Exploitation of indigenous lands due to the extraction of natural resources is a global problem, historically and today. This paper will focus on a Swedish context, specifically the mining industry in Kiruna and how the state-owned mining company LKAB with a new discovery of rare earth elements (REE) threatens to exploit the lands of the Sami village of Gabna. Through a critical discourse analysis, the aim is to study to what extent and how Sami rights and interest are presented in the national media, how language in the national discourses can legitimize certain types of actions, and how this in turn can reproduce or challenge unequal power relations between the Sami and the Swedish state. In 13 investigated articles from Aftonbladet, the most dominant discourse is the presentation of the planned extraction as a contribution to the green transition and a solution to the climate crisis, which serves as legitimization of LKAB's actions. This, in combination with the peripheral position of the Sami, reproduce unequal power relations and shows practices of green colonialism as exploitation is legitimized through arguments about a green transition. In conclusion, this is a conflict of interest between the Swedish state and the Sami people, and whether it will follow the course of other colonial patterns remains to be seen.

The Sami in Sweden have lived on and managed their lands since time immemorial. The strong connection to the environment and nature has given them centuries of knowledge that is still applicable to this day. With the help of their ancestral knowledge the Sami have preserved their Indigenous land. With constant work towards sustainability and extractive projects of natural resources for renewable energy that takes place in Sápmi, the question is raised of who is included in the transition towards sustainable development and who the transition is for. The purpose of this study is to investigate and get a deeper understanding of Sami perspectives on sustainability and the connection to their rights. Applied methodology for this qualitative study is semi-structured interviews with nine Sami, followed by a thematic analysis of the collected empirical data. This was done to understand and analyse perceptions of sustainable development and how it relates to Sami inclusion and Sami rights, using frameworks of colonial governmentality and green colonialism. The findings suggest that a differentiation can be made concerning how the Sami perceive actions for sustainable development and the concept of sustainable development. Further, the Sami view their inclusion in policy-making and implementation in regards to questions of sustainable development in Sweden as being somewhat low or not applied at all. In relation to environmental sustainability this study shows that the implementation of Sami rights varies depending on the context, but that it is generally experienced as insufficient, and that rights are often applied to the economic units of the samebys, and not all Sami, creating a division within the Sami community. The results also show a perception of lack of political will and a neglectance to include and implement Sami rights, as state interests are prioritised. The societal and institutional conditions for the Sami to claim their rights and require inclusion within sustainable development prove that the theories of colonial governmentality and green colonialism are applicable to the current situation in Sápmi.