Winner of the prestigious Worldwide Fund for Nature 2002 ‘Panda Prize’ for best national ecological project, SnowChange was started in late 2000 to document and work with local and Indigenous communities of the Northern regions.
Snowchange is an organisation unlike any other in Finland or in the Circumpolar North – We are Finns devoted to the advancement of our traditions and culture. We hold the traditional knowledge, stories, handicrafts, fishing and hunting and other elements of our forest culture sacred.
Snowchange Cooperative is also a network of local and Indigenous cultures around the world – our partners include the Saami, Chukchi, Yukaghir, Inuit, Inuvialuit, Inupiaq, Gwitchin, Icelandic, Tahltan, Maori, Indigenous Australian and many other local and Indigenous peoples and communities. Members of these Nations form the international Steering Committee of Snowchange.
Snowchange Cooperative is a powerful scientific organisation too. We work with the Arctic Council, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Climate Crisis Advisory Group, National Science Foundation of USA, several universities and partners on questions of biodiversity, climate change and local communities. We have created books, photo albums, international conferences, political changes – Snowchange represents the positive change the North needs.
In the past 22 years Snowchange has developed into a major force in international climate and indigenous policy and research. Our stories bring the land alive – they are very powerful stories. We hope you enjoy these pages.
Tervetuloa – Welcome!