Arctic indigenous peoples’ internationalism: in search of a legal justification

This paper focuses on the evolution and development of the legal scope of governance and the right to autonomy in the Arctic context by considering contemporary indigenous internationalism through a legal lens and by employing examples from the Arctic indigenous peoples of Greenland and Nunavut. It argues that depending on national policy, partnerships, and relations, there are possibilities for considering direct international representation, and the participation of autonomous sub-national units or indigenous peoples, as a part of the right to autonomy/selfgovernment or internal self-determination. Since indigenous peoples have a limited legal personality and capacity in international law, the states of which they are a part can take special measures to accommodate their needs.