Background Research Project of the Certification Criteria for Responsible, Holistically Sustainable Sámi Tourism Companies

In addition to the northern nature, Sámi culture is one of the most important tourism attractions in the Sámi Homeland in Finland and more broadly in Lapland. Authenticity, responsibility and sustainability are increasingly of interest to tourists and tour operators in the region. However, it is difficult for them to know which of the tourism companies in the region are authentic, responsible and holistically sustainable Sámi companies. The project concretely took forward the groundwork done by the Sámi Parliament for Sámi tourism. The certification of Sámi tourism companies would help in making responsible choices and improve the accessibility and competitiveness of certified companies, while supporting the vitality and development of Sámi culture on Sámi terms.

The project collected and analyzed background information for the certificate. The project mapped the criteria for Indigenous tourism and sustainable tourism certificates in different countries. After the background survey, a hybrid seminar was organized in Inari for Sámi tourism entrepreneurs, where the results of the survey were presented and experiences were heard about the Sápmi Experience certificate previously used in Sweden and The Original Original certificate in operation in Canada. The seminar discussed the new certificate to be created together with the entrepreneurs. Finally, the project drafted the criteria, application form and instructions for the Sámi tourism certificate to be created.

This project supported the work of the Sámi Parliament by collecting and analyzing the information needed to create the criteria for the certification of responsible, holistically sustainable Sámi tourism enterprises. The goal was that by the end of the project, the Sámi Parliament would have at its disposal the information it needed from outside the Sámi community in a clearly structured manner to create the criteria. Another goal was that Sámi tourism entrepreneurs would have become familiar with this information and presented their own views on it. The third objective was to produce preliminary drafts of the criteria, application form and guidelines for the Sámi tourism certificate to be created for finalization by the Sámi Parliament.

The total cost of the project was 115,366 euros. The Lapland ELY Centre has granted a grant of 90% of the budget allocated for tourism projects in sparsely populated areas.

The Finnish Government has established a parliamentary working group on sparsely populated areas (HAMA) to improve the opportunities for sparsely populated areas in Finland. The working group has allocated 3 million euros in support for nature, food, fishing and hunting tourism projects in HAMA areas, emphasizing the guidelines of the Finnish Tourism Strategy 2022–2028 and the Finnish Food Tourism Strategy 2020–2023, as well as Visit Finland's food tourism product recommendations. As a state aid authority, the Lapland Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment has granted a grant from this funding to the University of Lapland's Background Research Project for the Certification Criteria of Responsible, Holistically Sustainable Sámi Tourism Companies.

The main results of the project were:

1) a summary of the criteria for Indigenous and sustainable tourism certificates that exist in different countries,

2) Sámi tourism entrepreneurs have reviewed the summary and presented their own views on the necessary criteria, and

3) a draft of the criteria, application form and instructions for the Sámi tourism certificate in the form of a website for finalization and approval by the Sámi Parliament.