Green transition infrastructure threatens the Sami people’s way of life in Europe’s far north.
KIRUNA, Sweden—The Sami people, one of Europe’s last Indigenous populations, have inhabited northern Sweden for thousands of years, maintaining a unique way of life that is intertwined with their territory and with reindeer herding. Reindeer are a cornerstone of Sami life and economic subsistence and also serve as a living connection to Sami traditions and cultural identity.
Though Sweden did not engage in overseas colonization to the same extent as other European countries, it did look to the north to extract resources. Vast reserves of minerals, wood, and water in the north of Sweden helped the country become one of the richest in the world.
These resources are mainly located on Sami land, which has increasingly come under threat from green-energy projects, including wind farms, mining expansions for rare-earth minerals, and forestry. These projects obstruct migration routes, fragment pastures, and shrink reindeer grazing lands—disrupting the ecosystem’s delicate balance and Sami activities. Forced displacement becomes a tradeoff for innovative climate-change mitigation.
Two women sit at a table covered in a map. Photos hang on the wall. A window with a floral curtain is between them.
Helena Partapuoli (right), a reindeer herder, and her mother, Katarina, look at a map that shows how reindeer migration routes are interrupted by green transition projects and mining infrastructure, at their home in Arosjakk, Sweden, on March 24.
The Sami have a long-standing spiritual connection with their land, making their living through reindeer herding, deer hunting, fishing, and farming. The reindeer provide the Sami with what they need to survive in a harsh environment; the herders rely on vast grazing lands and migration routes between summer and winter pastures that have passed through generations.
However, modern reindeer herders struggle to uphold their ancestral responsibility to steward the land due to extensive exploitation. Unlike neighboring Norway, Sweden never ratified the International Labour Organization’s Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention of 1989, which protects the rights of Indigenous and tribal peoples. In 2020, the U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination concluded that Swedish law discriminates against the Sami.
Two people ride a snowmobile and trailer as they feed reindeer with hay seen ahead of them on a snowy landscape.
- Annica Lantha and Naomi Aira feed reindeer with hay in Jokkmokk, Sweden, on March 21.
Two reindeer, one lying down, on a snowy landscape with trees in the distance.
- Reindeer in the area of the Jahkagaska tjiellde Sami community on March 21.
Despite this, the Swedish government continues to prioritize green-energy projects on Sami land. These projects often involve state-owned companies, private contractors, and multinational corporations, reflecting a push toward energy resilience at the expense of Indigenous rights. The Sami use the term “green colonialism” to describe these hegemonic sustainable policies, connecting colonial resource exploitation with the current dispossession carried out to advance the green transition.
Three photos in a grid. 1. dogs and a person outside a colorful house with snow on the ground. 2. A red and yellow harness and tools on a table. 3. A woman spreading out pelts outside a home on the snow.
Top left: The house of a herder family in the Laevas Sami community on March 24. Top right: Tools used by reindeer herders. Bottom: Aira crafts traditional products such as reindeer hide blankets and smoked dried meat at her home in Jokkmokk on March 21.
Wind farms, for example, reduce grazing land for traditional reindeer herding because the noise and movement of the turbines disturbs reindeer. Building up hydropower has required the construction of numerous dams and reservoirs, mostly located on Sami land, that altered natural water courses essential for traditional fishing practices and also flooded large areas, resulting in further loss of grazing land. This has displaced some Sami households toward urban centers, disrupting their way of life.
A snowy landscape shows a passageway over a railroad.
Two small figures cross a passage over the railway in Kiruna, Sweden, on March 25. Mining industry infrastructure cuts across historical herding routes, forcing herders to use such passages so reindeer can access winter grazing lands they have been using for hundreds of years.
Four photos show snow-covered landscapes with a dam, the tiered terraces of a copper mine, wind turbines, and downed trees seen from above.
Clockwise from top left: The Vattenfall Akkats hydropower dam close to Jokkmokk; the Aitik open-pit copper mine near Gallivare; the Markbygden wind farm outside Pitea; a forestry site near Jokkmokk.
