The 2023 Compass Rose Culture Prize goes to Suoma Sámi Nuorat – Finnish Sámi Youth for its work in supporting young Sámi people’s cultural identity and the Sámi languages

Finnish Sámi Youth is a non-profit cultural advocacy organisation founded in 1991. It is active all over Finland, supporting young Sámi in their cultural identity and language. The organisation also campaigns to defend the Sámi people’s linguistic and cultural rights that are enshrined in the Finnish Constitution.

Sámi rights have been in the spotlight in recent years, not least because of the controversial reform of the Sámi Parliament Act. Finnish Sámi Youth campaigned for a reform of the Act to respect the Indigenous Sámi people’s cultural autonomy. At a time when many young Sámi people risk losing their language and cultural identity, the organisation has been a crucial source of support for them.

Helping young Sámi to enjoy and take pride in their own language and identity

“By awarding the Compass Rose to Suoma Sámi Nuorat – Finnish Sámi Youth, the Otto A. Malm Foundation recognises and expresses its support for the organisation’s work in the form of projects, partnerships and visibility to promote the Sámi languages and to help young Sámi to enjoy and take pride in their own language and identity,” said Professor Mirjam Kalland, Chair of the Otto A. Malm Foundation, which administers and awards the Compass Rose Culture Prize.

The Compass Rose Culture Prize is awarded to individuals, organisations and networks that have significantly contributed to public awareness, higher education, science or the common good. The prize has a value of €30,000.

The Compass Rose is awarded every two years on 17 April, the name day for Otto. This is the sixth time the award has been given. The 2021 recipient was Dr Anna Hielm-Björkman for her innovative research with Covid-19 detection dogs.