By James David Broome, David Cook, Brynhildur Davíðsdóttir, and Benjamin David Hennig
This Plain Language Summary is published in advance of the paper discussed. Please check back soon for a link to the full paper.
The aurora borealis (northern lights) is a beautiful natural phenomenon that creates value and benefits for people and society. We want to understand more about those benefits.
To learn about the benefits the aurora contributes to the well-being of people in Greenland, we undertook a novel application of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) framework. The IPBES framework seeks to better inform natural resource policy, management and decision-making, through the inclusion of diverse values of nature, from a variety of worldviews and knowledge systems. Despite the fact that abiotic elements of nature can have significant implications for well-being, applications of the IPBES framework in abiotic contexts are currently limited. The main aims of the study are to: (1) identify nature’s contribution to people (NCP) in Greenland from the aurora, and (2) explore how local stakeholders can enhance management of NCP from the aurora.
Based on 28 semi-structured interviews we conducted primarily in Ilulissat, Kulusuk and Tasiilaq, we found the aurora provides benefits to people across five key categories: (1) energy; (2) learning and inspiration; (3) physical and psychological experiences; (4) supporting identities; and (5) maintenance of options.
It is possible to enhance some of these benefits through policy- and decision-making, and interviewees identified a range of practical considerations for actors and institutions to consider, in the localities of Ilulissat in western Greenland and the Ammassalik region (Tasiilaq & Kulusuk) in eastern Greenland. These study sites are different from one another and can require different approaches for enhancing benefits related to the aurora. Ilulissat has a wider range of potential for co-producing value from the aurora, where there are more human-related resources, tools, and capabilities available. Tasiilaq and Kulusuk demonstrate more purely relational values (connections, interactions, and bonds), where tourism-related benefits are currently less developed.
The information about aurora benefits and the role of co-production we elicited in this study can help support and inform decision-making related to cultural heritage facilities, educational initiatives and tourism infrastructure with links to the aurora. The study also reflects on the usefulness of the IPBES framework in an abiotic context, which many people currently recognize as a significant conceptual gap.
Relational Thinking 