NORSIL Workshop – The Way Forward: Rights, Knowledge and Data to ensure the inclusion of the Sámi People in the Sustainable Nordic Transition
UiT-The Arctic University of Norway
9-10 January 2020
Following our first edition in May 2019, the NORSIL network is pleased to invite submissions for its second workshop on the rights of the Sámi people in the Nordic sustainable transition that will be organised in Tromsø on January 9 and 10, 2020.
In 2015, the Nordic countries announced support as a whole for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) agreed under UN auspices. The goals aim to eradicate extreme poverty and to achieve sustainable development in all fields while leaving no one behind. Yet, numerous problems are still limiting the inclusion of the Sámi people in the sustainable transition of the countries of Finland, Norway and Sweden. Despite the recognition of their rights at the national and international levels, there are still important concerns regarding the implementation of their rights on the ground. While adopting a human rights based-approach to sustainable development, this workshop series provides a platform to assess and measure the progress and challenges towards the implementation of the rights of the Sámi people in order to promote a sustainable and inclusive transition in the Nordic countries
For its second event, the workshop will discuss ways and means to evaluate the progress and obstacles concerning the inclusion of Sámi peoples within the Nordic transition. In this context, questioning what rights, knowledge and data matter to ensure the inclusion of the Sámi people in the sustainable transition is crucial. Without a proper acknowledgment of their rights, respect for their traditional knowledge and reliable information on their economic and social conditions, the Sámi people can easily be neglected in decision-making concerning them, their discrimination forgotten and their resources needs overlooked or discounted. In this regard, interested academics and practitioners, senior and junior as well as Sámi representatives and individuals are invited to submit abstracts addressing the following suggested topics:
– Sustainable Development Goals and Sámi rights
– Indicators and targets to ensure Sámi sustainability
– Progress and shortcoming in acknowledging Sámi rights
– Political and legislative obstacles to collection of data on Sámi people
– Sámi traditional knowledge and its importance for promoting Sámi sustainability
– …
The deadline for abstract submission is October 15, 2019
via E-mail: NORSIL2019@gmail.com. In the e-mail subject please put “Abstract”.
The application should include:
Title of the paper
Name of the participant
Academic or professional title
Organization/place of work
Contact e-mail
The mention whether the applicant is interested to publish a peer-review chapter
Abstract (300-words)
Participants will be registered without fee. However, the workshop can only host a limited number of participants. Therefore, participants will be shortlisted following their invitation and/or based on the applicants scientific merits. The selection committee will also take into account whether the applicant has planned to submit a full paper for publication after the conference.
Financial support: support for accommodation and travel expenses are only available for short-listed applicants and invited speakers. Selected participants will receive travel funding to cover their return (economy) airfare and accommodation in Tromsø for the duration of the workshop in the limit of our budget. Hotels rooms will be pre-booked. We warmly encourage all participants to use more eco-friendlier alternative to travel to Norway, when possible. Budget restriction do not allow us to pay per-diem.
Applicants whose abstracts have been selected will be notified by November 01, 2019.
Following the workshop, an invitation to submit contributions for publication in an edited volume will be circulated. Requirement for contributions will be defined after the event. The publication of papers is however not mandatory.
The second workshop is kindly hosted by Tromsø University. The city is situated on the traditional lands of the Sámi people. Lunch and refreshments will be served during the workshop, and a networking programme will soon be circulated. The workshop series is funded by the Joint Committee for Nordic Research Councils in the Humanities and Social Sciences (NOS-HS).
Do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions about the workshop or call for abstracts via email: NORSIL2019@gmail.com