Naja Carina Steenholdt & Daniela Chimirri
Studies of how the development of industries impacts resident quality of life in Greenland have largely focused on fisheries and mining, neglecting the emerging tourism industry in the country. In this article, we aim to contribute to the reduction of this gap within academia and praxis by exploring how the developing tourism industry in South Greenland interrelates with resident quality of life in this area. Based on the lack of existing academic literature and public awareness within tourism and quality of life in South Greenland, we investigate the relevance of the tourism industry, specifically farm tourism, effect on resident quality of life. Through a small-scale exploratory case study of farm stays in South Greenlandic settlements, we aim to create an understanding of how resident quality of life and farm tourism interrelates. By applying the bottom-up spillover theory as theoretical frame, we investigate whether generated income from farm tourism can contribute to people’s state of wellbeing, but also that there is more to wellbeing than “just” money. Based on generated data, our study concludes that there is a close interrelation between farm tourism and resident QoL in South Greenland. Subsequently, we argue that there are relevant grounds in a larger perspective for further research within the field of tourism and QoL in Greenland.
Pierre-Louis Têtu, Jackie Dawson & Julia Olsen
Pleasure craft are one of the fastest growing sectors of maritime transportation across the global Arctic and increasingly also in the Antarctic. The increase in interest among pleasure craft operators in traveling to polar regions presents a number of local economic development opportunities. However, current governance systems do not yet fully address the numerous safety, security and environmental concerns associated with developing this sector, which compounds an already precarious situation considering the remoteness and harshness of the polar environment. This study aimed to identify practices regarding the management and governance of pleasure craft in Arctic regions, including inventorying national, regional and local regulations. Using data from secondary sources, statistical information, and Coast Guard reports, this study discusses the diversity of management policies that exist throughout the Arctic that support and manage pleasure craft tourism, and concludes that harmonization of governance frameworks and improved reporting mechanisms among Arctic states could be beneficial.
Samantha Darling, Aynslie Ogden & Gordon M. Hickey
Northern ‘capacity’ has long been identified as a priority area for public policy in Canada and recognized as a major constraint to regional social and economic development. The concepts of capacity and sustainability often meet in impact assessment (IA) processes in Canada, which include environmental, social and economic aspects of development and where there has been an important evolution in the role of both communities and science in the process. In Yukon, the Yukon Environmental and Socio-Economic Assessment Board (YESAB) is the legislated mechanism for impact assessments. The establishment of YESAB provided sites for the inclusion of local perspectives and traditional knowledge in assessments; however, calls for enhanced northern research capacity to inform impact assessment and associated decision-making remain prominent. This paper explores the concept of ‘capacity’ in its various forms and considers its core relevance to ensuring effective IA processes associated with northern development. Through a literature review, we identify that ambiguity surrounding the concept of capacity requires careful policy attention to fully appreciate conditions that prompt appeals for increased northern research capacity and help minimize confusion amongst different actors and institutions working to build northern capacity.
Lau Øfjord Blaxekær, Martin Mohr Olsen, Hanne Thomasen, Maria Tammelin Gleerup, Sune Nordentoft Lauritsen, Anne Lise kappel, Kristoffer Buch, Pål Simon Fernvall & Jay Friedlander
This article answers the research question of how entrepreneurship projects in Higher Education (HE) in the Arctic can incorporate the Sustainable Development Goals. Students can play a significant role as driving force for sustainable development in the Arctic. Their unique combination of highly specialized skills, innovative thinking and strong entrepreneurial spirit can make a substantial contribution to the development of the Arctic region. Many students are intrinsically motivated towards engaging themselves in sustainable change. It is a well-documented attitude among the so-called “millennial generation” that they are looking beyond profit and strive to make a difference in their communities and to make an impact on pertinent social and environmental issues. The article analyses a project called “Promoting sustainable student entrepreneurship in the Arctic”, which seeks to support the entrepreneurial potential among students to the benefit of the sustainable development of Arctic societies. In terms of sustainability thinking, the project builds on two key frameworks: 1) The UN Sustainable Development Goals, and 2) The Abundance Cycle framework. By incorporating social, environmental as well as financial aspects, the internationally recognised Abundance Cycle framework provides an operational approach for working with sustainable entrepreneurship and a toolkit for incorporating sustainability thinking into teaching and entrepreneurial projects in Higher Education in the Arctic. The project highlighted that experiences and methods from outside the Arctic can be translated and implemented if adapted to specific Arctic needs and experiences, and furthermore that the partners from outside the Arctic context learn something new about innovation and entrepreneurship processes.
Mîtdlârak Lennert
A solid primary school is an important part of the foundation for creating a strong and sustainable society. Almost every country has undertaken school system reforms during the past two decades, but very few have succeeded in improving their systems from poor to fair to good to great to excellent (Mourshed et al., 2010). History, culture, and context matter for understanding applicability, if any, of one educational innovation over another. This can be said to have been the case in Greenland. One of the fundamental objectives after the introduction of Home Rule in 1979 was to adapt the Danish structures and systems to the Greenlandic conditions and culture. This article aims to analyze the Greenlandic education governance system and how the central level design, organizes and steers education systems across complex multilevel governance arrangements. In governing educational systems, how the central and the decentralized levels interact and communicate and how this affects trust, cooperation and negotiation of conflicts, and ultimately the outcomes of reform, will be discussed.
Medeia Csoba DeHass & Eric Hollinger
We examine theoretical and practical applications of 3D technology in digital and physical preservation of Arctic and Subarctic Indigenous cultural heritage. A lasting legacy of colonialism in the Circumpolar North is the disconnect between local communities and their material heritage housed at memory institutions around the world. While collection methods varied, collecting activity was entrenched in colonial power relations expressed in the “researcher and the researched” paradigm. With diminished access to their material culture, loss of traditional knowledge ensued, which affected both local communities and global discourse. While postcolonial engagements have been exploring avenues for returning collections knowledge to origin communities, geopolitical realities of the Arctic have limited these efforts. The expenses of long-distance Arctic travel and the decentralized nature of communities, the lack of Indigenous-run museums, and the fact that Indigenous belongings are widely dispersed make it challenging to develop lasting and comprehensive approaches. Many museum objects remain unidentified or misinterpreted due to disengagement between Indigenous communities and ancestral possessions. Recent developments in 3D technologies can re-establish origin and descendant community access to collections, develop community-engaged collaborations and offer decolonizing approaches to collection management, acquisition, and engagement practices. Digital 3D models and physical replicas offer alternative modes of access and opportunities for Arctic and Subarctic communities. Rapid development of digitization and replication technologies reveals a potential for empowering community heritage restoration and perpetuation as well as strengthen abilities of distant stewardship institutions to improve access, improve community collaborations and enhance their capacity for cultural preservation.
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