Timber plays a central role in green policies, from sustainable construction to biomass and biofuels; it can replace non-renewable materials such as steel, concrete, and aluminum. However, commercial forestry decreases biodiversity and the availability of grazing land. In Sweden, extensive logging has led to the loss of lichen, a crucial source of nutrition for reindeer.
Logging companies have also been criticized for not respecting Indigenous rights: Protesters have targeted the Swedish state-owned forestry company Sveaskog, which has been clear-cutting forests on Sami land.
Mining operations further compound the issue. Nine of the 12 mines in northern Sweden are located on Sami territory, including one of the European Union’s largest copper mines, the Aitik mine outside the town of Gallivare; and the world’s largest iron ore mine in Kiruna. The town of Kiruna is being dismantled and relocated several miles eastward amid expansion of the mine; this will displace both urban and Sami communities.
Three photos in a grid. 1. a high angle view of a snowy town with a mine in the distance. 2. An aerial shot of two houses in the snow surrounded by a fence. 3. A diorama of a town with small wooden houses.
Top: The world’s largest iron ore mine is seen behind Kiruna on March 25. Bottom left: A barrier isolates a block of houses in Kiruna that will be dismantled to make way for an expansion of the mine. Bottom right: An architectural model of the Kiruna project shows a red line outlining the area to be demolished.
A woman in a yellow coat stands in a snowy driveway outside of a brick building next to a yellow car.
Asa, a Sami woman, stands in front of her old apartment, set for demolition, in Kiruna on March 25. She was asked to relocate to the new city center.
The Swedish state-owned company LKAB recently discovered Europe’s largest deposit of rare-earth minerals, also in Kiruna. These minerals are used in wind turbine generators, batteries, and electric vehicles. The deposit could be a significant component in producing raw materials to enable the green transition and decrease reliance on Russia and China’s supply.
Europe’s recent push to promote a green transition and build energy resilience exacerbates the challenges for the Sami. Last year, the EU adopted the Critical Raw Materials act—a complement to the European Green Deal—which outlines a target to extract at least 10 percent of its annual critical raw materials needs within its own borders. Mines located in northern Sweden will play a crucial role in fulfilling the EU’s objectives.
Two people look through binoculars as they stand next to snowmobiles on a snowy landscape.
- Reindeer herders in the Laevas Sami community scan the mountainous landscape for their herd on March 24. This family moved earlier than normal to summer pastures in the mountains after warmer temperatures created unfavorable conditions in their traditional winter grazing lands.
A hand digs into the snow for plant-life next to the person’s snowy boot.
- A Sami reindeer herder checks on grazing conditions under the snow on March 24. Rising temperatures are leading to changes in reindeer food availability. On warmer days, snow melts and then refreezes when it gets colder, trapping lichen in a thick layer of ice that the animals can’t break.
A reindeer steps through snow amid trees.
A reindeer in a forest in the area of the Jahkagaska tjiellde Sami community on March 21.
Amid these challenges, the Sami have been vocal in protesting, filing legal challenges, and working with international organizations to amplify their concerns. The Sami Council, grassroots advocacy groups, and alliances with global environmental movements have helped highlight their struggles. However, with climate change worsening and industrial pressures increasing, the Sami face an uphill battle.
A red church is seen amid bare trees in a snowy landscape on the edge of a town with three birds flying overhead.
The wooden church in Kiruna, built in 1912 and once voted Sweden’s most beautiful building, is slated to be moved to the new city center in 2025 to make way for mine expansion.
The opposition to projects impeding on Indigenous land from Sami and environmental groups highlights the ethical dilemmas of balancing Indigenous rights and environmental sustainability. Without stronger protections and genuine inclusion in decision-making processes, the Sami risk losing not just their land, but the foundation of their existence. Their efforts underscore the need for a more ethical approach to climate-conscious development—one that respects the land and its people.
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