Documentary:
VILLAGE AT THE END OF THE WORLD
Directors: David Katznelson, Sarah Gavron
Release date: April 19, 2013
Runtime: 1h 22m
The story
Niaqornat is a village located in Northwest Greenland. It has a population of only 59 people. It is one of the remotest, coldest, and farthest areas in the world. It is the VILLAGE AT THE END OF THE WORLD.
Niaqornat is viewed by some as paradise, where it is the best place to be. Others find it the worst place to be on earth. However, most people see it as home. Unfortunately, the village is at risk of relocation. If the population reaches below 50, Niaqornat will need to relocate to the nearest town.
The documentary follows the community over the course of a year as they try their best to save their village. “VILLAGE AT THE END OF THE WORLD” illustrates the issues most small communities face; this documentary focuses on one of the remotest regions on earth.
Introduction on microculture:
The people in this microculture are the Inuit residents of Niaqornat, located in Northwest Greenland. They are known for fishing, as their economy depends on it. The fish factory was closed but reopened as a co-operative in 2011. With the seasonal catch, they are affected by global warming and worry about its future. The people also hunt for themselves, from polar bears to reindeers, dogs are released to hunt with their owners; this usually takes place in spring.
The Inuit sense of group is created by being one of the most isolated communities with a limited number of people that do not exceed 60. They live in a small intimate village like a family, depending on one another to survive and thrive.
Initial personal observations:
I find this community to be one of the most interesting communities I have learned about. I could never imagine living in a region that is as disconnected as this one. I wonder what it is like to live in such an intimate manner with less than 60 people. 60 people, a community with more dogs than people; such a small number. My family, grandparents to cousins, are around 60 people. What would it be like to live in a secluded area with only them?
It is remarkable to me to see that with this small number and area, there is an economy. A full functioning economy that depends on fishing. It was fascinating to see how they fish whales and sharks.
Things I find familiar include an interactive community where everyone knows everyone. Although the small scale, they function similarly to a larger community. With a shop, school, work, and religious practices. The story is similar to many stories we heard of, where the elderly reminisces on the past and the young want to move on and far into the future. The community must learn to balance holding on and letting go in order to adapt with time and maintain their home.
Moment:
The village faces many months without sun. It is a harsh time of extreme winter and food scarcity. Naturally, in these times, the villagers seek shelters in their homes, away from the blistering cold and dark skies. Yet, hunters leave the village to find food or any necessities. Unfortunately, this means that the people become even more isolated as individuals.
There was an event documented in the movie, in this time of dark winter, the adults gathered in a small public meeting space to discuss the ownership of the fish factory. I find that this was an important moment because it illustrated how people were interacting with each other in a time when they are forced to be “introverted”. Although the Inuits are used to this life, the viewer can see the look of relief and longing on the people’s faces while entering the room. It is clear that they have been looking forward to seeing each other and are excited to welcome the sun soon.
This is important to me because I realized the layout of the village. Despite having a small number of only 59 people, living in a few houses, they are still separated from each other. This separation causes a disadvantage in the winter when people are cold, hungry, introverted, and isolated. Therefore, there is a need to have a bright and warm space for gathering and socializing comfortably. A place for the children to play and adults to gather for fun.
Enacting Rights in Public Space:
Considering that this Niaqornat only has a population of 59 people there are no parks and recreational areas. The few houses are located near each other sharing the same space, food, and life, they have both physical and visual access to almost everything. Of course, homes are private, but they share a public school and a public meeting area. The outdoors access is limited by the harsh weather, dangers of ice, and lack of sunlight. People rarely go out during the winter; they only leave to retrieve their necessities. This also affects freedom of action in physical layout. Psychologically, the village is a small area with limited opportunities and future, many people find that the best solution is to leave the village and go to the nearest city.
The people of the village share the ownership and claim of their home, still, they have a chief to help manage the village. In the documentary, the village struggled to take hold of the fish factory and benefit from it because it is owned by Royal Greenland. Finally, they manage to own it themselves with multiple shareholders and eventually expand to own five more fish factories across Greenland.
Due to isolation, the village developed later than the world. This means that the way of life did not change much. They only received electricity in 1988. This is one of the biggest attractions for tourists, they come to see how this village managed to hold on to their heritage and culture. In that time when the villagers are expecting the tourists to visit, they prepare. They gather to clean up the village, prepare and produce goods to sell, And dress in traditional clothing.
Relationship Matrices:
Document a tip of the iceberg:
The tip of the iceberg is the meeting room, a sited interaction where activities and organized services were held. It is a space with enough capacity to welcome people from the cold to have important meetings. It seems that the meeting space is a classroom reused for multiple purposes.
When there is something that needs to be discussed with the villagers, the chief invites people to the meeting room to discuss current information and further actions. This is an important space where we observe the chief acting as a leader, informing and consulting the villagers of topics regarding their livelihood. Important topics are discussed, such as the fish factory ownership issue, future of the village, population number decrease, and more.
In the documentary, we watch as the villagers become aware of the factory situation, they acknowledge that it is a key to enhancing their economy. This is where they agree to own the factory themselves; we continue to observe their struggle to achieve that goal.
Informing design through ethnographies:
After learning about Niaqornat, it is clear that there is one objective the people are fighting for. The Inuit people want to keep their home and work to see it flourish. However, it seems that there are too many scenarios where they would be forced to relocate to the nearest town.
This diagram is a speculative future scenario based on a set of formal or informal rules or policy changes. It shows the intricate relationship between different factors in the area and the situations that would perhaps lead to relocation or staying put.