Johannes Lampe was born in Okak Bay, just over 100 kilometres north of Nain. In 1956, he and his family were forced by the provincial government and church officials to move to Nain as part of a resettlement program.

Mr. Lampe has been a traditional hunter, fisherman, and trapper all his life. He has worked as a radio/TV producer with the OKalaKatigat Society and has served as an interpreter/translator with the Labrador Inuit Association. He has also served as a councillor with the Nain Community Government and has been active in the Moravian Church as a lay pastor, chapel servant, and community elder.

In May 2010, Mr. Lampe was elected to the Nunatsiavut Assembly as the Ordinary Member for Nain and subsequently appointed Minister of Culture, Recreation and Tourism (now Language, Culture and Tourism). He was unsuccessful in being re-elected as Ordinary Member for Nain in May 2014, but was later employed by the Nunatsiavut Government as an interpreter/translator.

A champion of protecting, preserving, and presenting the language and culture of Labrador’s Inuit, Mr. Lampe re-entered the political arena in the spring of 2016 and was acclaimed President-elect on April 7. He was officially sworn in as President on May 4, 2016. Mr. Lampe was re-elected President on October 6, 2020. He was acclaimed as President again on May 7, 2024.

The Nunatsiavut Government supports the Charles J. Andrew Healing Centre by appointing a Beneficiary of the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement to serve on its board. This helps to ensure the facility’s programming aligns with the cultural values and needs of the Inuit population.