buy food since the restaurants were closed, and then drop off those staying elsewhere. In Churchill, small acts of kindness form the backbone of the local economy, and Jeremy demonstrated that support for visitors comes before all else. 

Exploring Churchill through local knowledge 

Another lesson in northern collaboration came when the students were struggling to explore the region. Local tours were hard to find because late September was the in-between time when belugas had mostly left, and polar bears hadn’t fully arrived. At the Churchill Town Centre Complex, the students met Jerry, a town resident with a story of difficult family circumstances, but who was clearly proud of both his family and the town.

When Jerry learned the students were challenged in their explorations, he pointed them to a family-owned business. O’Connor Services, a local gas station, and garage that fixes all motorized vehicles, sells gas and rents trucks. That simple suggestion led to one of the trip’s highlights: spotting a polar bear along the roadside.

Bornemann and Canard visited Churchill Northern Studies Centre, which this year celebrates 30 years as an independent, non-profit field station focused on research and education in the subarctic, located 23 km east of Churchill. The law students also explored the port facility and Cape Merry, where Arctic hares darted across the tundra, and belugas surfaced in the river.

They later witnessed the release of a polar bear from Churchill’s holding facility, often called “polar bear jail,” a conservation measure used when bears wander too close to town. Releasing the bear northward reflects the community’s long‑standing strategy to keep both residents and wildlife safe.

While exploring Churchill's roughly 50 km of roads, the students were impressed by the number of murals the town has to offer. Kal Barteski coordinated and curated the murals in cooperation with PangeaSeed Foundation and SeaWalls: Artists for Oceans; Travel Manitoba and a large community of generous partners, talented artists, dedicated volunteers, the Town of Churchill, and several other kind, beautiful humans who made the project possible. The intention was to educate and inspire a community to protect the oceans. The SeaWalls Churchill murals span 30 kilometres along the shore of the Hudson Bay. 

Churchill’s community hub

Churchill Town Centre Complex (CTCC) is known as one of the most comprehensive multi‑use facilities in the Arctic. It is a necessity when temperatures can drop below –40°C.

Inside, residents move between a regulation‑size hockey rink, a public library, a swimming pool, a curling rink, a fitness centre, a theatre, and their iconic polar bear slide. 

On Sunday, the law students joined Churchillians for the Canadian premiere of “Nuisance Bear”, a 2026 feature documentary by Gabriela Osio Vanden and Jack Weisman, depicting polar bears’ interactions with humans in Churchill, Manitoba and Arviat, Nunavut, and exploring themes of climate change, Indigenous perspectives, and wildlife conflict, as well as the town’s relationship with the polar bears that migrate through the region each year. The film won the 2026 Grand Jury Prize for Documentary at the Sundance Film Festival.

Learning from local creatives businesses

On Monday, the law students partnered with Community Futures: Northern Central Development, an organization that supports northern entrepreneurs through training, mentorship, and business development resources.

The law students hosted a Lunch-and-Learn session at the Training to Employment Project Churchill at the Churchill Career Development & Community Resource Centre, and an evening workshop at the Churchill Creative Collective space at the CTCC, which included discussions and guidance on starting and sustaining a business. The students shared information on business law and intellectual property, emphasizing how copyright and trademarks help entrepreneurs protect their work and their brand.

Local artists, makers, and business owners filled the room with thoughtful questions and candid stories. Their engagement in conversations about business structures, contracts, and Intellectual Property showed how essential these topics are across the North. The students explained that understanding IP fundamentals matters as much for northern entrepreneurs as for those in the South, especially for women and Indigenous entrepreneurs whose work often draws on cultural knowledge and creative practices.

The evening’s business‑planning workshop brought even more collaboration. Participants formed groups, built fictional businesses, and worked through real‑world challenges. For the law students, it meant helping reduce barriers created by distance and limited access to legal assistance, and they were proud to support the entrepreneurial ecosystem in the North.

On Tuesday, the law students attended a career fair at the CTCC. The Duke of Marlborough School, Training to Employment Project Churchill, and Workplace Education Manitoba organized this event. The law students spoke with the high school students about legal education and how law supports entrepreneurs, artists, and community organizations. For these high school students, it was their first time meeting law students and learning directly from them how they, too, can become lawyers. 

Northern Lessons in Entrepreneurship

The trip allowed the L. Kerry Vickar Business Law Clinic to share legal resources with Churchill’s business and arts communities. More importantly, it taught them how entrepreneurship in Churchill is rooted in kindness, collaboration, and a deep commitment to community. In a place shaped by extreme weather and vast distances, people rely on one another.

Churchill’s entrepreneurs don’t just run businesses. They help sustain a community where support is a shared value, creativity is essential, and collaboration remains the heartbeat of the North.