Initiatives aimed at mitigating climate impacts are being used to disrupt traditional ways of life, say Indigenous leaders, in what amounts to “green colonialism.”

Climate-friendly initiatives are being used to force Arctic Indigenous peoples from their lands and livelihoods, Indigenous leaders and researchers said last month at an Arctic Circle Assembly event in Reykjavik, Iceland.

“Colonialism has dressed up in nice green finery and we are told that we have to give up our territories and our livelihoods to save the world because of climate change,” said Aili Keskitalo, the president of the Sámi Parliament.

And it isn’t just the Sámi people facing what Keskitalo calls “green colonialism,” according to panelists who spoke at the Reykjavik event.

“We are all facing the same issues,” said Kuupik Kleist, the former premier of Greenland. “Our challenges, and the huge problems that we are facing, are those of colonialism.” Read more at ArcticToday.