Quiet sustainability & activism: An ethnographic workshop
Workshop at Artica, October 2023
On 28 October 2023, Artica Svalbard invited a small group of Longyearbyen residents involved in initiatives related to sustainability to take part in an ethnographic workshop on quiet sustainability and activism, facilitated by a social anthropologist, Zdenka Sokolickova.
We discussed the concept and how it speaks to what is happening in Longyearbyen, to then compile together a long list of environmentally positive and/or socially inclusive practices that bear traces of quiet sustainability.
Sustainability has become a buzzword. Much is being said, planned and done in the name of a transition toward sustainability, yet often these large, top-down expensive initiatives are deeply embedded in the market logic where only monetary transactions count. The concept of quiet sustainability draws our attention to something else; something maybe at first sight less spectacular, small-scale and local, however meaningful and impactful.
In Longyearbyen, there are already many environmentally and socially beneficial initiatives up and running, but they often remain unnoticed in the “loud” story about the town’s green transition. These everyday practices have low environmental impact, but they are not being pursued for that reason. People do sustainable things because they want to support their family and friendship networks, because they cherish the values of mutuality and task sharing, trust, sharing and gifting, altruism and generosity, to save money, to feel joy, to have a mastering experience and for many other reasons other than making profit.
See below for a list of projects and initiatives our group made during the workshop. This list will be added to the Artica website, updated and kept accessible to all here.
We welcome news from our community of other initiatives, you can get in touch with via email info@articasvalbard.no
Physical spaces of quiet sustainability
Svalbard Resykkelerings Workshop (bike repair)
Bruktikken (free secondhand clothing, homeware and a secondhand market)
student equipment storage at UNIS
storage of outdoor equipment for pupils of Longyearbyen skole
Longyearbyen public library (not only books but also tools to borrow, free workshops, Makerspace)
Spitsbergen Kunstnersenter (free workshops, meeting place)
Artica Svalbard (free workshops, meeting place)
Miljøstasjon (recycle and waste centre)
Small local businesses
Systua i Nord (repairs clothing, equipment and made to order)
Alt i 3 (Longyearbyen based woodwork and craft)
local soap, arts and craft makers (sold in many locations in the city)
Silvia Galli’s production of candles (made with collected recycled wax)
Svalbard Bryggeri (Longyearbyen based brewery)
LPO Arkitekter
Online spaces of quiet sustainability
Food sharing Longyearbyen Facebook group
Kjøp og salg Facebook group (shop and sell, sometimes also Ros & Info and Lost & Found)
Groups (providing free knowledge, socialising and experience)
Aktiv i friluft / Active Outdoors (for residents of Longyearbyen only)
Strikkecafé / Knitting club
Fotoklubben / Photography club (with equipment hire)
Norsk Folkehjelp Svalbard / Norwegian language class and cafe
Svalbard Guide Association
Other
local business (e.g. Svalbard Bygg) giving away (or selling for low price) materials for further use
COOP Svalbard reducing use of plastic
Past initiatives (no longer existing)
Polar Permaculture
scooter repairing workshop
glass recycling
food soon to expire for free/low price at Rabalder (cafe)
Needed / planned
Furniture sharing facility
Føniks (the old waste centre in Longyearbyen)
Car pool
Bike pool
Sustainability week 3-9 June 2024
While the technology-dependent, exclusive and modernist green transition is often presented as a costly change to be accomplished in a rather distant future, quiet sustainability focuses on the present, paying attention to local contexts. What can we learn from the stories of quiet sustainability as they are lived in Longyearbyen?