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Green transition for whom? Exploring local narratives of green transition and sacrifice in Gällivare municipality

Mårtensson, Alva LU (2025) STVM25 20251
Department of Political Science
Abstract
How can we understand Gällivare municipality as a sacrifice zone through local narratives of green transition? The transition to low-carbon economies in the wake of the European Green Deal drives increased demands for metals and minerals, renewable energy, biomass from forests – intensifying green extractivism. In Gällivare municipality, located in the rural north of Sweden and within the borders of the Indigenous Sápmi, such extractive pressures raise questions of social and environmental sustainability and justice. This thesis takes a holistic, interpretive approach to explore the experience of living in the municipality during this time by studying local narratives of green transition as a whole. The contributors consist of two local... (More)
How can we understand Gällivare municipality as a sacrifice zone through local narratives of green transition? The transition to low-carbon economies in the wake of the European Green Deal drives increased demands for metals and minerals, renewable energy, biomass from forests – intensifying green extractivism. In Gällivare municipality, located in the rural north of Sweden and within the borders of the Indigenous Sápmi, such extractive pressures raise questions of social and environmental sustainability and justice. This thesis takes a holistic, interpretive approach to explore the experience of living in the municipality during this time by studying local narratives of green transition as a whole. The contributors consist of two local politicians, a representative from a Sámi village, and two persons engaged in a local branch of an environmental organization. The narratives are analysed using a conceptual framework structured around the concept of green sacrifice zones, referring to areas bearing a disproportionate burden of the extractivism of natural resources. While the approach provided rich insights into the studied experiences, a conclusion of this thesis is that the broad scope also put limits to the analysis. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Mårtensson, Alva LU
supervisor
organization
course
STVM25 20251
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
Green transition, green extractivism, green sacrifice zones, narratives
language
English
id
9186300
date added to LUP
2025-04-23 10:16:12
date last changed
2025-04-23 10:16:12
@misc{9186300,
  abstract     = {{How can we understand Gällivare municipality as a sacrifice zone through local narratives of green transition? The transition to low-carbon economies in the wake of the European Green Deal drives increased demands for metals and minerals, renewable energy, biomass from forests – intensifying green extractivism. In Gällivare municipality, located in the rural north of Sweden and within the borders of the Indigenous Sápmi, such extractive pressures raise questions of social and environmental sustainability and justice. This thesis takes a holistic, interpretive approach to explore the experience of living in the municipality during this time by studying local narratives of green transition as a whole. The contributors consist of two local politicians, a representative from a Sámi village, and two persons engaged in a local branch of an environmental organization. The narratives are analysed using a conceptual framework structured around the concept of green sacrifice zones, referring to areas bearing a disproportionate burden of the extractivism of natural resources. While the approach provided rich insights into the studied experiences, a conclusion of this thesis is that the broad scope also put limits to the analysis.}},
  author       = {{Mårtensson, Alva}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Green transition for whom? Exploring local narratives of green transition and sacrifice in Gällivare municipality}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}