Encyclopedia of the Arctic

(Note: Foreword is taken from uncorrected proofs. Changes may be made prior to publication.)

The circumpolar Arctic is many things to many people. Artists seek to portray and convey its stark beauty. Multi-national corporations eye the region's oil, gas, and minerals and see the Arctic as an industrial frontier in a world hungry for energy and natural resources. Environmental groups in western Europe and North America imagine the Arctic as "wilderness" to be preserved in parks. During the cold war the Arctic was a military zone in which East and West stationed huge arsenals. The Arctic is today characterized as a "barometer" of global environmental health. For example, speaking about climate change, the UK environment minister in 2002 noted, "what happens in the world happens first in the Arctic."

To Inuit and other indigenous peoples the Arctic is, first and foremost, "home," as it has been for millennia. Mercator map projections give a misleading impression; the Arctic is not "empty." The landscape is known and named, as are the animals that live there. I grew up in Nunavik (northern Quebec), and lived traditionally, traveling by dog team, for the first ten years of my life. Our elders and hunters passed down to us their environmental knowledge and understanding. They still do.

The Arctic is no longer isolated from the rest of the world, and profound social, economic, and cultural change has taken place and continues to accelerate. But the "wisdom of the elders" and the hunting-based skills they teach remain important. Courage, tenacity, patience, focus- the skills and values of the hunter- are precisely those needed to navigate the modern world.

In political terms the Arctic is a very exciting arena. New ways, means, and methods are addressing problems, both old and new. Although much remains to be achieved, indigenous peoples are acquiring land and self-government rights- key requirements for sustainable development in this fragile and vulnerable region. The 1971 Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act; Home Rule in Greenland in 1979; Saami Parliaments in Norway, Sweden and Finland, and creation of the Nunavut Territory in 1999 are of great interest as models and precedents to Indigenous peoples in Russia, and to those throughout the world.

Northerners have much in common, and modern communication technology enables Inuit, Saami, Athabascans, Nenets, indeed, all residents of the Arctic, to better appreciate their similarities and shared concerns, and the advisability of learning from each other. A circumpolar consciousness is growing among and between residents of this huge area which is emerging as a geopolitical region. Since 1990 circumpolar institutions have been established to address research, education, environmental protection, and economic, cultural, and political development. Many of these institutions are attracting worldwide attention and comment.

The best known of these circumpolar institutions is the Arctic Council, established by the eight Arctic states in 1996 to promote environmental protection and sustainable development. That six indigenous peoples organizations, including the Inuit Circumpolar Conference, have "permanent participant" status in the council, enabling them to intervene essentially in the same manner as states, is unique in international and intergovernmental affairs. That the agenda of the Council will broaden and deepen seems certain. Perhaps the greatest challenge facing the Council is to convey to global audiences the importance and place of the Arctic in global affairs.

The Encyclopedia of the Arctic is an important initiative. It illustrates the growing importance of the circumpolar Arctic and testifies to the burgeoning international interest in our homeland. I congratulate the authors and editors of the encyclopedia and hope that all who use it will better understand this region and its peoples.

Sheila Watt-Cloutier
Chair, Inuit Circumpolar Conference
Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada