Representing Sápmi: Analysing the development of the Saami Council as an Indigenous paradiplomatic organisation

Abstract The Saami Council, founded in 1956, is one of the oldest Indigenous-led international organisations in the world. Despite this, its role and place on the world stage have been seldom examined, as has the place of internationally facing Indigenous Peoples’ Organisations more broadly. Using the organisation’s historical documents, among other sources, this article constructs a historic case study of the Saami Council from its founding in 1956 until the year 2000 to examine how it has evolved during this period and to better understand its standing within the greater international community. As the study discusses, since its inception, the organisation has evolved into an example of an Indigenous-led diplomatic organisation – one that came about through the changing political climate of the 1970s and solidified in the late 1990s. This evolution has implications for how we understand Indigenous-led advocacy and the role of non-state actors in international relations.