Greenland as 'green' vs. a mining frontier: NAALAKKERSUISUT’S ARTICULATIONS OF SUSTAINABILITY IN RELATION TO BRANDING GREENLAND AS BOTH A MINING FRONTIER AND A ‘GREEN’ NATION
Translated title
Greenland as 'green' vs. a mining frontier
Author
Nielsen, Laila Anja
Term
4. term
Publication year
2022
Submitted on
2022-05-31
Pages
70
Abstract
Naalakkersuisut har tilsluttet sig Parisaftalen, hvilket signalerer et større fokus på de miljømæssige sider af bæredygtighed. Klimaforandringer smelter den grønlandske indlandsis hurtigt; det skaber både udfordringer og åbner muligheder, blandt andet for råstofudvinding. Grønland rummer store uudnyttede reserver af sjældne jordarter, som er vigtige for grønne teknologier og den globale grønne omstilling. Samtidig er minedrift en stor kilde til CO2‑udledning og drives typisk ikke af vedvarende energi. På den baggrund undersøger afhandlingen, hvordan Naalakkersuisut fremstiller Grønland internationalt både som en lovende minefrontier og som en grøn nation. Gennem en kritisk diskursanalyse – en metode til at undersøge, hvordan sprog former betydning og magt – og med afsæt i Simon Anholts teori om nation branding (hvordan stater opbygger et offentligt image), analyseres bæredygtighedsdiskurserne og deres rolle i Grønlands image. Hovedanalysen bygger på to ministertaler: Formand for Naalakkersuisut Mute B. Egedes tale på COP26 og råstofminister Naaja Nathanielsens tale ved Arctic Future Symposium 2021. Derudover inddrages temaer fra Egedes nytårstale og et magasin fra den grønlandske erhvervssektor for at sammenholde budskaberne og vurdere troværdigheden i nation branding. Analysen finder, at den nuværende Naalakkersuisut, i modsætning til tidligere grønlandske bæredygtighedsdiskurser, ikke blot har flyttet fokus mod miljøet, men også har forpligtet sig både til den globale kamp mod klimaforandringer og til lokale indsatser mod forurening fra udvindingsindustrier. Regeringen bruger desuden bæredygtighedsbegrebet til at gøre Grønland attraktivt for investeringer i både minedrift og vedvarende energi. De mange paralleller mellem budskaberne nationalt, internationalt og i erhvervslivet peger på en vis troværdighed i det udadrettede billede og indikerer en effektiv nation branding af Grønland som både minedestination og grøn nation.
Greenland’s government (Naalakkersuisut) has joined the Paris Agreement, signalling stronger emphasis on the environmental side of sustainability. Climate change is rapidly melting the ice sheet, creating challenges but also opening opportunities, including for resource extraction. Greenland holds large untapped reserves of rare earth minerals, which are important for green technologies and the global green transition. At the same time, mining is a major source of CO2 emissions and typically does not run on renewable energy. Against this tension, the thesis examines how Naalakkersuisut presents Greenland internationally as both a promising mining frontier and a green nation. The study uses critical discourse analysis—a method for examining how language shapes meaning and power—together with Simon Anholt’s nation branding framework, which looks at how states build a public image. The main analysis focuses on two ministerial speeches: Prime Minister Mute B. Egede’s speech at COP26 and Mineral Resources Minister Naaja Nathanielsen’s speech at the 2021 Arctic Future Symposium. It also considers sustainability themes in Egede’s New Year’s speech and in a magazine from the Greenlandic business sector to compare public messages and assess credibility in nation branding. The analysis finds that, compared with earlier sustainability discourses in Greenlandic politics, the current government has shifted its emphasis toward environmental aspects and is committed both to the global fight against climate change and to local efforts to prevent pollution from extractive industries. It also uses the concept of sustainability to attract investment in both mining and renewable energy. Parallels between national and international messages, as well as those in the business sector, suggest a credible outward image and indicate effective nation branding of Greenland as both a mining nation and a green nation.
[This summary has been rewritten with the help of AI based on the project's original abstract]
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