Challenges for fishing and farming communities

Abstract

Although there have been great changes in the lives and livelihoods of people in the Baltic Sea archipelago during the last century, the lives of local inhabitants are still strongly linked to the local nature, culture, and history. Customary use of local ecosystems provides resources for the household, but it is also an important carrier of local identity, culture, and way of life. Fishing, hunting, and harvesting of berries, mushrooms, etc., function as cultural and intergenerational glue for the local community context even today. This paper reflects upon the cultural and social importance of the small scale and informal economy in the Swedish Baltic Sea archipelago for sustainably living local communities, some of the present challenges to its continuation, and the potentials for positive change. It is based on participatory research on customary use of biodiversity and local and traditional knowledge in the Kalix Archipelago in the northern Bothnian Bay and in the Sankt Anna Archipelago in the Baltic Sea proper.

Keywords

bio-cultural heritage; customary use; Kalix Archipelago; local and traditional knowledge; local community; Sankt Anna Archipelago

Published in

Baltic Worlds
2019, volume: 12, number: 2, pages: 40-49
Publisher: Sodertorn University Centre for Baltic and East European Studies

SLU Authors

• Tunon, Håkan

  • Department of Urban and Rural Development, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

• Kvarnström, Marie

  • Department of Urban and Rural Development, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

UKÄ Subject classification

Ethnology
Human Geography

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/129935