Our Research Council of Finland (a.k.a Academy of Finland) funded project “Traditional Indigenous Ecological Knowledge, Re-Indigenization and National Parks: Toward a New Framework for Sustainable Co-Governance (IndEcol)” officially began on September 1st. The first task was to hire a researcher to work on this exciting project, and Doctoral candidate Sonja Salminiitty was the first researcher to hired. She is working on her dissertation, “Indigenization and Californian Central Coast Museums” that is closely linked to the larger theoretical concepts of (re)indigenization. In addition, she will work on two actual cases in this project. Our team will get a new member, University Researcher Klemetti Näkkäläjärvi (Sámi) in January 2024. He is living in Enontekiö, and will focus on Pallas-Yllästuntuntui national park and the Pöyrisjärvi wilderness area. Klemetti is the former chairperson of the Sámi Parliament and currently serves as the chairperson for the Sámi Climate Council.
Our research started with a bang as we were able to interview both the park personnel of the Valles Caldera Nature Preserve and the Jemez Pueblo (link to video, that will be added to our website later). This conversation will be a part of our new MOOC (Open Online Lecture Course) that will be part of this project deliverable and available to indigenous communities, national parks services etc. worldwide.
Sonja has already attended a webinar on the creation of the new Chumash Heritage National Marine sanctuary (
Author: Rani-Henrik Andersson
In October 2023 the PI had the opportunity to start a three-month long research period first in California and then in Hawai’i. Our journey in California started with an interesting invitation by Chumash elder Roberto Cordero. She took us out to Santa Ynez where Chumash culture days were ongoing. We spent a beautiful day out in the countryside, met a lot of people and were able to attend cultural events like dances and games. What a wonderful start to our fieldwork.
My purpose on this trip was to meet with people, network, do some grant writing and also to get familiar with the Chumash homelands. With the help of Roberta Cordero, I was able to connect with other Chumash environmental experts like Violet Sage Walker, who has been actively working to establish a new Chumash Heritage Marine Sanctuary. We had interesting discussions on how the collaboration with NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency) has worked so far and discussed the many complicated issues involved in developing a completely new marine protected area. I was also lucky enough to be invited by the director Mike Murray and Laura Ingulsrud to visit the NOAA facilities in Santa Barbara. Mike and Laura have actively worked with the Chumash communities in the establishment of this new sanctuary that was actually approved by the Biden administration last year. Michael and Laura were wonderful hosts, and we had a two hours lively discussion on indigenous engagement in natural protection in general and how the US government could and should work together to achieve common goals.
We were also able to meet with our good friends Julia Cordero Lamb and Teresa Romero. Julia took us to the Santa Barbara Botanical Gardens and showed us what it really means to know your surroundings. Julia is an ethnobotanist and she carries Chumash traditional knowledge on plants native to the Southern California area. This traditional ecological knowledge is vital for our battle against climate change, and I hope that my project can bring forth new ways of bringing indigenous knowledges and so-called western science together to tackle these universal issues.
While in California, I also attended meetings workshops in Los Angeles where was happy to meet my old friends Josh reid, sam Truett, and Boyd Cothran again. Our joint project on Indigenous Borderlands is in full swing and we are hoping to publish yet another book next year.
Spent overall about 3 weeks in in California met with so many interesting and cool people and I'm so grateful for my friends for always being willing to listen to me and working with me and I hope this project will serve the Chumash community as well.
On November 10 we started our second leg of this research trip flying from Los Angeles to Honolulu. We had a nice little place in the in Makaha valley on the leeward side of Oahu. The town of Waianae was surprisingly run down and it took us a while to get used to the area. Both Sara and I were visiting scholars at the University of Hawaii at Manoa and were extremely kindly welcomed by the faculty, especially Professor Elizabeth Colville. She organized a dinner in our honor and invited the faculty too. That way we got to know a lot of people, who turned out to be well networked with key folks working with the National Park Service and NOAA.
Based on these initial meetings we went to see Doctor Hans Van den Tillburg NOAA marine archaeologist. He was kind enough to invite us to NOAA our headquarters inside Pearl Harbor military area. It was extremely interesting to learn about how NOAA incorporates indigenous knowledge and practices whenever it's doing research in Pacific marine protected areas. We also got to visit the Pacific tsunami warning center which was a really cool place. I'm looking forward to collaboration with Hans and his team.
