Exploring Sustainable Development

10

Sustainable Futures for theArctic North

Ken Atkinson

Introduction

During the 1980s and 1990s, interest in sustainable development in the lands of the Arctic North increased markedly. In part, this reflected an external identification of indigenous Northern populations as environmentally sensitive and caring communities and, hence, potential role models in the search for some ideal practice of sustainability (Martin, 1978; Mulvihill and Jacobs, 1991; Usher, 1987). However, the slogan ‘Think global, act local’, as a popular expression of the ethos of sustainable development, has become an internal rallying call for Arctic peoples themselves in their search for economic well-being, political recognition and a feeling of self-worth.

As an ideal, ...