Contemporary development of qassaaneq in Iserdor, East Kalaallit Nunaat
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7146/kkf.v38i1.160025Keywords:
Coloniality, Management and organizations studies, Gendered roles, Kalaallit Nunaat, Sealskin tradingAbstract
This article examines the contemporary development of qassaaneq, which is the manual removal of fat from sealskin using an ulu (crescent-shaped knife) in Iserdor (Isortoq), East Kalaallit Nunaat, exploring the theme of fluidity and adaptability of Kalaallit (Greenlandic-Inuit) gendered roles in sealskin production. This study contributes to management and organization studies by centering Kalaallit perspectives on work and organizing. Mainstream knowledge production in the field is constructed by coloniality which marginalizes non-Western and Indigenous ways of knowing, doing, and understanding work and organization. Drawing on fieldwork, this study explores how the Iserdor community organizes qassaaneq for sealskin trade, examining the tensions and efforts to sustaining qassaaneq and their visions for future. The findings reveal how the community navigates tensions between colonial structures and their Indigenous worldview, offering insights into alternative ways shaped by their values and practices.
References
Alvesson, M., Hardy, C., & Hardy, B. (2008). Reflecting on Reflexivity: Reflexive Textual Practices in Organization and Management Theory. Journal of Management Studies, 45(3), 480–501. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6486.2007.00765.x
Banerjee, S. B. (2021). Decolonizing Management Theory: A Critical Perspective. Journal of Management Studies, 59(4), 1074–1087. https://doi.org/10.1111/joms.12756
Banerjee, S. B., Jermier, J. M., & Peredo, A. M. (2021). Theoretical perspectives on organizations and organizing in a post-growth era. Organization, 28(3), 337–357. https://doi.org/10.1177/1350508420973629
Bjørlig, I. M. (2021). Racisme i Grønland: En genovervejelse af dansk raceantropologis legitimering af racediskrimination, 1886 til 1950. Culture and History: Student Research Papers, 5(04), 25–48. https://doi. org/10.7146/chku.v5i04.127826
Cuoto, F. F., Honorato, B. E. F., & de Pádua Carrieri, A. P. (2021). Decolonizing the future of organizing studies. Ephemera, 21(4).
Departement for Finanser og Ligestilling. (2023). Finansloven for 2023. Naalakkersuisut. [Government report]. https://naalakkersuisut.gl/nyheder/2022/11/1411_finanslov?sc_lang=da
Departement for Finanser og Skat. (2023). Erhvervstilskudsanalyse. Naalakkersuisut. [Government report]. https://naalakkersuisut.gl//media/publikationer/finans/2023/10/erhvervstilskudsanalyse_2023_dk.pdf?la=da
Departement for Fiskeri, Fangst og Landbrug. (2012). Management and Utilization of Seals in Greenland. Naalakkersuisut. [Government report]. https://www.ft.dk/samling/20141/almdel/gru/bilag/31/1512564.pdf
Fontaine, L. (2014). Sælfangst i Grønland, set fra et fangersynspunkt. KNAPK og Inuit Sila. https://www.ft.dk/samling/20131/almdel/gru/bilag/46/1348243.pdf
Garde, E. (2013). Seals in Greenland: An important component of culture and economy. The Last Ice Area Project. WWF. https://www.ft.dk/samling/20131/almdel/gru/bilag/25/1313443.pdf
Gerlach, A. (2018). Thinking and Researching Relationally: Enacting Decolonizing Methodologies With an Indigenous Early Childhood Program in Canada. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 17, 1-8. https://doi.org/10.1177/1609406918776075
Gherardi, S. (2009). Feminist theory and organization theory: A dialogue on new bases. In C. Knudsen & H. Tsoukas (Eds.), The Oxford handbook of organization theory (pp. 210–236). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199275250.003.0008
Graugaard, N. D. (2020). “A Sense of Seal” in Greenland: Kalaallit Seal Pluralities and Anti-Sealing Contentions. Études/Inuit/Studies, 44(1/2), 373–398. https://www.jstor.org/stable/27078837
Grosfoguel, R. (2002). Colonial difference, geopolitics of knowledge, and global coloniality in the modern/ colonial capitalist world-system. Review - Fernand Braudel Center for the Study of Economies, Historical Systems, and Civilizations, 25(3), 203–224.