On December 12 our next leg of the fieldwork started by taking a flight to Hawai’i island also known as Big Island. Our first stop was at the University of Hawaii at Hilo and meeting with Halena Kapuni Reynolds, who works for the Smithsonian Institute at the Museum of the American Indian as well as is an expert on indigenous perspectives on Volcanoes National Park. At Volcanoes NP we also go to talk to archaeologists and anger Summer Roper, who works on indigenous knowledge in an effort to incorporate indigenous ways to the management of the park. The tour of the park was interesting as the area is the site of the world's largest volcano Mauna Loa and the Kilauea crater just erupted few weeks earlier, unfortunately did not do so while we were there, but fumes were visible in and around the crater. Volcanoes National Park also holds tremendous cultural of values to the indigenous Hawaiians as the site of Pele. The park also includes jungles, lava tubes and tremendous lava fields where you can actually get a better understanding of how the island actually grows through volcanic activity.
On our way across the island, we also visited Mauna Kea, which is a very different kind of volcano with a lot of cinder cones dotting its sides. At Mauna Kea they have also started to include indigenous perspectives and talk about Hawaiian star navigation systems. Mauna Kea is a site of controversy since several new telescopes have been planned on top of the mountain and that, of course, is not approved by most indigenous Hawaiians. As we moved toward to the Kona coast, we were lucky to visit Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau National Historic site
In addition to these major site sites, I was able to visit other environmentally important places such as Ka’ena Point nature sanctuary and Kahana river area. Overall, these research periods in California and Hawai’i gave me a lot of new insights and thoughts about not only national parks but also marine sanctuaries as highly significant sites for environmental protection. Furthermore, they are also places where indigenous presence should be emphasized and be brought to the management of the area in an effort to create abundance through indigenous stewardship practices.
Author: Rani-Henrik Andersson
January-February Blogpost
Prior to January, several workshops and conferences were attended as part of responsible research commitment principles and maintain our research relevance within various disciplinary fields. In September 2023, the SIEF task force on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in European Ethnology and Folklore Studies (DEI) organized a workshop "The ‘Dark Histories’ of European Ethnologies and Folklore Studies". Engaging presentations included Thomas DuBois (University of Wisconsin) Taking Native Sovereignty Seriously: Notes toward an Ethics of Practice and Coppelie Cocq (Umeå University) From Lappology to Sámi Studies. Shifts in positionality, responsibility and ownership in Indigenous research. In October 2023, I attended both the 9th Annual Repatriation Conference and their Pre-Webinar: Starting at Home: How Universities Can Use the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act to Rebuild Relationships Inside and Out. In that same month I also attended the International Conference on the Inclusive Museum. These conferences helped me keep up with the latest in research developments and both conferences had a heavy emphasis on environmental concerns and conservation programs that were being led by Indigenous groups around the world. In November, I joined "The Apophasis Initiative" Research Seminar which is a reformed Cultural Studies Seminar but with an emphasis of digital humanities and AI research technologies, and learned more about the impact such developments will have on our future research. In December, I attended the Decoloniality in teaching, hosted by African Research Forum for Social Sciences and Humanities at the University of Helsinki. The forum offered multiple presentations on the theme of decoloniality in teaching. This was useful for our responsible research requirement.
In January 2024, the INECOL project officially welcomed another university researcher, Klemetti Näkkäläjärvi (Saami). His research has primarily focused on Saami culture and reindeer herding as well as biodiversity, adaptations to climate change, climate justice, indigenous youth's perceptions of climate change, and indigenous peoples' co-production of knowledge. Näkkäläjärvi has also served as the chairman of the Saami Parliament of Finland in 2008-2015. Currently, he also chairs the Saami Climate Council during the term 2023–2027. We are very excited to have him on the project team!
On February 6th, the university celebrated Sámi National Day (the ethnic national day for the Saami people). It is celebrated on this date because the first Sámi congress was organized on February 6th, 1917 in Trondheim, Norway. The university sponsor of this event was HELSUS. The event was first marked by the ‘Sámi leavgga stággui geassin, Sámi soga lávlla ja friija sáhkavuorut’ or Sámi flag rising, Sámi national anthem and free word speeches, outside the Porthania building. Speeches were given by Professor of Indigenous Studies Pirjo Kristiina Virtanen, Sámi University Teacher Ilona Kivinen, Sámi games researcher Outi Laiti, and Sámi elders from CitySamit Ry (based in Helsinki).
These events were followed by coffee and talking-and-sharing-circles inside the Porthania building. Afterwards, there was a ‘juoigan Tuuni Partti’ session, or music session where Tuuni Partti, a Sámi musician, gave a yoik music performance. Additionally, Partti played ‘goavddis’ or a drum where particpants and Sámi university students could sing along. As the final portion of the program, we were able to watch a screening of the Ruoktojohka (2023), a film about North Sámi fishing rights in Finland and three Sámi women’s efforts to overturn the new Fishing Act. The film was directed by Kati Eriksen and Scott Thornton. The language of the film is North Sámi, and subtitles in English.
