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here, the evidence suggests that decisions made in Nuuk do not necessarily align with the aims and
objectives of the public at large.
This concerns not only Greenlandic development strategy that seeks to attract foreign investment as
a means of generating economic stability; it also underscores the fundamental value of participatory
democracy. At the crossroads of economic development and democracy, public participation plays a
critical role in establishing the direction desired by the Greenlandic people at large. As Sen (1999:
158) suggests, “a more informed and less marginalized public discussion of environmental issues
may not only be good for the environment; it could also be important to the health and functioning
of the democratic system itself.”
Without open and informed public debate the future of Greenland will remain in the hands of an
educated elite whose views on economic development may not in the long run benefit the society as
a whole. On the other hand, community-based decision making combined with a nationwide debate
on the overarching risks and benefits of subsurface resource extraction could lead to comprehensive
strategy that takes a holistic approach to the political, economic and social freedoms that comprise a
democracy. Greenland is without doubt a well functioning democracy, but as we have seen
democracy is often messy even in the oldest of democratic nations. The future is yet to be seen, but
one can readily assume that Greenland’s future will be the source of increasingly robust debate.
Acknowledgements
I want to thank my anonymous reviewers for their encouraging remarks. Your comments were
gratifying in a manner far beyond their intended purpose. Thank you.
References
Act on Greenland Self-Rule 2009. (GL).
Arctic Journal. (2013a, October 10). Vox populi. Retrieved on May 23, 2014 from
http://arcticjournal.com/politics/168/vox-populi.
Arctic Journal. (2013b, November 5). ICC Greenland shocked at proposed funding cuts.
Retrieved on May 23, 2014 from http://arcticjournal.com/politics/230/icc-greenland-shockedproposed-funding-cuts.
Bridge, G., Le Billon, P. (2013). Oil. Cambridge: Polity Press.
CIA. The World Fact Book: Greenland. Retrieved September 15, 2014, from
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/gl.html.
Dahl, J. (1986). Greenland: Political structure of self-government. Arctic Anthropology,
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Dingman