The inuit declaration on sovereignty in the arctic. The 2009 icc circumpolar inuit declaration on sovereignty in the arctic states. Inuit view on canadas arctic sovereignty arctic journal. A circumpolar inuit declaration sovereignty in the arctic. Inuit identity and sovereignty are conceived by the icc. We depend on the marine and terrestrial plants and animals supported by the coastal zones of the. Beginning with european exploration of the region and concluding with recent debates over ownership of the arctic, the book unfolds the history of a polity that has overcome colonization and attempted assimilation to emerge as a political actor which has influenced both artic and global governance. The arctic is being overlooked in this election the hill times. Our ice is vanishing sikuvut nunguliqtuq mcgillqueens. The inuit, the state and author books cirque journal a circumpolar inuit declaration on sovereignty in the arctic. Wrights book is an academic study that is nonetheless deeply moving. For inuit, it is a highway, a hunting ground, and the platform on which life is lived. Claims to tribal sovereignty in the arctic, titled on thin ice. The rapidity of the melting of summer ice in the arctic over the past five years is.
In 2009, the inuit circumpolar council icc published a circumpolar inuit declaration on sovereignty in the arctic, detailing their view and stance on the matter. The inuit tocrown relationship that the nunavut agreement reflects puts a new focus on arctic and inuit issues and is at the heart of this new relationship in arctic sovereignty. The circumpolar inuit declaration on arctic sovereignty emphasizes the unity of inuit as one people across four countries, and also addresses the unique relationships inuit have within each respective state. The circumpolar inuit declaration on arctic sovereignty emphasizes the unity of inuit as one people across four countries, and also addresses the unique relationships inuit. In developing this declaration, the inuit circumpolar council icc worked with inuit across the circumpolar arctic over the past six months to. The inuit way of defining the parameters for future arctic governance chapter pdf available january 2011.
The oldest inhabitants are now a force transcending. Canadas claim to sovereignty and leadership in the arctic is founded in its partnership with inuit. Arctic sovereignty is contested, inuit rights are not the hill times. The sea ice never stops ac archive home arctic council. The circumpolar declaration on sovereignty in the arctic developed by the inuit circumpolar council icc. The bedrock of canadas status as an arctic nation is the history of use and occupation of arctic lands and waters by inuit for thousands of years. Circumpolar inuit launch declaration on arctic sovereignty inuit.
The rights of inuit have been largely ignored by canada and the other arctic coastal states as they attempt to establish their sovereignty over large portions of the arctic ocean seabed through the law of the sea and the process set up under the united nations convention on the law of the sea unclos. A circumpolar inuit declaration on sovereignty in the arctic we, the inuit of inuit nunaat, declare as follows. The itk position is profoundly basic and clear inuit are the strongest sovereignty card canada has, but it doesnt use it effectively. In 2008, the inuit living in four of the arctic states signed a circumpolar inuit declaration on sovereignty in the arctic, which defines the parameters of sovereignty and its potential effects on the inuit. Rethinking canadianinuit arctic sovereignty in the face. The arctic and inuit sovereignty allard research commons. Circumpolar inuit declaration on arctic sovereignty. Inuit live in the vast, circumpolar region of land, sea and ice known as the arctic. Nick leeson is an associate with okt llp, a law firm located in toronto and yellowknife. Canadas global standing and ability to safeguard its sovereignty. A circumpolar inuit declaration on sovereignty in the arctic. Appendix 1 inuit circumpolar council, a circumpolar inuit declaration on sovereignty in the. An introduction to inuit rights and arctic sovereignty. Instead, sovereignty is relocated from bounded state territories to the process of.