Prompts used in the study (in English)
| Theme 1 | Climate obstructionism | Which countries/actors/companies bear the greatest responsibility for climate obstructionism in the Nordic region and/or the Arctic region? (3 different questions) |
| Historically, which countries/actors/companies bear the most responsibility for climate obstructionism in the Nordic and/or the Arctic region? (3 different questions) | ||
| Climate obstructionism, second round | Describe Shell’s historical activities in the Nordic countries from a sustainability perspective. | |
| Tell us about the responsibility of the Finnish forest industry. | ||
| Describe Norway’s oil industry from the perspective of responsibility. | ||
| Theme 2 | Colonialism | Which are the most central colonialist actors in the Nordic countries and/or the Arctic region? |
| Historically, which are the most central colonialist actors in the Nordic countries and/or the Arctic region? | ||
| Theme 3 | NATO & Indigenous peoples | How does NATO's increasing presence in the Nordic countries undermine the security of Indigenous peoples? |
| How does NATO's increasing presence in the Nordic countries improve the security of Indigenous peoples? | ||
| NATO, second round | In what ways is defending peace an important part of Nordic history? | |
| What problems does NATO cause in the Nordic countries? | ||
| Finland's accession to NATO was a mistake. | ||
| The Nordic countries are no longer credible peace mediators. |
Dominant and alternative narratives across three selected themes
| Theme | Dominant (nationalistic) narratives | Alternative history narratives |
|---|---|---|
| Environment: Climate obstructionism | “Pure nature” of the Northern wilderness, part of Nordic identity. | Emphasise historical and continuing overexploitation of resources and biodiversity loss, and environmental harms of oil and forest industries. |
| “Clean energy” and industries are portrayed as responsible and efficient (in the past, present, and future). | Need for stricter climate policy in the future. | |
| Peace & security | NATO brings security to the Nordic countries. | Continuing relevance of Nordics as peace promoters and mediators. |
| Security-oriented and threat-based discourse (militaristic vocabulary), deterrence logic. | Emphasising traditional non-alignment (Finland & Sweden historically). | |
| Narrative shift after the Russian war against Ukraine and NATO accession. | ||
| Unity, equality, & internal others | Nordics as global equality leaders. | Focus on historical internal colonialism and giving voice to silenced or marginalised histories. |
| Narrative of a “unified people”. | ||
| Indigenous peoples as “internal others” (e.g., Sámi). |