Closer Cooperation With Indigenous Peoples Can Strengthen Total Defence in the North

What can the Nordic countries and Canada learn from one another when it comes to preparedness in Arctic areas? That was one of the questions discussed at the Arctic Circle conference earlier this month.

Canada has increasingly strengthened its defence policy ties with European countries. Like the Nordic region, Canada's Arctic regions are characterised by vast geographical distances, a scattered population and limited infrastructure.

Despite these challenges, Canada has found ways to maintain emergency preparedness and monitor its vast northern territories.

Now, a researcher at UiT, The Arctic University of Norway, argues that Norway could learn from Canada's approach to involving Indigenous peoples in emergency preparedness in the north.

Different approaches

Professor Gunhild Hoogensen Gjørv at UiT is working with Professor P. Whitney Lackenbauer at Trent University in Canada to analyse similarities and differences between Norway's and Canada's preparedness models.

In contrast to Canada, people in the Nordic countries receive more training in how they can cooperate with the authorities to serve as a preparedness resource in war and crises.

According to Lackenbauer, possible hybrid threats have stretched resources in Canada's civilian sector too thin on several occasions in recent years. This has also resulted in significant costs for the authorities, both nationally and at provincial level.

"Such attacks are primarily an attack on public trust in the state. It is therefore important to be cautious in how we respond. In such a situation, we can also lose sight of the real threat, because it may be coming from somewhere else."

"We can learn from Nordic societies by building trust and sharing information openly with local communities about emerging threats," he told UiT.

Gjørv believes it is important to examine what the civilian population can contribute from a defence and preparedness perspective, but stresses that it would probably be difficult to introduce a Nordic total defence model in Canada.

"In Canada, the population is not integrated into a total defence perspective. There is a clear divide between the military and civilian spheres. It propably would not work to organise in the same way as in the Nordic countries. Nevertheless, Canadian authorities have an interest in helping people develop new ways of thinking about preparedness."

As partners

In Canada, the army works with the Canadian Rangers organisation, a force of 5,000 people, most of whom are Indigenous. The Rangers patrol vast areas and operate in 200 communities where 26 different languages and dialects are spoken.

"This is an interesting organisation. It shows that Indigenous peoples in Canada's Arctic regions are increasingly being recognised for just how resourceful they are. They have a great deal to contribute, and the country's federal authorities have much to learn from their understanding of local preparedness."

Gjørv believes that a similar organisation or cooperation arrangement in Norway could strengthen the country's total defence, while helping to bridge the gap between Indigenous peoples and wider society.

She also argues that such an arrangement could reduce vulnerabilities and improve the monitoring of hybrid threats in Norway's northern regions.

"It would also have given the Norwegian authorities a stronger negotiating position in discussions regarding the development of critical infrastructure. Tensions still exist between Sámi and non-Sámi society."

She explains that such an arrangement would have provided a better basis for discussing development in Finnmark and Troms without compromising Sámi rights.

"It can also create opportunities to invest in measures that benefit everyone living there," Gjørv said.

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