Indian and Northern Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl announced funding Tuesday for 10 International Polar Year research projects that will not only look at how climate change is affecting the North, but also study the well-being of its people.

Speaking in Iqaluit on Tuesday, Strahl said the 10 projects will share $17 million, coming from the $150 million in overall International Polar Year funding Ottawa announced in March.

Strahl, on his first official northern tour as Indian and Northern Affairs minister, stressed the importance of having northerners benefitting from International Polar Year projects, as well as getting northerners involved in such research.

"We're also committed to improving the quality of life for people who live, work and raise families here in the North," Strahl said.

"That's why another priority is to study health and well-being. It's important not to forget the human dimension in the midst of this push to advance polar science."

One study that received funding Tuesday will look at how the changing environment is influencing the foods people eat.

Members of the research project, based out of Dalhousie University in Halifax, say they will work closely with northern residents.

"Involving northerners in our project is of key importance to ensure that research responds to local needs and priorities," researcher Shawn Donaldson said.

"Northern communities have been involved in the design of our project, and many of our studies will engage local elders, knowledge holders, youth and other community members."

International Polar Year is a two-year global effort involving 50,000 researchers from more than 60 countries conducting scientific examinations of the Arctic and Antarctica.

In Canada, about 1,200 researchers are taking part in studies in 67 communities across the North.

Ottawa will fund a total of 44 Canadian projects during International Polar Year, including the 10 that received funding on Tuesday.

Several International Polar Year projects are already underway in Canada's Arctic, including the Nunavut Inuit Health Survey that has travelled aboard an icebreaker to communities around Nunavut since August.