ABSTRACT
Chapter 10 explores the extent to which Indigenous communities participate in the transition to renewable energy in the Arctic region. Using the concept of energy justice, this chapter provides legal and empirical arguments to demonstrate the need to consider energy justice in order to ensure that the transition to renewable energy in the Arctic region addresses the rights of Indigenous peoples. In so doing, the authors outline the importance of renewable energy as a means to achieving sustainable development and to fulfilling human rights in accordance with the international commitments of Arctic states adopted under the auspices of the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals in 2015. Second, the chapter outlines the broader contexts and corresponding patterns of renewable energy development in the Arctic. Against this backdrop, the chapter examines the actual state of play of the energy transition and its impact on Indigenous peoples in the Arctic based on illustrative examples. For this purpose, the chapter includes examples from Canada, Alaska, Russia, and in the Nordic countries of Norway and Sweden. Based on this appraisal, the authors offer recommendations for policy makers and business leaders to achieve greater justice for the Arctic Indigenous peoples during this current period of global energy transition.
