Projects per year
Abstract
This article focuses on young lifestyle migrants in Arctic Finland, individuals who can be described as active agents of their own fate in having made a conscious choice to move to a place they consider worth living in. Drawing on long-term ethnographic research, the study brings to light newcomers’ motivations for migrating to a geographically remote area and discusses structural conditions that support the process of moving to Finnish Lapland. The search for personal wellbeing and a desire to construct “authentic” lifestyles in rural environments emerged as driving factors for young people who consider moving to the Arctic. While access to nature and nature-based leisure activities proved to be the most attractive feature of the region, opportunities to work in the tourism industry, well-connected transport infrastructures and educational opportunities also figured significantly in the migrants’ decisions. Social media channels play a pivotal role as a platform promoting their lifestyle. In engaging regularly with young people who have moved to the Arctic, where they pursue their chosen lifestyle in a harsh climate with high living costs, the research challenges the prevailing argument in the lifestyle migration debate whereby middle-class people move to places with lower living costs and sunny climates.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 139-156 |
Number of pages | 18 |
Journal | Polar Geography |
Volume | 46 |
Issue number | 2-3 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2023 |
MoEC publication type | A1 Journal article-refereed |
Keywords
- Lifestyle Migration
- Finnish Lapland
- adventure tourism
- Arctic Youth
- Wellbeing
- Arctic immigration
- lifestyle migration
- Arctic youth
- youth well-being
Field of science
- Social and Culture Antropology
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Dive into the research topics of 'Hunting a ‘good life’: young lifestyle migrants in Finnish Lapland'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.Projects
- 1 Finished
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WOLLIE: Live, Work or Leave? Youth - wellbeing and the viability of (post) extrative Arctic industrial cities in Finland and Russia
Stammler, F. (Principal Investigator), Allemann, L. (Collaborative Investigator) & Joona, T. (Collaborative Investigator)
01.01.2018 → 31.12.2020
Project: Co-funded project