Online Survey to Understand Resources and Supports that Guide Ethical Arctic Research
02.01.2025
With growing awareness that better collaboration between Indigenous and non-Indigenous partners benefits all, recent years have seen a push to decolonise and Indigenise Arctic research. Indigenous organizations across the region have developed guidelines on conducting research ethically within their homelands. How have Indigenous and non-Indigenous researchers used, understood, and implemented these tools in practice to help foster ethical research relationships? The Indigenous-led youth organisation Ikaarvik, the Saami Council, and the RIFS are conducting an online survey to learn more about these experiences.
“Indigenous Peoples of the Arctic have always gathered information and produced knowledge about these lands and waters. However, historically, Arctic research conducted by external researchers has marginalized this knowledge. The push to Indigenise research seeks to uphold the rights of Arctic Indigenous Peoples and improve the quality of research outcomes. This involves shifting away from colonial structures toward genuine equity in planning, decision-making, and funding”, says RIFS researcher Evie Morin.
Some progress in decolonising Arctic research has been made and many funding regulations now require co-creative approaches. However, there is a need to better understand whether these approaches are being implemented in ways that are meaningful. The survey helps to close this gap by learning from perspectives on the ground. It asks about experiences with Arctic research and what resources or support, if any, have helped foster ethical research relationships.
This project is endorsed by the International Conference on Arctic Research Planning (ICARP IV). It is co-lead by the RIFS, the Saami Council, and Ikaarvik as part of the project Njuolla->Qarjuk : Connecting Best Practices for Co-Created Research Across the Arctic, which is funded by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, and Nuclear Safety (BMU). Findings will be compiled and presented at the ICARP IV Summit in March 2025. The results of this project will help to improve co-creative research practice in the Arctic.
The Fourth International Conference on Arctic Research Planning (ICARP IV), a once-in-a-decade global gathering on Arctic science and global affairs, is set to take place in Colorado, USA in 2025. An engagement process is underway to identify knowledge gaps, research priorities, and synergies in Arctic research in preparation for the conference. In its planning, the International Arctic Science Committee (IASC) committed to recognizing that Traditional Knowledge, Indigenous Knowledge, and academic scientific knowledge are coequal and complementary knowledge systems that can and should inform its work.
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