Are we dealing with the same issues as Western Canada?

This situation is not unique for Northern Sweden as it is shared with other peripheral regions of the Arctic. When the current new industrial revolution renews interest in resources found in the north, it becomes particularly interesting to see how similar challenges are tackled in other regions.

In relation to that, the Västerbotten county governor Helene Hellmark Knutsson organised a trip for delegates to Western Canada – or to Whitehorse and Vancouver to be precise. I had the opportunity to take part in this trip together with representatives of the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), Region Västerbotten, Umeå municipality and the forestry industry. On site, we met representatives of Yukon University and the University of British Columbia, regional parliaments, Indigenous self-government and the business sector. Discussions revolved around the exploitation of natural resources and land use in relation to small societies and, not least, Indigenous peoples.

Just like what we are experiencing here, interest in minerals and forest products is currently increasing in Western Canada as well, which has led to competition for land use and increased energy needs. The vast distances require new regional solutions to supply energy. When it comes to forest use in particular, it becomes evident that ideas on how the region can prosper in the future differ between different stakeholders. Just like in Sweden, there are actors promoting increased protection of the intrinsic values of nature and the ability of forests to bind carbon, whereas others instead find smart forestry as an opportunity to optimise carbon sequestration. These similarities open up for good opportunities to share experiences and collaborate between regions that all stand out through their strong tradition of multidisciplinary forest research.

Our stay in Whitehorse also included a visit to the art exhibition Arctic Highways showing how Indigenous artists process industrial encroachments of their northern home regions. And similarities are evident when the exploitation of resources threaten people's traditional ways of earning their living in various places of the Arctic. The exhibition also highlights the need for consulting and compensating locals when vast encroachments are made to the environment. Such proceedings are far more advanced – albeit still not perfect – in Canada, which representatives of the Indigenous peoples also bore witness to. Exploiters need to have a so-called social licence to operate, which is only issued if both environmental and social consequences of an industrial venture are handled satisfactorily. The exhibition, by the way, will tour North America for some time before it arrives in its permanent home in Granö in Västerbotten.

Yukon University has recently gone from being a university college with an educational focus to a university with research aspirations. The role of the university in regional and local development processes, and for the labour market, is evident, and research hence stands out through its regional commitment. The territory is nearly the size of Sweden, but only has just over 40,000 inhabitants, which means that distance learning is a must to reach students in places only accessible by air. Naturally, they have vast experience of reaching target groups that are relatively alien to higher education, not just due to the geographical distance.

And on another note, did you know that Umeå University, together with several Canadian universities, is a part of a network called the University of the Arctic? Through its thematic network in research and through the student exchange programme north2north, many opportunities open up for interesting and relevant collaborations with other regions sharing many of the challenges and opportunities found in present-day Arctic Sweden.