Sámi youth demand actions to mitigate climate change

The declaration of the Sámi youth shows their worry for the condition of nature in Sápmi and the future. It also brings together suggestions for action. Sámi youth demand actions to mitigate climate change and actions to help adapt to it. Sámi youth are worried about the effects of climate change especially on traditional Sámi livelihoods and culture. 

– In the declaration we request that traditional Sámi knowledge would be considered an equal source of knowledge when we speak of or research climate change, land use and traditional livelihoods. The IPCC report tells us harsh facts about the climate crisis. We have been speaking for years already about the consequences of climate change and the difficulties our community faces. We cannot stop the impacts, and we need to start adapting so that we can secure our culture, languages and livelihoods,” say the chair of the Finnish Sámi Parliament’s youth council, Anni-Sofia Niittyvuopio and the chair of the Swedish Sámi Parliament’s youth council, Maria Unnes, who both participated in writing the declaration. 

The declaration states that cooperation between Sámi youths needs to be secured through common events and gatherings, and cooperation between Sámi across borders and with other indigenous peoples needs to be strengthened and increased. 

The Sámi youth have prepared the declaration as a part of the Nordic Sámi Youth Conference. The declaration acts as a tool for Nordic Sámi youth cooperation and it is an action plan against climate change across borders. 

The declaration can be read in  

Northern Sami (pdf)

Inari Sami (pdf)

Skolt Sami  (pdf)

Finnish (pdf)

 English (pdf)

The Nordic Sámi Youth Conference was held as an online event on the 26th of August 2021. The main organiser of the conference was the youth council of the Sámi Parliament and it was organised in cooperation with youth agents from the Sámi Parliaments from Norway, Sweden and Finland. During the conference we heard speeches from the Finnish Minister of the Environment and Climate Change, Krista Mikkonen, the chair of the Sámi Parliamentary Council, Aili Keskitalo, the chair of the Sámi Parliament, Tuomas Aslak Juuso and young reindeer herder Jussa Seurujärvi. Workshops were held by social media influencer Emmi Nuorgam, artivist Pauliina Feodoroff and the global youth organisation Youth4Nature. The theme of the conference was climate change and the declaration was made as part of the conference. 

More information 

Anni-Sofia Niittyvuopio  

Chair of the Sámi Parliament Youth Council of Finland 

+358 40 7082 072  

anni-sofia.niittyvuopio(at)samediggi.fi 

Maria Unnes 

Chair of the Sámi Parliament Youth Council of Sweden 

maria.unnes(at)sametinget.se 

Elli-Marja Hetta 

Youth Secretary of the Sámi Parliament of Finland 

+358 50 382 5179 

elli-marja.hetta(at)samediggi.fi