How Indigenous Peoples Adapted to the Arctic's Harsh Climate

[Judi Lynn]

A new exhibition at the British Museum spotlights an ingenious way of life threatened by global warming

By Isis Davis-Marks
SMITHSONIANMAG.COM
OCTOBER 23, 2020

Imagine an icy winter with temperatures below -30 degrees Fahrenheit. Animals migrate south en masse, the days grow dark as the sun hangs low on the horizon and snow lingers on the ground for months.

For the 400,000 Indigenous people living in the Arctic, this scenario reflects the reality of life in one of the world’s harshest climates. To survive in this environment, residents have had to get creative—a fact exemplified by the British Museum’s latest exhibition, “Arctic: Climate and Culture.”

Per the London museum’s website, the show—created in direct collaboration with Arctic communities—highlights Indigenous peoples’ ingenuity through artifacts including a centuries-old sealskin whaling suit, brightly beaded snow goggles and a wolverine fur–lined parka. In addition to presenting examples of Arctic cultures’ resilience, the exhibition places a stark focus on ice loss, erratic weather and other effects of climate change that threaten Indigenous communities’ way of life.

As Jonathan Jones writes for the Guardian, one of the around 280 items featured in “Arctic: Climate and Culture” is a 16th-century drawing of a warmly dressed Inuit woman holding her baby, who peeks out through a small opening in the hood. A nearby video shows how Arctic women use similar parka hoods to carry children today. The juxtaposition is striking, helping viewers understand why such objects have a prevailing usefulness

More:
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/british-museum-hosts-exhibition-indigenous-arctic-artifacts-180976125/