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Paper short abstract

The path to a greener future places significant pressures on land, water, and the whole ecosystem, especially for Indigenous peoples. Finland and Canada are trying to redefine relationships between governments, industry, Indigenous communities, and the ecosystem to foster the green transition.

Paper long abstract

The accelerating impacts of climate change, biodiversity loss, and non-renewable resource depletion have created an urgent need for a fundamental transformation of global energy production and its governance systems to support a green transition. In Western countries, the green transition has emerged as a global response to the escalating climate crisis, representing an urgent shift away from fossil-fuel dependence toward cleaner energy systems and more sustainable economies.

Nevertheless, the pathways toward renewable energy, critical minerals, and “green” infrastructure place significant pressures on land, water, and the whole ecosystem, especially for Indigenous peoples. Internally, the green transition may pose a burden to socio-economically disadvantaged groups and Indigenous peoples, whose lifestyles can be compromised. Globally, the green transition risks widening the gap between the so-called Global North and the Global South, with the latter being obliged to adapt to new industrial and economic policies without having the time and resources (financially and materially) to adjust to them.

As countries seek to align with international climate agreements and respond to intensifying environmental risks, new regulatory frameworks have become central tools for guiding and governing this transition. Finland and Canada are among the countries that have adopted specific frameworks to foster the green transition; thus, reshaping how states manage land use, energy planning and production, environmental permitting, and industrial development. In doing so, both countries are trying to redefine relationships between governments, industry, Indigenous and local communities, and the ecosystem.