This proposal for doctoral dissertation research examines the technology and social organization of Greenlandic whaling, the interpenetration of cash and subsistence sectors in local economies, and the impact of dynamic whaling regulatory regimes on Greenlandic hunters. The International Whaling Commission's reduction of minke whale harvests has had a considerable impact on Greenlandic communities. The Greenlandic situation is typical of the conflicts between Inuit communities, and other subsistence- based societies in the Arctic, and the interests of environmental protection organizations and development concerns. Although critics have challenged the validity of traditional Inuit whaling and emphasized the emergence of internal markets, the Greenlanders argue for the cultural and socioeconomic significance of whaling and its sustainability. The present research seeks to understand the articulation and contradiction between Inuit and Euroamerican perspectives about the use of natural resources and sustainable development in the circumpolar north. The project draws upon theoretical and methodological approaches derived from political economics and natural resources anthropology.
