Arctic Human Development Report ends with call to look at Arctic youth

This graph from the Arctic Human Development Report — one of many interesting comparative graphs in the report — shows the incidence of lung cancer around the circumpolar world: Nunavut has the highest incidence of all.

The Arctic Human Development Report, at more than 500 pages, is long, but contains information you’re not likely to find elsewhere.

Youth — who comprise more than half of the four million people living in the circumpolar world today — should become a primary focus of the Arctic Council over the next 10 years, the latest Arctic Human Development Report suggests.

Of the population of Arctic indigenous peoples, the proportion of children under 15 years of age stands at more than 30 per cent, and the proportion of adolescents and young adults at more than 20 per cent.

The future of the Arctic will be determined by the choices of these youth, their aspirations and priorities about culture and identity and where they decide to study, live and work, say Joan Nymand Larsen of the Stefansson Arctic Institute and Gail Fondahl of the University of Northern British Columbia, editors of the recently-released report.

This report, among many others, is slated to be tabled when the Arctic region’s top ministers meet April 24 in Iqaluit.

At this meeting, ministers will accept the 503-page Arctic Human Development Report as part of the council’s Sustainable Working Group’s work.

It’s the second human development report produced for the Arctic Council.

The first report, the priority project of the Icelandic chairmanship of the Arctic Council between 2002 and 2004, was launched in November 2004.

The editors say this second report moves beyond that first assessment “to make valuable comparisons and contrasts across a decade of persistent and rapid change in the North.”

The new report is written in a much more plain style than the first, with many graphics. It looks at living conditions, the quality of life in the North and indigenous livelihoods around the Arctic.

The report spans a wide range of topics, including Arctic populations and migration, culture and identities, economy, politics, legal issues, resource governance, health and well-being.

The Arctic continues to face significant challenges, the report finds.

These challenges include: out-migration from local communities, health challenges, threats related to climate change, disparities between indigenous and non-Indigenous standards of living, gaps in education between indigenous and non-Indigenous people and between males and females, violence and discrimination, and threats to traditional livelihoods.

At the same time, the report’s many authors — more than 25 from around the circumpolar world — say there are numerous Arctic success stories and these should be underscored because they show innovation and resilience.

As for trends in the Arctic economy, the report says the recent performance of the North’s economy provides some clues to the future, and comes up with five trends:

• Northern resources will be developed for the international resource markets only when market participants expect the development to be profitable;

• the Arctic will remain a high-cost region;

• expectations of higher prices and lower costs for Arctic resources may be overly optimistic, but natural resource production will continue as a driving force of this economy;

• there will be continual changes in the institutional relationships that define the connection between local residents and resource development; and,

• the traditional economy will remain important for the residents of the North. The public sector will remain important to the overall economic well-being of residents, providing incomes, services, and goods.

At more than 500 pages, the report, which can be downloaded online here is a daunting read due to its length.

The editors suggested a translation of the report, or at least its introduction and conclusion, into Russian, Inuktitut and Mandarin as well as community roundtables to discuss its findings.

The other reports to be submitted to the Arctic Council, as listed by the Arctic Council April 20, include:

• Evidence Base for Promoting Mental Wellness and Resilience to Address Suicide in Circumpolar Communities, drawing on the Circumpolar Mental Health Symposium held in Iqaluit last month;

• Assessing, Monitoring and Promoting Arctic Indigenous Languages, with feedback from an international symposium held this past February in Ottawa on Arctic languages;

• Arctic Adaptation Exchange: Facilitating Adaptation to Climate Change, with an interactive website with information on climate change adaptation activities in the Arctic;

• Cancer among Circumpolar Indigenous Peoples, which addresses cancer as a health concern among circumpolar Indigenous peoples, and recognizes the need for effective prevention and control measures through reliable monitoring;

• Reindeer herding in the Arctic, the Eallin project which involved a series of workshops on the exchange of knowledge and adaptation practices; and,

• Gender Equality in the Arctic: Current Realities and Future Challenges, which laid the foundation for a formal network of stakeholders focused on gender equity.