Hendriksen, K. (2013). Grønlands bygder: økonomi og udviklingsdynamik. Aalborg Universitet.
Holmes, A. G. D. (2020). Researcher Positionality – A Consideration of Its Influence and Place in Qualitative Research – A New Researcher Guide. Journal of Education, 8(4), 1–10. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5147-0761
Hovelsrud-Broda, G. K. (1999). The Integrative Role of Seals in an East Greenlandic Hunting Village. Arctic Anthropology, 36(1/2), 37–50. https://www.jstor.org/stable/40316504
Ibarra-Colado, E. (2006). Organization studies and epistemic coloniality in Latin America: Thinking otherness from the margins. Organization, 13(4), 463–488. https://doi.org/10.1177/1350508406065851
Karetak, J., Tester, F. J., & Tagalik, S. (Eds.). (2017). Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit: What Inuit have always known to be true. Fernwood Publishing.
Kommuneqarfik Sermersooq. (2021). Isortoq. Kommuneqarfik Sermersooq. https://sermersooq2028.gl/dk/vision-og-hovedstruktur/tasiilaq/isertoq/
Lennert, C. (2019). Puisip amiinik ammerineq – En undersøgelse af teknikker og metoder i behandling af sælskind. Ilisimatusarfik.
Lugones, M. (2008). The coloniality of gender. Worlds & Knowledges Otherwise, 2(Spring), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783839461020-002
Lugones, M. (2010). Toward a decolonial feminism. Hypatia, 25(4), 742–759. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1527-2001.2010.01137.x
Markussen, U. (2024). Bagsiden af nation-building: Om spændinger mellem lokal og national empowerment. Social Kritik Manning, J. (2021). Decolonial feminist theory: Embracing the gendered colonial difference in management and organization studies. Gender, Work & Organization, 28(4), 1203–1219. https://doi.org/10.1111/gwao.12673
Nkomo, S. M. (1992). The emperor has no clothes: Rewriting “race in organizations.” The Academy of Management Review, 17(3), 487–513. https://doi.org/10.2307/258720
Peter, A. et al. (2002). The seal: An integral part of our culture. Études/Inuit/Studies, 26(1), 167–174. https://doi.org/10.7202/009276ar
Pfeifer, P. (2019). Reclaiming the Inuit hunter: The role in northern community development and the hunting community. Food Sovereignty and Harvesting. [Report]. Qikiqtani Inuit Association. https://www.qia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Food-Sovereignty-and-Harvesting.pdf
Poppel, M. (2015). Are Women Taking over Power and Labour from Men? Gender Relations in Pre- and Post-colonial Greenland. NORA - Nordic Journal of Feminist and Gender Research, 23(4), 303–312. https://doi.org/10.1080/08038740.2015.1091546
Quijano, A., & Ennis, M. (2000). Coloniality of Power, Eurocentrism, and Latin America. Nepantla: Views from South 1(3), 533-580. https://muse.jhu.edu/article/23906.
Rasmussen, O. R. (2005). Analyse af fangererhvervet i Grønland. Roskilde University.
Sejersen, F. (2003). Grønlands naturforvaltning: Ressourcer og fangstrettigheder. Akademisk Forlag.
Smith, L. T. (1999). Decolonizing methodologies: Research and Indigenous peoples. University of Otago Press.
Sutton, C. J. C. (1964). Field work: Cambridge Greenland kayak expedition, 1962. Polar Record, 12(77), 175–195.
Thomsen, H. (1998). Ægte grønlændere og nye grønlændere: Om forskellige opfattelser af grønlandskhed.
Den Jyske Historiker, (81), 21–55. Williamson, K. (2011). Inherit my heaven: Kalaallit gender relations (pp. 87–104). Inussuk – Arctic Research Journal 1
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Regine Møller
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Publications in Women, Gender and Research are licensed under Creative Commons License: CC Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0
