Conflicts on Exploited Land

Abstract: The North of Sweden is undergoing what’s called a green revolution, where new exploitations arehappening in the name of green development and growth and within the frame of eco-modernism. Thisrevolution is viewed as the solution to many of our problems, one being the climate change, another beingthe de-population of many towns in the North, such as Gällivare. Because of the dominating narrative andthe continued trend of (green) growth, demand on natural resources are increasing, leading to more andmore exploitations. What’s really happening in the North is a green colonization, where we can see greatsimilarities with the industrialization of the last turn of century, when the north was talked about in termsof the land of the future, today “The New North”. This thesis aims to investigate how the current greendevelopment effects the specific site in terms of land use, exploitations, conflicts and the impact on theIndigenous activity of reindeer herding. The project is situated in Gällivare, Norrbotten, Sweden, a townthat is currently undergoing bigger transformations, largely due to the continued mining activity ofGällivare’s two mines. The continuation means demolishment or moving of houses and people, as well asexpansions claiming larger areas of the Sami Community’s land. The project has a main focus on the conflict between the mining industry and the reindeer industry, butalso take into consideration other types of exploitations, such as forest industry, wind power, urbansettlements and so on. The project challenges the dominating narrative, stating that the current status quoof development in the North might not be sustainable or just. Therefore, it also put forward two alternativefuture scenarios, one where Gällivare would be locally self-sufficient and the mining would have stopped,and the other being an automatization of the economic and domestic life, where the mining wouldcontinue. The purpose is to provide a basis for discussion and to explore how other narratives or framesfor development – not growth – would impact the site.