The Arctic Arts Summit brings together representatives of the Arctic countries and the Indigenous Nations of the Circumpolar region. The Summit’s main objectives are to strengthen arts and culture in the North and to develop circumpolar cooperation that will stimulate ongoing, sustainable collaboration in arts and creative industries throughout the region. The Summit does this by creating North-to-North opportunities, exploring key questions, and advancing timely discussions.
In partnership with the Government of Yukon, the Canada Council for the Arts will co-host the Arctic Arts Summit from June 27–29, 2022, in Whitehorse, with a digital program in the lead-up to the event.
Through the 2022 Summit, participants from across the circumpolar region will engage on subjects of shared interest, including:
- support for northern artists, organizations, and communities;
- international collaborations in the arts and cultures of the circumpolar Arctic regions; as well as
- self-determination and sovereignty of Indigenous peoples.
Digital programming is being offered in advance of the June 2022 in-person gathering. This programming will allow a wider audience to interact with the Summit’s themes at arcticartssummit.ca.

The Summit in Whitehorse, Yukon
Official delegations from each of the Arctic countries and Indigenous nations of the circumpolar region including artists and cultural leaders will gather in-person in Whitehouse, Yukon. Together they will meet for three days of keynotes, knowledge sharing, capacity building sessions, networking opportunities, and artist showcases.
The in-person participants will be chosen with a view to empowering artists and cultural voices in the North and to championing strong Indigenous engagement and leadership. For Canada, the majority of participants will come from the Yukon, the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, northern Quebec, Northern Labrador, and from self-governing and self-determining Indigenous nations and communities in the North. Participants include individuals who identity as northerners or with the North regardless of where they live.
A digital program for the Summit
The digital program will broaden engagement around key themes established leading up to the Summit, putting a spotlight on Arctic arts and culture in Canada and around the world. The program will include live-streamed events, gallery-quality imagery, artist profiles, national podiums for each of the circumpolar countries, and more.
The program is now open to all. Visit: arcticartssummit.ca to learn more.
The Partners are:
Official Broadcast Partner
Other Collaborators include:
A complete list of collaborators of the 2022 Arctic Arts Summit can be found at https://arcticartssummit.ca/about/
Media
Read more about the 2022 Arctic Arts Summit in our press release.
Follow the Summit's activities onTwitter, Facebook and Instagram.
#ArcticArtsSummit2022
A brief history of the Arctic Arts Summit
Initiated by the Arctic Arts Festival, the first Arctic Arts Summit was hosted in 2017 by the Norwegian Ministry of Culture with Arts Council Norway. The second Arctic Arts, hosted by the Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture, the Arts Promotion Centre Finland (Taike), and the University of Lapland, was held in 2019.
The third Arctic Arts Summit originally slated for 2021, was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It will be held in Whitehorse, Yukon from June 27-29, 2022.
The Yukon has strong connections to the Arctic Arts Summit. They worked with the Department of Canadian Heritage, Global Affairs Canada, and the Canada Council for the Arts for the event to take place in Canada.