We organized a workshop for Sámi youth in collaboration with the Finnish Environment Institute (Syke), asking young people about their wishes and opportunities to influence forest use and conservation. It became clear that forests are important to Sámi youth, but they desire more opportunities to participate in decisions regarding them.
Luontoa participates in the Indigenous Knowledge and Arctic Forests (IKForest) project, coordinated by the Finnish Environment Institute, which examines forest protection and restoration policies and practices in the Arctic from the perspective of Indigenous rights and traditional knowledge. The project aims to promote fair and ethical planning and practices for forest protection and restoration on Indigenous lands in the Arctic.
As part of the project, we took part in the Sámi Youth Conference in Inari, organized by the Sámi Youth Council, where we held a workshop for Sámi youth aged 14–30 on forest use and conservation. The discussions and creative exercises in the workshop provided valuable insights into the wishes and needs of Sámi youth
Having Sámi facilitators created a safer space for open discussion, without the need to explain the fundamentals of Sámi life, daily reality, or worldview differences compared to Western perspectives. The workshop was conducted in Northern Sámi, allowing participants to speak in their native language. It is essential that, when engaging Indigenous peoples, participants’ backgrounds and culture are understood, and whenever possible, facilitators from the same background should be involved.
Youth Observe Changes in Nature Around Them
The youth shared that they have lived their entire lives surrounded by nature and as part of it. When asked about their relationship with forests, they found it difficult to describe it and separate nature from themselves. Nature has always been such an integral and natural part of their lives.
Discussions also highlighted the difference between the Northern Sámi word “meahcci” and the Finnish word “metsä”. While in Finnish “metsä” refers to a wooded area, in Sámi, meahcci is a broader concept of the environment and can include fells, mires, or other natural landscapes.
The discussions revealed that Sámi youth make very precise observations about changes in their surroundings. They noticed the arrival of several invasive species, observed the tree line rising higher on fells, heard the calls of new bird species while others disappeared, and saw that reindeer increasingly sought areas near human settlements to escape heatwaves.
In the Forest of Their Dreams, There Would Be No Permanent Human Traces
The issues that concerned the youth the most were changes caused by climate change and other land uses that reduce Sámi living space, with tourism emerging as a particular threat. The youth have personally experienced how tourism development, motocross tracks, new hiking routes, and visitors’ traces in nature change the landscape and their everyday environment. They have tried to influence development, for example by signing petitions calling for the avoidance of extreme tourism impacts.
In the creative part of the workshop, we imagined what a “dream forest” would look like. In Sámi youth’s vision, the dream forest would have no boundaries, no permanent human traces, a rich and diverse nature, berries, and salmon. It would be a place where they could live as Sámi, making a living from nature, connected to their roots and identity.
As an expert and consultant, I rarely feel moved to tears during a workshop, but listening to Sámi youth express their concern for the environment and their hopes for the future was so touching and relatable that I could not hold back tears.
“Don’t Focus Only on Money”
Sámi youth want decision-makers to not think only about money and economic gain. They ask that being consulted is not treated as a mere checkbox exercise, but that their real needs and hopes are genuinely listened to. Understand how your decisions and actions affect us, our families, and our communities. Respect nature—and us as part of it.
We will include the results of this workshop in the final report of our project. It is our responsibility to strengthen the voice of youth and ensure it reaches decision-makers. The insights of the Sámi youth contain wisdom that is often missing from the speeches of jaded adults. I sincerely hope that this time, the youth’s messages are heard and have a concrete impact on future decisions regarding forest and nature conservation and use.
“Háliidan, ahte meahcis johttit máhttet guođđit meahci dakkárin, go dat lei ovdal sin mannama dohko. I want those who walk in the forest to be able to leave it as it was before they entered.” – Piibe Aikio, a workshop participant
Text: Inka Musta, Researcher and Consultant in the IK Forest project, Luontoa
Photo: Anni-Sofia Niittyvuopio, Indigenous Knowledge Expert in the IK Forest project, Syke