Opened in 2021, Little Canada now features more than 40,000 tiny residents and eight places across an almost 4,200-square-metre exhibit: Niagara, Toronto, the Golden Horseshoe, Ottawa, Quebec, East and West coasts — and now, the North.

From east to west, Little North curves through Yukon, Northwest Territories and finally Nunavut. Each section is further divided into a series of elaborate scenes: hair-freezing contests, coastal erosion in Tuktoyaktuk and Iqaluit’s road to nowhere — where a sign pointing north is stolen so often it’s become legend. In Yukon, Dawson City tells the tale of the infamous Sourtoe Cocktail, while, metres away, a sunken ship rendered in clear styrene acrylic pays tribute to the lost Franklin Expedition.

 “This work wasn’t just simply about northern communities but … was done with those communities,” says Hunter Cardinal, co-founder of Indigenous consulting group Naheyawin, which Little Canada brought on in 2021 to help them get it right. Naheyawin helped Little Canada to identify and connect with communities and points of interest.

For the physical foundation, the team of engineers, designers and makers started with the “benchwork,” or base, fastening together plywood with screws, bolts and connectors, as well as traditional wood joinery. On top of this base, the middle layer uses thinner plywood. Then the models themselves are either 3D printed or assembled from an assortment of wood, card stocks, printed graphics and foam. Hundreds of little LEDs, magnets and miniaturized motors bring the scene to life — along with 2,500 figurines that live within these tiny northern lands and waters.

“Little Canada knows it’s important to create something that reflects who we are,” says Cardinal. “But they also care about something that I think is more rare and powerful, which is that feeling of belonging, regardless of who or where you are from.”