Rethinking Westphalian sovereignty

The January 2013 Munk-Gordon Arctic Security Program conference, Arctic Peoples and Security, focused on northerners' conceptions of security. What was clear from those who participated is that security, for most Inuit, is understood much more broadly than the traditional norm in international relations theory. While the military understanding of security continues to be of relevance in the inter-state context, for many Arctic residents it is the human aspect of security that occupies the space of this discussion. Security for many Inuit begins with self-determination. If indigenous groups, much the same as any other polity, do not have the political power to control their own destinies or, at the very least, have the power to be active agents in constructing the kind of political environment in which they wish to live, then the most fundamental aspect of security is non-existent; security, in essence, equates to the ability to freely choose one's own political space. The Inuit Circumpolar Council (ICC) has set out to redefine the normative state centred notion of sovereignty so Inuit can become formal participants in the international political system, thereby creating secure political communities at home.