The GEA Times Commentary - Victoria Qutuuq Buschman
“Indigenous youth are the future of Arctic research, conservation, and management – getting us there is going to take a lot more than open arms”
By Victoria Qutuuq Buschman, Inuk Conservation Biologist
Victoria Qutuuq Buschman, Inuk Conservation Biologist
Far out on the tundra in remote communities of the Arctic, Indigenous youth are getting to work to address the pressing climate issues we have inherited in the 21st century – coastal erosion, ocean acidification, pollution, fluctuating and unpredictable wildlife populations, biodiversity loss, unsustainable resource extraction, and data gaps in almost all areas of Arctic research. For us, the effects of climate change are tangible and inescapable even if these processes feel distance for people in other parts of the world. In this pressing time, Indigenous youth across the circumpolar Arctic are taking the reins and fighting for our futures. However, these youth are working with less opportunity and resources than others.
Historically, Indigenous youth have had far fewer prospects to pursue modern educations than their non-Indigenous peers, an issue that may begin as early as infancy. Take Greenland for example. Education in Greenland begins in preschool where space is limited and waiting lists are long. As Greenlandic students get older, many must choose to leave their communities to continue their lower secondary education at one of few gymnasia in the country. During gymnasium, students hoping to pursue an education in the sciences must have access to rigorous courses if they hope to enter foreign universities offering science degree programs. Students can choose to study at the University of Greenland with on major caveat – degrees in the sciences are not offered anywhere in the country.
There are several hardships highlighted here. First, education systems across the Arctic are structured in ways that force Indigenous students to make major life sacrifices in the pursuit of conventional education. Many students must leave their families, friends, regions, cultures, and possibly even their country if they want an education. Second, there are serious inequities in the kinds of education and degrees available to Indigenous students who do not want to leave their homelands. As a global society, we have not invested in the kinds of opportunities and institutions necessary to allow Indigenous youth to study their own lands without moving hundreds or thousands of kilometers where they must study the Arctic from afar. It’s a shame, as studying wildlife, natural resource management, or even microbiology is strongly tied to Indigenous livelihoods and are a natural area of interest for many Indigenous youth. Third, the lack of investment creates myriad barriers to raising Indigenous perspectives, needs, concerns, and knowledge within science – a detriment to often data deficient fields that could benefit from the expertise of Indigenous communities.
Why do Indigenous youth want to pursue science and research opportunities at all? Arctic research is uniquely difficult, and Inuit and other Indigenous peoples often contribute time, knowledge, and labor to scientific research in remote parts of the Arctic. Youth are increasingly becoming involved as advocates for their communities and as cultural and linguistic facilitators between researchers and Indigenous knowledge and provide nuanced understandings of how Indigenous knowledge and science inform each other. Many youth are experts themselves and provide unique, forward-thinking solutions to the problems their communities face. Take for example the Ikaarvik project (https://ocean.org/our-work/arctic-connections/ikaarvik-barriers-to-bridges/) which brought together Inuit youth in Canada to develop guidelines for researchers looking to conduct research in Inuit Nunangat (Canadian Inuit homelands). These youth outline concise and useful points that a researcher needs to consider when entering an Inuit community. This report is a testament to the fact that Indigenous youth can help shape research, science, and education when given opportunities to do so.
Several things can be done to improve Indigenous youths’ access to science and research. First, we need to invest in institutions and programs that bring science into Indigenous communities, including training for Indigenous youth who want to work in research and on climate issues in their own communities. Ikaarvik (https://ocean.org/our-work/arctic-connections/ikaarvik-barriers-to-bridges/) is one great example of a successful Indigenous youth in science initiative. Second, we need to expand the available education options for Indigenous youth and remove the current hardship of leaving your homelands to pursue a secondary level education. Focusing on developing science curriculum for Indigenous contexts is needed and necessary. Third, Indigenous youth need more interface with policy and governance through mentorship and leadership programs that elevate Indigenous voices at all scales of governance. One example of exemplary work is the Inuit Circumpolar Council Emerging Leaders Program (https://iccalaska.org/media-and-reports/youth-engagement-initiative/) which places Inuit youth in mentorship positions while working on Indigenous issues within the United Nations and the Arctic Council. These are all positive steps towards opening opportunities for Indigenous youth.
While opening opportunities to conventional education, particularly in the sciences, will help to elevate Indigenous perspectives, worldviews, and decision making regarding climate change, one revolutionary dream is also here. Support for Indigenous youth and education is critical, but Indigenous Peoples ultimately shouldn’t need an advanced education to have a voice in this world. I pursue my own education with full understanding that our traditional knowledge and way of life is more meaningful than a PhD. I pursue this education in part to build a future in which Indigenous youth do not have to follow this path to meaningfully contribute to the governance of our homelands. While one Indigenous youth pursuing a science education can support a community’s abilities to engage with research, management, and policy, simply being an Indigenous person and finding ways to help heal our planet and our peoples is, in itself, enough to make positive change.
About the author:
Victoria is an Inuit conservation biologist from northern Alaska now living in Nuuk, Greenland. Broadly, she focuses on the conservation of lands, waters, and species within Arctic Indigenous homelands. Victoria has a Masters of Science (MSc) in Wildlife Science, a Masters of Public Affairs (MPA) in Environmental Policy, and is in the process of completing her doctoral studies in Conservation Biology. She currently serves as a Research Fellow at the Greenland Institute of Natural Resources in Nuuk while completing her PhD at the University of Washington.