Research Questions:
- How do minority and majority populations in the South Saami area (Åarjel-Saepmie) in Norway perceive the need for reconciliation, and what differences exist between them?
- What kinds of knowledge are considered important for reconciliation in the South Saami area in Norway?
- In what ways does knowledge of the past influence reconciliation in the South Saami area in Norway?
Project summary:
RECON is a project that examines the significance of knowledge in reconciliation processes. On 1 June 2023, the Norwegian Truth and Reconciliation Commission presented its report on Norwegianization policies toward the Saami, Kven, and Forest Finn populations. The report documented that the legacy of the assimilation policies continues to negatively impact the national minorities. One of the report’s recommendations was to strengthen knowledge in the education system and in public debate, based on the assumption that a shared understanding of the past will promote reconciliation. We investigate what reconciliation means in the South Sámi area. What role does the Truth and Reconciliation Commission play? What could be the impact of knowledge dissemination in schools and beyond?
Truth commissions are used in contexts of systematic abuse around the world—from apartheid in South Africa to colonialism and assimilation in Canada. They rest on the assumption that documenting and sharing the truth about past abuses will lead to increased acceptance and tolerance—an assumption that has rarely been examined. We will analyse these assumptions to better understand how knowledge can contribute to reconciliation.
RECON focuses on the South Saami area in Norway, where reconciliation is complicated by ongoing conflicts. Our research design combines in‑depth interviews and focus group discussions with minority and majority teenagers and adults in the South Saami area, a qualitative study in which upper secondary school students visit an exhibition on South Saami history, and a survey among upper secondary school students to examine the effects of an online teaching module that the project will develop.
RECON has a reference group with representatives from the South Saami community and international researchers. The group will help ensure that the project addresses questions that are important both for the South Saami and the research community.
The results from RECON will be shared through academic presentations and publications, as well as in regular meetings open to the South Saami community and through other forms of popular science communication.
RECON (2026–2028) is a 3-year project funded by the Research Council of Norway.
