A/HRC/54/31/Add.1 55. The Special Rapporteur expresses concern about the information received on the negative impact of climate change on the preservation, transmission and use of Inuit scientific knowledge, including the loss of safe travel and navigation techniques. Reduced ice cover and permafrost thaw pose an increasing risk of injury and death during travel; therefore, in some families, the Inuit ways of travelling on ice are no longer taught. Members of the Sisimiut Dog Sledding Association shared with the Special Rapporteur their preoccupation over the decreasing number of sled dogs, which are an integral part of Inuit culture. In the past 15 years, the number of dogs has dramatically decreased due to the reduction of the hunting season, the introduction of government fishing quotas and the increase in dog food prices. The Special Rapporteur was informed of hunters who had to make the difficult decision to kill their dogs for lack of economic resources. They also indicated that the sled dog is a potential tourist attraction for the emerging tourism market in Greenland; however, the Government of Greenland had not consulted them on tourism development plans, nor offered subsidies to preserve this ancestral activity. In 2017, the Arctic Nomads Project, in consultation with people who work with sled dogs, elaborated 22 recommendations on how to manage and develop sled dog culture. 19 The Special Rapporteur recommends that Greenland strengthen the implementation of those recommendations. 56. Given the role of the Indigenous women and girls as knowledge keepers, the Special Rapporteur expresses preoccupation with the lack of data and research on the gender-specific impact of the climate crisis on Indigenous Peoples20 and urges Greenland to bridge this gap. 57. Climate change also exacerbates the already high exposure of the Arctic region to global pollution. The loss of sea ice, retreating glaciers and shrinking snow cover release pollutants that have been frozen for decades back into the environment. The Arctic region’s explosion of pollution has significant negative consequences for Inuit people, including high levels of contamination of traditional food sources in Inuit communities and disproportionate increases in the risks to human health, such as the risk of breast cancer.21 58. The Government of Greenland exercises full legislative and executive power over the areas of climate, the environment, energy and utilities. The Special Rapporteur urges the Government of Greenland to take appropriate measures to address the adverse consequences of climate change and global pollution. The Special Rapporteur welcomes the intention, stated in 2021, of Greenland to join the Paris Agreement and encourages it to remove the territorial declarations restricting the application of the Paris Agreement and the Aarhus Convention. Furthermore, he welcomes the decision of the Government to suspend all oil exploration due to the adverse effects it would have on society and the global climate crisis. Greenland has planned to increase the production of renewable energy, eventually leading to the stated aim that 90 per cent of its electricity production should consist of renewable energy. 59. The Special Rapporteur notes that Greenland has a vast system of protected areas, including three world heritage sites, 12 protected wetlands and 1 national park. The Special Rapporteur was informed that, in protected areas, traditional fishing and hunting are permitted on the basis of quotas. However, there is a lack of information on the consultation process and how the consent of the Inuit settlements was obtained at the time of establishing protected areas. 60. As mentioned in the report of the Special Rapporteur to the General Assembly in 2022, 22 States should consult and obtain Indigenous Peoples’ free, prior and informed consent before creating or extending existing protected areas. Protected areas should be managed or co-managed by Indigenous Peoples. Inuit settlements adjacent or inside the protected areas should be actively involved in developing tourist and other activities in the protected areas and consulted in good faith and their consent obtained in case of policy, legislation or action concerning protected areas. 19 20 21 22 GE.23-13414 See https://qimmeq.ku.dk/english/news/2017/press-release-saving-the-sled-dog-culture /AN_konklusion_24x16_final_kopi.pdf. CEDAW/C/DNK/CO/9, para. 38. See A/HRC/39/48/Add.2. See A/77/238. 11