How can endangered traditions and livelihoods be sustained and revitalised?

Duodji (Qualifications in Crafts and Design)

The indigenous Sámi culture with its traditions, languages and livelihoods is under serious threat due to both cultural discrimination and the commercialisation of Lapland. The Sámi Education Institute in Inari was founded in 1978 as a vocational upper secondary school with the purpose of preserving and revitalising the Sámi culture and its livelihoods such as crafts, reindeer herding and fishing.

The displayed objects are contemporary examples of duodji, Sámi craft. Duodji is made of materials from nature, such as birch burls and reindeer antlers and furs, alone or combined with traded goods such as cloth or beads. The videos tell the stories behind duodji objects and how they are inextricably linked to questions of Sámi heritage, identity and everyday life.