The project, entitled Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Frameworks and the (Re)Distribution of Mining Wealth in the Arctic: a Comparative Analysis, is funded through the WAGE Partnership, which focuses on the Arctic economy and social transitions, and is in turn funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC). Professor Thériault’s project will study and compare the legal frameworks in different Arctic jurisdictions, including Canada, Sweden, Norway, Greenland, Finland, Russia, and the United States. Her team will look at how these jurisdictions regulate access to land and minerals; investigate whether or not there exist any legal mechanisms to recognize and protect Indigenous peoples’ rights in the context of mining development; and analyze and compare the different avenues in place for Indigenous communities to benefit from any mining wealth extracted from their lands. The researchers will then propose institutional and legal changes that will help to increase Indigenous Peoples’ agency in mining development within these jurisdictions. The ultimate goal of the project is to foster a more equitable distribution of mining wealth to Indigenous communities.
Professor Thériault is also a co-researcher on a second project funded through the WAGE Partnership that explores issues of food insecurity and malnutrition in Indigenous populations in Canada’s North. Existing socio-economic inequalities amongst these communities have been exacerbated by the effects of climate change, and, most recently, by production and distribution interruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Alongside Professor Geneviève Parent of Université Laval, Professor Thériault will examine these challenges in the context of Canada’s commitment to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act. The project will offer important insights into the responsible governance of food systems for Northern Indigenous communities, while also exploring the broader necessity of building sustainable food systems that are resilient to the effects of environmental degradation.
The WAGE Partnership (Wealth of the Arctic Group of Experts), led by Professor Gérard Duhaime of Université Laval, studies economic and social inequalities in the Arctic and circumpolar North, with a particular focus on how Indigenous communities are affected. Professor Thériault has been a member of the partnership’s group of experts since its inception in 2020, bringing to the team her expertise in Indigenous Peoples’ rights and environmental law.
Congratulations to Professor Thériault on her success with these important research projects!
