Indigenous peoples in the new arctic

This chapter provides a brief introduction to the Indigenous peoples of the Arctic by focusing on three issues of crucial importance to these peoples: Self-governance, rights to land and resources, and traditional knowledge. We first note the diversity of Indigenous groups populating the Arctic, and discuss ‘who is Indigenous’, in terms of recognition/definition employed by the various Arctic states. We then consider recent developments in each of the three areas of focus, illustrating our broad-spectrum characterizations with concrete examples drawn mainly from North America and the Russian North. We underscore advancements in Indigenous self-governance, land and resource rights and the recognition of traditional knowledge in the Arctic but also acknowledge the uneven landscape of how these are realized across the Circumpolar North. The chapter is co-authored by three scholars, two of whom are Indigenous Northerners.