by Mallory Rutigliano and Karl Palmquist, Sierra Club NYC Group
Most people do not pick the dead of winter to visit the Arctic Circle – but we had a special reason. Once a year for the last 419 years, the tiny village of Jokkmokk – about a 12-hour drive north from Stockholm – is the home to a magnificent Winter Market, this year in the first three days of February.
The northern Lapland of Scandinavia is home to the indigenous Sámi people, and the Jokkmokk Market is a way for the Sámi to gather, share their traditions, and sell their crafts. The Sámi are traditionally reindeer herders, with their own robust language and culture different from that of the rest of Sweden. Sámi sellers traveled from other towns and even Norway to participate, and the traditional garb of the Sámi, noted for the braided red, yellow, green, and blue garments, as well as reindeer skins (many Sámi also eat the meat of the reindeer), lit up the white snowy dunes surrounding the town’s main street.
Much like the first-nation people in the U.S., the Sámi relationship to their now-home-country (and the market) has changed over time. The Jokkmokk Market began as a way for the Swedish crown to exert control over the Sámi whilst they were gathered in winter settlements (rather than spread out with their reindeer herds). This explains the timing of the market. It also was a chance for them to tax the Sámi, which highlights the craft and sales aspects of the market to this day. However, the Sámi continue the tradition of the market and strengthen their connections, engaging in traditional song, dance, craft demonstrations, and reindeer events. We learned about the Sámi way of life from Sámi representatives, including historians at the Sámi Museum in the town, which demonstrates the long history of the people and the market all year round, as well as the Sámi Duodji, a center for the creation and sale of traditional crafts made out of natural materials, such as wood and reindeer antlers.
In addition to the human culture of the market, the environment is a crucial part of what makes Lapland special – northern regions are disproportionately impacted by climate change and feel their effects most pronouncedly. A professor at MIT, Elfatih Eltahir describes research that has shown Europe and the Arctic are warming the fastest of global regions, which highlights how traditions such as those of the Winter Market might change over time. It is fitting that the theme for this year’s market was “sustainability.” Experts from local academic institutions, cultural ambassadors, and local nature enthusiasts gave a series of dozens of talks and demonstrations throughout the market, teaching the thousands of attendees, from near and far (we met another person from Germany who had always wanted to travel to the market destination), about the environmental culture of the Lapland, including projects that threaten its preservation.
The opportunity to travel to new places and interact with local cultures reminds us of what we lose when our environments change. Even our own New York was reclassified as a subtropical climate for the first time a few years ago. In the face of global climate change, it is important to remember that what we learn from others – even those an ocean away – can promote change and action in our own backyards.