Participants in the 15th Arctic: Present and Future international forum discussed updated approaches in the state ethnic policy and the concept of sustainable development for the small-numbered indigenous peoples of the Russian Federation. Dedicated to the memory of Artur Chilingarov, the forum was held in St. Petersburg on December 9-10.

Head of the Federal Agency for Ethnic Affairs Igor Barinov commented that the state policy continues the transition from a paternalistic model to an approach that requires joint efforts from the state, socially responsible businesses and, most importantly, representatives of the indigenous peoples’s communities.

He added that the fundamental principle of today’s Arctic policy states that extensive economic development must not occur to the detriment of the environment or future generations. This being said, Russia is ahead of other countries when it comes to observing the rights of the indigenous small-numbered peoples.

“We realize that the sustainable development of indigenous minorities is our government’s priority. The Russian Federation recognizes all the essential rights of the indigenous peoples. Truly extensive legal recognition of the rights always entails searching for effective legal and financial mechanisms of ensuring rights observation. This is particularly relevant for the regions with dozens of indigenous ethnicities. In many aspects, we handle this matter better than anybody else in the world,” Barinov said.

The official highlighted that it is important to further the dialogue, create discussion platforms, and launch new negotiation procedures.

“The key conditions include strengthening the indigenous minorities’ expert potential, without which the dialogue will not be effective nor will agreements be reliable,” the agency head added.

Alexander Novyukhov, President of the Association of Small-Numbered Indigenous Peoples of the North, Siberia and the Far East, is confident that the indigenous peoples’ expertise and competence have grown significantly, with existing unique projects allowing their representatives to obtain and share knowledge effectively.

As an example, he spoke about the Public Diplomacy School for the indigenous peoples at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations. Public Diplomacy School alumni already advocate for indigenous peoples’ rights across various platforms in Russia and abroad.

“Russia is a flagship in competence development. The key aspect of developing the territories of the indigenous populations lies beyond social policy and charity. Its development contributes to the Arctic development strategy,” Novyukhov added.

During the forum, an interactive atlas of the small-numbered indigenous peoples of the North, Siberia and the Far East was also presented. The atlas contains unique historical and cultural references, showcases the regions’ beauty, as well as traditional folklore and language specifics. The book also offers systematized research data on the historical, cultural, social, anthropological and linguistic diversity of the small-numbered indigenous peoples of the North, Siberia and the Far East.