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Indigenous energy diplomacy in the Arctic : Probing the complexity with cases in Sámpi and the Inuvialuit region

University of British Columbia. Centre for European Studies; University of British Columbia. Centre for Migration Studies

“Indigenous energy diplomacy” is a relatively new term, but Indigenous peoples have long practiced various forms and degrees of traditional kinship diplomacies as well as more recently engaged in mainstream diplomacy in global politics and international relations on issues related to energy and in particular, energy resources Indigenous energy diplomacy within the Arctic region. Energy diplomacy is a complex practice that differs among Arctic Indigenous peoples, such as the Sámi and Inuit energy diplomacies in the current context of energy crisis and energy resource conflict. Makere Stewart-Harawira stresses the importance of integrating Indigenous philosophies and worldviews into contemporary Indigenous diplomacy. She observes a shift in the focus of Indigenous self-determination from political status to economic development, influenced by neoliberal economic ideologies and neoconservative politics (Stewart-Harawira 2009, 209). This talk will consider the two modes proposed by Stewart-Harawira, of placing Indigenous ontologies at the center of their diplomacies on the one hand, and of reinscribing Indigenous self-determination as economic development, to illustrate the diverse landscape of contemporary Indigenous energy diplomacy. The specific focus is on Sámi reindeer herding in Norway vis-à-vis wind industry and the energy security development in the Inuvialuit settlement region in the Northwest Territories, Canada.

eng

2024-05-02

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International

http://hdl.handle.net/2429/88159

Unreviewed

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/