Green Ambitions, Indigenous Struggles: Environmental Justice for Sami Reindeer Herders in Kiruna

Abstract

In light of the climate crisis, the discovery of Europe’s largest deposit of rare earth elements, known as Per Geijer and located in Kiruna, Northern Sweden, has been celebrated as a key to the EU’s green transition. At the same time, however, the planned extraction risks making traditional reindeer herding in the area impossible, thereby jeopardizing Sami culture, which is deeply rooted in the land and reindeer herding. Drawing on literature and fieldwork, this study explores how the mining project would affect local Sami reindeer herders’ experiences of environmental justice, focusing on the three dimensions of distribution, recognition and participation. The analysis combines environmental justice theory with a capabilities approach to assess not only the social, economic and cultural impacts but also the effects on reindeer herders’ well being and autonomy. This study reveals that the state positions the erosion of Sami culture and livelihood as a necessary cost for the greater good. While Sami reindeer herders suffer environmental, economic, social and cultural consequences, they are largely excluded from profits and decision-making. In light of the green transition and rising mineral demands, this thesis adds to the discussion on the impacts of extraction on Indigenous groups and highlights the need for a just transition that does not reproduce colonial injustices.