Finland
The Finnish pilot of ArcticKnows is located in Inari, in northern Finland. This region lies in the heart of the Arctic and is part of the homeland of the Sámi people, the only recognised Indigenous people of the European Union.
Inari is shaped by vast forests, lakes, rivers and seasonal rhythms. These landscapes are not only physical environments, but living spaces where livelihoods, culture and knowledge are deeply intertwined with nature.
People and livelihoods
Local and Indigenous communities in Inari sustain their lives through close relationships with land, water and non-human beings.
Traditional and contemporary livelihoods include:
- reindeer herding and land-based practices
- small-scale, climate-resilient agriculture
- fishing and food-related livelihoods
- emerging forms of nature-based and close-to-nature tourism
These livelihoods are grounded in Indigenous, local and traditional ecological knowledge, passed across generations and adapted to changing environmental conditions.
Women and youth play a central role in maintaining and renewing these practices, while also navigating social, economic and climatic pressures that affect everyday life in the region.
Open Spaces
More-than-human relations in Inari
Life in Inari is inseparable from relationships with reindeer, forests, waters, soils, seasons and weather. These more-than-human relations influence how people move, work, learn and care for their surroundings.
In the Finnish pilot, ArcticKnows recognises non-human beings and ecosystems as active participants in regenerative futures. Understanding these relationships is essential for creating economies that do not extract from nature, but regenerate and coexist with it.