Arctic Peoples’ Conference

50th anniversary of the first circumpolar meeting of Arctic Indigenous Peoples

Ilulissat, Kalaallit Nunaat, July 20-21, 2023

Hosted by the Inuit Circumpolar Council and Saami Council

Background

On November 22nd to 25th, 1973, 40 delegates representing 21 organizations of Indigenous Peoples from Arctic Canada, Greenland, Finland, Norway, and Sweden, gathered in Copenhagen for the first Arctic Peoples’ Conference. The 2023 Arctic Peoples’ Conference will take place on Thursday and Friday July 20th to 21th in Ilulissat, Greenland, as a two-day conference. Representatives of Arctic Peoples organizations and representative institutions, including youth representatives, are invited to participate. The conference will take place in continuation of the Inuit Circumpolar Council Delegates Meetings to be held in Ilulissat 17th to 19th of July. 2023.

The purpose of the 50th anniversary Arctic Peoples Conference, is to celebrate the cooperation, successes and achievements of Arctic Indigenous Peoples, while taking stock of the current situation, and discussing visions for the next 50 years.

The 1973 resolutions

The groundbreaking and successful conference “demonstrated mutual understanding and concern for the urgent problems facing all the peoples represented”.1 Two resolutions were adopted by the conference:

First 1973 resolution

The first circumpolar conference of indigenous people has taken place at Christiansborg, Copenhagen, on November 22nd to 25th 1973. Attending the meeting were representatives of [21 organizations].

The representatives have recognized through these discussions their respective identity. We are autochthonous peoples, that is we are an integral part of the very lands and waters we have traditionally used and occupied. Our identity and culture is firmly rooted in these lands and waters. It is this relationship which constitutes the very unique features of our cultural identity in contrast to the cultures of other peoples within each of the countries from which we come. We, the participants, strongly support the continuing need to exchange, share and respect each others cultures, values and traditions of our identity. We agreed to cooperate in formulating present and future means to preserve and develop our specific cultures for our people through all available sources of communication.

The states from which we come should recognize and respect the unique features of our identity. It is only thereby that we will gain a place of equality with the dominant culture in each country. Also, it is only thereby that each country can fully benefit from the contribution which our culture can make to the greater well being of the whole society.

The states we come from should recognize with honesty and clarity the collective ownership to the lands and waters traditionally used and occupied by each indigenous group.
We request the obvious: that the governments of each state from which we come recognize our rights as peoples entitled to the dignity of self-fulfilment and realization. This further means that there must not be any displacement or interference with our rights by governments and/or industry, nor can there be any disturbance of our lands. In any negotiations of the crucial issues we expect participation in a position of full equality.

Second 1973 resolution

The conference proposes to form a Circumpolar Body of Indigenous Peoples to pursue and advance our shared and collective interests. We emphasize that we are profoundly concerned about protecting now the interests of succeeding generations of our peoples. As a consequence this conference has resolved to form a Working Committee consisting of representatives of each group.

• The committee be given responsibilities to explore most practical ways and means of formulating a permanent body:
• To explore continuing financial support from all sources
• To report and make recommendations to its members and to advise its members of all actions carried out by the Working Committee
• To distribute all information to its members
• To advertise and receive suggestions for permanent title to the proposed body

The deadline for this part of the work is July 1st, 1974.²

1 International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs, Newsletter no. 10, December 1973.

2 Inge Kleivan, 1992.

Taking stock of the development

Outcome document of the 2023 Arctic Peoples’ Conference

While recognizing the importance of the 1973 resolutions of the first Arctic Peoples’ Conference, the 2023 conference will be concluded with a declaration laying out the most important visions of today. A draft declaration will be prepared prior to the conference.