Photographs from Left to Right: Elders sharing recent experiences at an Indigenous People’s Conference in Mexico during the sharing-and-talking-circles. Tuuni Partti teaching the chorus a Sámi song to participants. Photographs are authors own.
During the discussions, event organizers highlighted the importance to the university community to be multilingual, and not only in English. As part of our commitment to responsible research, I took beginner’s Northern Saami language courses from the September to November period of 2023 in order to gain some understanding of the language. In February, we also had our researcher profiles available in three languages: English, Finnish, and Northern Saami.
Author: Sonja Salminiitty
In March, Klemetti Näkkäläjärvi was interviewed by Erika Benke for the BBC about how climate change is impacting the Northern Sami language.
In May, Project Lead Dr. Rani-Henrik Andersson and researcher Sonja Salminiitty presented on their current research findings at the Maple Leaf and Eagle Conference at the University of Helsinki. They both presented under the Native American Representation and Remains panel with Andersson’s “’The Crossing’: Toward Chumash Stewardship in Federal Lands and Waters and Salminiitty’s, “Through Their Own Eyes: Native American-Run Museums in California”.
This blog post is available in three languages; English, Saami (Northern), and Finnish.
Akwé: Kon–guidelines and their significance for the Saami in Finland
How to improve participatory rights of indigenous peoples in matters that concern them is the thousand-dollar question that has been considered globally, nationally and regionally. Different models have also been developed locally and some have worked better than others. In the IndEcol project, we also consider these questions and seek local solutions to global challenges.
The Nordic countries has been considered a very progressive region, both in terms of environmental protection and in promoting the rights of indigenous peoples. However, recent developments suggest that this reputation is not justified. Wind power and mining projects in Norway and Sweden have highlighted the downside of the green transition, which will be paid for by the Saami and their living environment. Natural use – be it the planning of the use of protected areas or forestry areas, brings together different economic, environmental, functional, livelihood, social and cultural interests. In areas inhabited by the Saami, the indigenous rights of the Saami must also be taken into account. Resources for nature conservation have diminished and, at the same time, visitor pressure in protected areas remains steadily high.
In Finland, Metsähallitus manages 92 per cent of the waters and land in the Saami homeland. Less than 80 per cent of the Sámi homeland is protected in various ways. Metsähallitus' management, land use plans and natural resources plan have a major impact on the possibilities of Saami people to maintain their own culture.
In simple terms, the practical application of the guidelines in Finland means that the Saami Parliament appoints an Akwé: Kon -working group, consisting of holders of traditional Sami knowledge, to prepare a management plan or natural resource plan for a protected area from the perspective of Saami culture. If the area is located in the Skolt region, the Skolt Saami Village Assembly appoints some of the representatives. The management plans and natural resource plan guide the use of the area and Metsähallitus' management and use measures. A rapporteur independent of Metsähallitus will be appointed for the working group. Metsähallitus is responsible for the resourcing of the working group. The working group works independently and makes proposals on the content of the plan and prepares an impact assessment of the plan with regard to Saami culture. Metsähallitus must justify if it does not take the working group's proposals into account.
The guidelines were applied for the first time in the whole world in Finland. The guidelines have not been applied at all in the other Nordic countries or elsewhere in the world, with a few exceptions. The interesting question is why the guidelines adopted by the international community have not been implemented widely.
The guidelines have now been implemented for more than ten years, and it is good time to assess what has changed since the introduction of the guidelines and whether the Akwé: Kon -guidelines and management and use planning are the right tools to solve the biodiversity loss, climate change adaptation and mitigation, cross-pressures between different land use forms, and the participation rights of the Saami people. The IndEcol work package explores these questions. The target area is East-Enontekiö and the case study is the implementation of Akwé: Kon -guidelines in the management plans for the Pöyrisjärvi wilderness area and Pallas-Yllästunturi National Park, which are currently being prepared. The project also discusses the reasons why the implementation of the guidelines has remained so modest on a global level and how to proceed from here.
University researcher Klemetti Näkkäläjärvi
Akwé: Kon–rávvagat ja daid mearkkašupmi Suoma sápmelaččaide
Mot eamiálbmogiid oassálastinriekti áššiide, mat gusket sin, sáhttá ovdánahttojuvvot, lea earenoamáš buorre gažaldat. Dát ášši lea suokkardallojuvvon globála dásis, álbmotlaččat go guvllolaččatge. Sierralágán mállet lea ráhkaduvvon báikkálaš dásisnai ja oassi dain leat doaibman buorebut go earát. IndEcol-dutkanprošeavttas guorahallat maid iežamet beales dáid gažaldagaid ja viggat gávdnat báikkálaš čovdosiid máilmmiviidosaš hástalusaide.
