There is a need for better-informed discussions about the essential nature of the Arctic, and its people, its economy, its geography and its environment, as well as the examination of dominant perceptions. Yet dominant narratives about the region are often based on superficial, ideological or arbitrary understandings. How the Arctic is defined and perceived, or redefined, as well as how non-Arctic actors remap their geographical position and (re)identify their relationship with the Arctic region has real implications for how it is governed, as the 2020 IIASA analysis on Arctic policies reveals. Perhaps because it is distant from major political, business and media centres, the Arctic seems especially prone to external interpretations of its essential character. The theme of 2021, Defining and Mapping the Arctic: Sovereignties, Policies and Perceptions contains relevant topics that are much discussed, examined, reported and speculated in policy circles, academia, and the media. These findings and recommendations have been contextualized based on critical reflections of the co-authors, a group of Indigenous and non-Indigenous partners, who have practiced their own collaborative work process, the challenges encountered, and lessons learned. This article will propose a new paradigm for the financing of Arctic research, which centres around the inclusion of Indigenous partners, researchers, and institutions from the initial planning stages of funding programmes to the final stages of research projects. There is an urgent need to re-think existing funding-structures. Funding agencies in particular play an important role in enabling (or disabling) meaningful collaboration between Indigenous rights holders and researchers. However, to be successful, collaborative research projects have specific requirements regarding research designs, timeframes, and dissemination of results, which often do not fit into the frameworks of academic calendars and funding guidelines. Collaboration between Indigenous rights holders and researchers through co-creative research approaches can result in high-quality research outcomes, but crucially also address colonial legacies and power imbalances, enhance mutual trust, and respect the rights of Indigenous Peoples. Truly transdisciplinary approaches are needed to tackle the complex problems that the Arctic is facing at the moment. Such collective action should reach across and beyond state borders, bringing together Indigenous peoples and other Arctic communities, as well as cultivating awareness of shared interests through emancipatory research and education. We recommend a form of Arctic regional policymaking that works across multiple channels and levels of formality to foster genuine sustainable development that meets the needs of all Arctic peoples. The changing Arctic, however, offers Arctic peoples new opportunities for collective action. Arctic peoples require knowledge, research, and resources from outside the region yet must take care to avoid economic, educational, and political neo-colonialism operating under the disguise of sustainable development. As the world becomes more aware of the importance of the Arctic, the concept of Arctic risk is becoming globalised, advancing technocratic discourses and solutions that suit metropolitan (rather than Arctic) interests. Oh, and we’ll be drawing one name from our attendees to win the limited Deluxe Art edition of Cory’s new book, Into the Arctic: Painting Canada’s Changing North, worth $750.The Arctic is increasingly subject to processes of global change, presenting new challenges to Arctic peoples. and invite your family and friends to join you for? What better way to get ready for a Canada Day holiday like no other……. ET on Tuesday, June 29 to see Cory introduce his film, watch the film itself, and to ask him all about it. We will send you your Zoom link 24 hours prior to the screening.Ĭory is the world-renowned painter and explorer who shows us the Arctic with new eyes – at a time when climate change is transforming it, for better and for worse. It’s our Canada Day gift to you and yours. We’re presenting it with our friends at the Royal Canadian Geographical Society. Join us for a private screening of Cory Trépanier’s stunning new film, Into the Arctic: Awakening, that offers an intimate view of the top two-thirds of our home and native land.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |