This is the second and final report in the research project “Sustainable value chains in Nordic coastal communities (NorValue)”. The project was carried out in the period 2020-2023 as a collaborative organization between six Nordic universities and research institutions: University of Greenland, University of Akureyri, Icelandic Regional Development Institute, University of Faroe Islands, Nordland Research Institute, and Roskilde University. From these six institutions, both reports were written by the same team of researchers. It has been an important and instructive interdisciplinary and cross-institutional learning process, which we hope provides solid Nordic added value.
Observation, dialogue and local presence are important prerequisites for the kind of studies we like to undertake. This kind of work was made considerably more difficult due to the COVID-19 pandemic and made cancellations and changes in the work process necessary. Though, apart from a certain delay, the project has overall been successful and a rewarding journey, something which great many people have contributed to make possible. We therefore want to thank informants, interviewees, stakeholders and other locals whose help and information we could not have been without. Thanks to those assistants and specialists who helped to organize e.g. seminars and events in the field. A special thanks goes to Richard Apostle (Halifax) who carried out critical reading and proposed solutions to the chapters in the first report. The same applies to Nils Aarsæther (Tromsø), who did the same in the present report.
The origin of the NorValue project comes from the Greenlandic government's desire for up-to-date knowledge about the challenges and opportunities of Nordic coastal communities in an increasingly changing world. We hope that the comparative approach we have developed in this project will inspire further studies of importance for the future of Nordic coastal communities. Finally, we would like to thank the 2020 Presidency of the Nordic Council of Ministers, and the Greenlandic Government in particular, for the financial support to make this project and the two reports possible.
On behalf of the NorValue project team,
Gestur Hovgaard, project manager