ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses the different legal frameworks for protected area regimes in Sweden, Norway and Finland and analyses, with an emphasis on the longstanding Sámi tradition of reindeer herding, how these frameworks take into account Sámi culture and customary activities. Chiefly examined are environmental provisions for protected areas within Sápmi, the Sámi homeland region located predominantly in the north of Sweden, Norway, Finland and Russia. 1 Sweden has practised area protection since the early eighteenth century; Norway and Finland have had designated protected areas since the middle of the twentieth century. The Sámi exist as one Indigenous people residing within and across the state borders of Sweden, Norway, Finland and Russia, hence the importance of examining the diverse legal contexts under which the Sámi live.