Davviriikkat leat adnojuvvon earenoamáš čuvgehuslaš guovlun birassuodjaleami dáfus go eamiálbmogiid rivttiid ovddideaddjinge. Maŋemus áiggiid gárggiideapmi addá goitge čujuhusaid das, ahte buorre beaggin ii leat ákkastallamis. Bieggafápmo- ja ruvkefidnut Norggas ja Ruoŧas leat buktán ovdan ruoná sirdáseami suoivvabeali, man máksin leat šaddame sápmelaččat eallinbirrasiiddisguin. Luonddugeavahusas – lei dat dal suodjalanguovlluid dehe vuovdedoalloguovlluid geavahusa plánen, deaivvadit sierralágán ekonomalaš, biraslaš, doibmii gullevaš, ealáhuslaš, sosiálalaš ja kultuvrralaš beroštumit. Sápmelaččaid orrunguovlluin galget dasa lassin sápmelaččaid eamiálbmotrievttit vuhtii váldojuvvot. Luonddusuodjaleami resurssat leat unnon ja oktanaga suodjalanguovlluid galledeaddjideaddu bissu dássedis alladin.
Suomas meahciráđđehus hálddaša 92 proseantta sápmelaččaid ruovttuguovllu čáziin ja eatnamiin. Sápmelaččaid ruovttuguovllus sierra vugiid mielde leat suodjaluvvon vádjit 80 proseantta. Meahciráđđehusa dikšun- ja geavahanplánain lea stuora váikkuhus sápmelaččaid vejolašvuođaide bajásdoallat iežaset kultuvrra.
Ovttageardánahtedettiin rávvagiid heiveheapmi dárkkuha geavadis Suomas dan, ahte Sámediggi nammada sápmelaš árbevirolaš dieđu eaiggádiid joavkkus Akwé: Kon-bargojoavkku válmmastallat suodjalanguovllu dikšun- ja geavahanplána dehe luondduriggodatplána sámi kultuvrra dáfus. Juos guovlu lea nuortalašguovllus, nuortalaččaid siidačoakkán nammada oasi ovddasteddjiin. Dikšun- ja geavahanplánat ja luondduriggodatplána stivrejit guovllu geavahusa ja Meahciráđđehusa dikšuma ja geavahusa doaibmabijuid. Bargojovkui nammaduvvo Meahciráđđehusas sorjjasmeahttun áššemeannudeaddji. Meahciráđđehusas lea ovddasvástádus bargojoavkku resurseremis. Bargojoavku bargá iehčanasat, ja dahká árvalusaid plána sisdollui ja ráhkada plána váikkuhusaid árvvoštallama sámi kultuvrra oasil. Meahciráđđehus galgá ákkastallat, juos dat ii váldde vuhtii bargojoavkku árvalusaid.
Heivehettiin rávvagiid lea ulbmil buoridit plánaid diehtovuođu, ovdánahttit Meahciráđđehusa ja sámi servoša gaskavuođa vuorrováikkuhusa ja dorvvastit sápmelaččaid oassálastinrivttiid. Eará eanangeavaheami plánemis, dego lávvemis rávvagat eai leat guoskaduvvon. Akwé: Kon -rávvagiid ollahuhttin lea ožžon riikkaidgaskasaš fuomášumi ja lea lasihan sierra čanusjoavkkuid vuorrováikkuhusa. Rávvagiid ollahuhttin leat goitge bohciidahttán maid kritihka sierra čanusjoavkkuid ja priváhta olbmuid beales. Guovddáš argumeanta lea, ahte bargojoavkobargan addá sápmelaččaide liiggás olu válddi eará geavaheaddjijoavkkuid jelgii. Ságastallamii laktásit dávjá maid sápmelačča meroštallan sihke sápmelaččaid rievttit.
Rávvagat heivehuvvoje vuosttaš háve oba máilmmis Suomas. Rávvagat eai leat heivehuvvon eará Davviriikkain obanassiige eaige eará sajis máilmmis earret muhtin spiehkastagaid. Miellagiddevaš gažaldat leanai, ahte manin riikkaidgaskasaš servoša dohkkehan rávvagat leat báhcán ná viidát ollahuvakeahttá.
Rávvagat leat dál ollahuhtton badjel logi jagi áigge ja lea buorre bisánit árvvoštallat, mii lea rávvagiid atnuiváldima mielde earáhuvvan. Leatgo Akwé: Kon-rávvagat ja dikšuma ja geavahusa plánen rivttes reaidu, mainna sáhttá čovdojuvvot luonddu máŋggahápmásašvuođa geafuma njoahcun, dálkkádatrievdamii vuogáiduvvan ja dan goahcan, sierra eanageavahanhámiid ruossalas dahkkiid mielddisbuktin vuoiŋŋalaš deaddu ja sápmelaččaid oassálastinrievttit. IndEcol-dutkanprošeavtta bargobáhkas dutkojuvvojit dát gažaldagat. Čuozáhatguovlun lea Nuorta-Eanodat ja dáhpáhusdutkamuššan Akwé: Kon-rávvagiid ollahuhttin Bievrrašjávrre meahcceguovllu ja Bállás-Ylläsduoddara álbmotmeahci dikšun- ja geavahanplánain, mat leat bárrahiin válmmastallojuvvome. Dutkanprošeavttas guorahallojuvvojit maid ákkat dasa, main rávvagiid ollahuhttin lea báhcán globála dásis nu vuollegažžan ja mot dás ovddos galggalii ovdánit.
Universiteahttadutki Juvvá Lemet
Akwé: Kon–ohjeet ja niiden merkitys Suomen saamelaisille
Miten alkuperäiskansojen osallistumisoikeutta heitä koskeviin asioihin voidaan kehittää, on tuhannen taalan kysymys, jota on pohdittu niin globaalisti, kansallisesti kuin alueellisestikin. Erilaisia malleja on kehitetty paikallisestikin ja osa on toiminut paremmin kuin toiset. IndEcol-hankkeessa pohdimme myös osaltamme näitä kysymyksiä ja pyrimme löytämään paikallisia ratkaisuja globaaleihin haasteisiin.
Pohjoismaita on pidetty hyvin edistyksellisenä alueena niin ympäristönsuojelullisestikin kuin alkuperäiskansojen oikeuksien edistäjinä. Viimeaikainen kehitys antaa kuitenkin viitteitä siitä, että tämä maine ei ole perusteltu. Tuulivoima- ja kaivoshankkeet Norjassa ja Ruotsissa ovat tuoneet esille vihreän siirtymän varjopuolen, jonka maksajiksi on tulossa saamelaiset ja heidän elinympäristönsä. Luonnonkäytössä – olipa se suojelualueiden tai metsätalousalueiden käytön suunnittelua, kohtaavat erilaiset taloudelliset, ympäristölliset, toiminnalliset, elinkeinolliset, sosiaaliset ja kulttuuriset intressit. Saamelaisten asuttamilla alueilla tulee lisäksi saamelaisten alkuperäiskansaoikeudet huomioon otettavaksi. Luonnonsuojelun resurssit ovat pienentyneet ja samanaikaisesti suojelualueiden kävijäpaine pysyy tasaisen korkeana.
Suomessa Metsähallitus hallinnoi 92 prosenttia saamelaisten kotiseutualueen vesistä ja maista. Saamelaisten kotiseutualueesta eri tavoin suojeltuja alueita on vajaa 80 prosenttia. Metsähallituksen hoito- ja käytössuunnitelmilla ja luonnonvarassuunnitelmalla on suuri vaikutus saamelaisten mahdollisuuksiin ylläpitää omaa kulttuuriaan.
Yksinkertaistetusti ohjeiden soveltaminen käytännössä tarkoittaa Suomessa sitä, että Saamelaiskäräjät nimeää saamelaisen perinteisen tiedon haltijoista koostuvan Akwé: Kon-työryhmän valmistelemaan suojelualueen hoito- ja käyttösuunnitelmaa tai luonnonvarasuunnitelmaa saamelaiskulttuurin kannalta. Mikäli alue sijoittuu koltta-alueelle, kolttien kyläkokous nimeää osan edustajista. Hoito- ja käyttösuunnitelmat ja luonnonvarasuunnitelma ohjaavat alueen käyttöä ja Metsähallituksen hoidon ja käytön toimenpiteitä. Työryhmälle nimetään Metsähallituksesta riippumaton esittelijä. Metsähallitus vastaa työryhmän resursoinnista. Työryhmä toimii itsenäisesti, ja tekee esityksiä suunnitelman sisältöön ja laatii suunnitelman vaikutustenarvioinnin saamelaiskulttuurin osalta. Metsähallituksen on perusteltava, mikäli se ei ota työryhmän esityksiä huomioon.
Ohjeita soveltamalla on tarkoitus parantaa suunnitelmien tietopohjaa, kehittää Metsähallituksen ja saamelaisyhteisön välistä vuorovaikutusta ja turvata saamelaisten osallistumisoikeudet. Muussa maankäytön suunnittelussa, kuten kaavoituksessa ohjeita ei ole sovellettu. Akwé: Kon -ohjeiden toimeenpano on saanut kansainvälistä huomiota ja lisännyt eri sidosryhmien välistä vuorovaikutusta. Ohjeiden toimeenpano on kuitenkin herättänyt myös kritiikkiä eri sidosryhmiltä ja yksityisiltä henkilöiltä. Keskeinen argumentti on, että työryhmätyöskentely antaa saamelaisille liikaa valtaa muihin käyttäjäryhmiin nähden. Keskusteluun liittyy usein myös saamelaisen määritelmä sekä saamelaisten oikeudet.
