Spiritual Activism. Saving Mother Earth in Sápmi

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

This is a great contribution to the discussion of Indigenous spiritualism and activism, as it merges with/into religion and identity affirmation. The author is working with rich ethnographic insights and generates a narrative around events and moments that are richly conveyed. What is particularly noteworthy with this manuscript is that the manner in which the performativity of Indigenous land and spiritual activism is expressed for the reader. This is done without any judgement or presumption of authenticity or value imposition. The manuscript also offers up, in its concluding and final remarks, an interesting reflection on the tensions and challenges currently emerging and present in the space of Sami identity politics. This is a reality occurring across the globe, and speaks to the complexity of Indigeneity as an emerging identity. Indigeneity is rarely rendered in complex and multi-dimensional ways, and this article manages to do so. This is an important contribution. So too, I find particularly interesting here the notion of alliances across Indigenous identities and non-Indigenous identities also. All in all the manuscript offers up a gripping account of the complex, ambiguous, contradictory and rich ways in which all identities are formed through relational negotiations with the past, present and future...but also power, and self-interest.

Author Response

This reviewer did not have any particular requests for changes. I would like to thank him or her for the feedback. 

Reviewer 2 Report

The paper is a current and highly relevant, important and topic of interest in association with a number of research fields, but predominantly Sámi research and studies.

The structure and presentation of the research is appropriate and well defined.

This is a list of minor issues that need to be addressed and/or clarified.

Abstract, lines 11 and 12. As I read this, it seems convoluted and does not make sense and therefore, requires rewording and clarifying.

Line 67. Should enable, be enables?

Line 159. Should year, be years?

Line 205. You mention Myrhaug's lecture, but where has he been introduced earlier in the text?

Bottom of page 6, in footnote. Number 14. sais should be says.

Bottom of page 6, in footnote. Number 15. Should little be changed to lesser, in order to make it sound more comprehensive?

Line 290. Cobber should be copper?

Line 307. Please clarify what scalar is? I find a link with mathematics?

Line 418.  What is similie?

Line 429. Unity of a diverse? Please clarify.

Line 471. The continued trauma from missionary? Should this be missionizing?

Line 480. Is there a need to add a page number is relation to Graham and Penny if you are quoting their work?

Line 480. You use the term milieus, should it be milieus if your referring to an environment? Please check this and clarify.

Lines 498-500. Again, please pay attention to the referencing system you are using. It would be more comprehensive to put the authors names and then before quoting them, to add the year and page number in brackets so it makes it more consistent. 

These are the points in the paper that need attention, and please go through the paper again and check the referencing style is consistent.

Another point to be addressed concerns the methods you are using. You need to elaborate on how and why the methods you are using are beneficial so the reader understands how they have been applied in your research. In addition, although, you say you are using explorative and inductive methods, the way you are presenting the research is both descriptive and narrative. Therefore, it would be worthwhile perhaps saying something about this as well, because with a research topic as such, a sound mixed methods approach is needed. 

Also, you need to clearly state what your aims are and why? A sub-chapter about this should be before the paragraphs on the methodological approach. This should be done clearly and concisely, so the reader understands your task and motivation for the research.

Finally, unless you yourself are a Sámi person, it would be important to include something about the ethical guidelines you have used or have followed as a way of demonstrating how you have approached the culture of the indigenous Sámi and handled the materials collected. This is now a standard requirement, at least in Finland, for outsiders as well as Sámi persons to follow in order to define clearly, ones position in the research and also what benefits your approach has for collecting the data, for the Sámi and your outcomes/results.

Best wishes.

Author Response

I have followed all the suggestions for language corrections:  

(Abstract) lines 11-13: has been reworded and revised, along with a few words in line 4 (for clarification).

Line 70: “enable” changed to enables.

Line 161: ”year” changed to years

Line 205:  Myrhaug´s lecture changed to Myrvoll´s lecture

Footnote 15:  sais changed to says

Footnote 16: little changed to not

Line 293: Cobber changed to copper

Line 310: A footnote reference has been added to “scalar”.

Line 419: simile changed to comparison

Lines 431-432: “unity of a diverse” has been clarified

Line 472: missionary changed to missionizing

Line 483: Page numbers have been added to list of literature

Line 480: I have kept ”milieus”, but have checked.

I have also (as requested):

-Checked referencing system for consistency.

-added a sentence and a footnote on methods and ethical guidelines (footnote five).

Round 2

Reviewer 2 Report

I would like to congratulate the author on finishing a very important and indeed, timely piece of research.

My only concerns, which are minor are in connection with pages 12 and 13 and relate to the terminology about the difference between the 'north' and the 'south', i.e. Oslo and it being related to city Sámi.

On for example, lines 475-478, it is stared: about diaspora Sámi and Oslo being far away from the Sámi homelands. What I feel needs to be taken into consideration here, which is not, is that Oslo, like many other places in southern Scandinavian countries are former Sámi locations. How do we know that? Oslo, as an example, has a multitude of prehistoric rock art, which is reminiscent of the same art found in Sámi areas, such as at Alta, Finnmark, and places in Sweden, which have Sámi place-names. The same is found in Finland. This is something that needs to be given consideration in relation to discussions about the kind of terms used where the Sámi are made to feel new or non-native to Oslo.