Ohjeita sovellettiin ensimmäisen kerran koko maailmassa Suomessa. Ohjeita ei ole sovellettu muissa Pohjoismaissa lainkaan eikä muualla maailmalla muutamia poikkeuksia lukuun ottamatta. Mielenkiintoinen kysymys onkin, että miksi kansainvälisen yhteisön hyväksymät ohjeet ovat jääneet näin laajasti toimeenpanematta.
Ohjeita on toimeenpantu nyt yli kymmenen vuoden ajan ja on hyvä arvioida, mikä on ohjeiden käyttöönoton myötä muuttunut ja onko Akwé: Kon-ohjeet ja hoidon ja käytön suunnittelu oikeat työkalut, joiden avulla voidaan ratkaista luonnon monimuotoisuuden köyhtymisen hidastuminen, ilmastonmuutokseen sopeutuminen ja sen hillintä, eri maankäyttömuotojen ristipaineet, sekä saamelaisten osallistumisoikeudet. IndEcol-hankkeen työpaketissa tutkitaan näitä kysymyksiä. Kohdealueena on Itä-Enontekiö ja tapaustutkimuksena Akwé: Kon-ohjeiden toimeenpano parhaillaan valmisteilla olevissa Pöyrisjärven erämaa-alueen ja Pallas-Yllästunturin kansallispuiston hoito- ja käyttösuunnitelmissa. Hankkeessa pohditaan myös syitä sille, miksi ohjeiden toimeenpano on jäänyt globaalilla tasolla niin vaatimattomaksi, ja miten tästä eteenpäin tulisi edetä.
Yliopistotutkija Klemetti Näkkäläjärvi
As part of disseminating project related research in a wider multidisciplinary scholarly setting, I attended the Europaeum’s Summer School on Marginalized Histories. The event was hosted by the University of St. Andrews in Scotland (27th-30th August). The goal of this year’s Europeaum’s Summer School was to help expand scholarly understandings of diverse cultural experiences by addressing the absence and marginalization of particular communities in various histories. I gave a presentation on the first day of the event titled ‘Re-Indigenizing California’s History’. Multiple speakers included scholars Anushrut Ramakrishnan Agrwaal, Gracia Trujillo Barbadillo, Gönül Bozoğlu, Bruno Brulon Soares, Lucy Fife Donaldson, Tobias de Fønns, Paul Flaig, Nicôle Meehan, Stephanie O’Rouke, Dora Osbourne, Michael Nebeling Petersen, Tyler Parks Anindya Raychaudri, Tom Rice, and Wung-Sung. Professor Andrea Pető (Central European University) gave a keynote lecture which discussed threats to academic freedom and the importance of defending minority communities and traditions in the face of political onslaught.
Additionally, I attended the Seventeenth International Conference on the Inclusive Museum hosted by ICOM and UNESCO in Vienna, Austria from 13-15 September. I presented on a panel entitled ‘Strategic Shifts’ with my presentation ‘Indigenized Museums: Chumash and Cahuilla Indian-Run Museums in Central and Southern California’. In this presentation, I go into detail about the proposed Channel Islands National Park and Marine Sanctuary (CINMS) and how both Indigenous and non-Indigenous museums are trying to help inform the public about the importance of establishing a marine sanctuary and what it would mean for various Chumash coastal tribes.
Author: Sonja Salminiitty
Photographs From Top to Bottom: A group image of attendees from the Europaeum’s Summer School. Image of keynote speaker Karalyn Monteil, Head of Programmes & Stakeholders Outreach at UNESCO, giving her presentation at the ICIM.
More to come!
There have been many exciting developments related to the INDECOL Project. In October, the
Biden-Harris Administration and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration officially designated the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary, which includes over 4,543 square miles of coastal and offshore waters along 116 miles of California’s central coast (NOAA 2024). The sanctuary will bring Chumash traditional knowledge and ecosystem-based management to natural, historical, archeological and cultural resources which include, but are not limited to, beaches, kelp forests, reefs, shipwrecks, and underwater mountains (NOAA 2024). The sanctuary will be the 5th designated in California and the 3rd largest national marine sanctuary in the US (NOAA 2024). This sanctuary designation is the result of more than a decade of work by various Tribes and Indigenous community leaders. In an interview, Violet Sage Walker, chairwoman of the Northern Chumash Tribal Council, which nominated the sanctuary in 2015 under the leadership of her father, the late Chief Fred Collins stated, regarding the designation, that “It will not only raise awareness of the Chumash People around the world, but also honor the legacy of my late father and affirm our commitment to the stewardship of our land. I hope we will be remembered for our dedication to actively protecting and nurturing Mother Earth and Grandmother Ocean” (NOAA 2024). Additionally, Kenneth Kahn, Chairman of the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians, commented that “the Chumash tribal government never relinquished its aboriginal right to manage our traditional homelands. We are grateful that NOAA recognizes this inherent sovereignty and welcomed us as a co-steward of the sanctuary that bears our name" (NOAA 2024).
While this is undoubtedly good news, it is important to recognize that some advocated parts of the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary were not formally included in the designation. The boundaries exclude the Morro Bay Wind Energy Area. In 2023, Walker, alongside Greenpeace, had brought attention to the exclusion of Morro Bay from the sanctuary designation by traveling aboard the Arctic Sunrise from Long Beach to Morro Bay to protest the issue (Sheriff 2023). Currently, NOAA will consider a potential expansion of the sanctuary in the coming years, after subsea electric transmission cables have been laid.
Sources Referenced:
NOAA, ‘Biden-Harris Administration, NOAA designate 3rd-largest national marine sanctuary’, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 11 Oct. 2024.
Sheriff, Lucy, ‘‘We felt so betrayed’: Indigenous tribe reels after exclusion from US marine sanctuary’, The Guardian, 1 Oct. 2023,
Additionally, two of the INDECOL’s secondary researchers, Klemetti Näkkäläjärvi and Sonja Salminiitty, have decided to co-author a chapter together for the upcoming edited volume Indigenous Environmental Stewardship and Setter Colonial Borderlands (University of Nebraska Press, 2026). The preliminary title of this co-authored chapter is “How climate change affects the re-indigenization of National Parks? A case study from Laponia Unesco World Heritage area in North-Sweden”. Both Näkkäläjärvi and Salminiitty will also contribute additional, individual chapters as well to the volume.
In Fond Memory: Roberta Cordero
In February 2025, INDECOL project members lost a treasured friend, Chumash Elder Roberta Cordero. Roberta helped co-found the Chumash Maritime Association, which brought traditional marine ecological knowledge to new generations of Indigenous youth. Alongside this, Roberta helped establish Chumash community seats at the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council. Her tireless work and advocacy were also vital in helping further the establishment of the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary.
“I had the opportunity to meet with Roberta for the first time in 2023. Together with Teresa Romero, we drove all along the Santa Barbara coastline and visited sites of cultural significance to the Chumash. We talked about importance of cultural repatriation, the personhood of plants, the significance of memory and language… I remember the last time I had the chance to meet with Roberta in person was in June 2024…I had taken her to the Lilac Pâtisserie in Santa Barbara so we could catch up and have brunch together, we talked for hours, not just on the project and my research but also to just talk about anything and everything. Even after her stroke, she was an effective communicator, using her tablet to help write down what she wanted to say. After brunch, we visited several local art workshops and galleries together, enjoying the good weather. Before we parted, Roberta gave me a sage bundle she had made herself, something I deeply cherish. I planned to also see her again this year when I came back to California in the late fall with my family. I am glad that I got to see her one last time…Rest in power, and rest in peace Roberta”. – Sonja Salminiitty
Our project leader Rani, who is also a co-editor for the Indigenous Environmental Stewardship and Settler Colonial Borderlands edited volume, helped organize a writer’s symposium that brought several of the volume’s authors together to meet, present, and offer feedback on each other’s chapters. Included below is a copy of the program:
Indigenous Environmental Stewardship and Settler Colonial
Borderlands Symposium
May 21-23, 2025, Helsinki Collegium for Advanced Studies, University of Helsinki
(Fabianinkatu 24, 3rd floor)
DAY 1 Wednesday May 21
09.30-10.00 Opening words
Symposium organizers Rani-Henrik Andersson, Janne Lahti, and Sami Lakomäki
Director of the Helsinki Collegium for Advanced Studies Hanne Appelqvist
10.00-12.00 Session I: Indigenous Knowledge(s) and Care of Land
Bridging Community, Culture, and Stewardship: A Conversation with Native
Hawaiian Women Working in Hawaiʻi’s National Parks, Keola Awong, Mikiala Pescaia, Halena
Kapuni-Reynolds, and Noah Hanohano Dolim
The Hemish World and Valles Caldera, Adam Dean and Raelyn Toya
From Saami Cultural Landscape to Colonized Territory: Is Re-Indigenization
Possible? A Case Study from Pallas-Yllästunturi National Park in Northern Finland, Klemetti
Näkkäläjärvi
Survivance: The Sámi Home as the Enactment of Relations, Astri Dankertsen and
Majken Paulsen
Discussion
12.00-13.00 Lunch
13.00-15.00 Session II: Lands and Communities
How Climate Change Affects the Re-Indigenization of National Parks? A Case
Study from Laponia area in Northern Sweden, Rani-Henrik Andersson,
Skolt Sámi Community: Settler Colonial Forces and Traditional Livelihoods in
Petsamo, Sonja Tanhua
Scholarship as Stewardship: Navajo (Dine) Scholars, Glen Canyon Dam, and the
Colorado River, Erika Bsumek
Discussion
15.00-15.30 Coffee
15.30-17.00 Interactive Artistic Keynote: Colleen Charles
17.00 Collegium Reception
18.30 Dinner
DAY 2 Thursday May 22
09.30-11.30 Session III: Cultivating Relationships in Homelands
Restorative Justice and Relationships as the Foundation of Indigenous
Stewardship for a Sustainable Mother Earth, Heather Sauyaq Jean Gordon
“‘Just as the White People Talk about Jesus Christ, So We Feel about the Corn’:
Gardening, Indigenous Food Sovereignty, and Arikara Identity”, Mark Van DeLogt
Sámi Trails in the Archive, Britt Kramvig
Land-based Meanings of Disasters Adaptations from Woodland Cree First Nation,
Canada, Ranjan Datta, Jebunnessa Chapola, Colleen Charles, and C. Emdad Haq
Discussion
11.30-13.00 Lunch
13.00-15.00 Session IV: Reclaiming Spaces and Sovereignties
Through Wildfire or High Water: Environmental Stewardship Efforts by Tribal Land
Conservancies in the Los Angeles County Region, Sonja Salminiitty
Borderlands of Personhood in the Global American West: The Rights of Nature and
Indigenous Sovereignty, Boyd Cothran
“They Take Such Good Care of Us:” Reawakening Indigenous Seed Relationships
in the Wake of Colonialism and Climate Crisis, Christina Gish Hill
Discussion
15.00-15.30 Coffee and Final words by the organizers
16.30 Leave for Lonna Dinner and Sauna at the Harbor
DAY 3 Friday May 23: Workshop (for authors and graduate students)
10.00-12.00 Session 1
12.00-13.00 Lunch
13.00-15.00 Session 2
Sonja Salminiitty presented at the 28th Biennial Conference of the Nordic Association for American Studies (NAAS) that took place from June 4–6, 2025, at the University of Turku, Finland. This event was jointly organized by the John Morton Center for North American Studies (JMC) and the Finnish American Studies Association (FASA). The NAAS 2025 conference operates under the umbrella theme “Aspirations” and is structured around six core thematic strands that probe how aspirations shape American cultural, political, social, and environmental landscapes.
Sonja’s presentation was titled “Aspirational Partnerships: Tribal Land Conservancies in the Wider LA County Region”. The conference paper focused on how the relations between Native Americans and the U.S. government have historically, and currently, been fraught, many tribes have set wider aspirations on getting back their traditional homelands. While ‘land back’ campaigns have gained popularity over the years, a growing number of bands have started to formally establish tribal land conservancies. This paper focuses on the establishment of tribal conservancies in the wider Los Angeles County region. The conference paper contained the preliminary findings of the chapter article and received invaluable feedback from conference participants.
Indigenous Environmental Stewardship and Settler Colonial Borderlands is a forthcoming edited volume that examines the intersections of Indigenous land-based knowledge and the ongoing impacts of settler colonial structures on environmental governance. Scheduled for publication in the coming months by the University of Nebraska Press, this peer-reviewed book brings together scholars from North American Studies, sustainability science, history, and cultural research to explore how Indigenous communities practice environmental stewardship across contested borderlands. The editors for the volume include Rani-Henrik Andersson, Janne Lahti, and Sami Lakomäki.
For the Indigenous Environmental Stewardship and Settler Colonial Borderlands edited volume, the finalized titles for the chapters the researchers were:
Klemetti Näkkäläjärvi: From Saami cultural landscape to colonized territory - is re-indigenization possible? A case study from Bállás-Yllästunturi National Park, North Finland
Sonja Salminiitty: Environmental Stewardship Efforts by Tribal Land Conservancies in the Los Angeles County Region.
Rani-Henrik Andersson, Klemetti Näkkäläjärvi, & Sonja Salminiitty, Long Shadow of Bággojohttin - Multiple Pressures for Re-indigenizing Laponia World Heritage Site.