Integrating Indigenous people's perspectives in the interpretation of the heritage place

The place where to learn about Røros and the Circumference is the Museum. The Røros museum consists of five main sections, one dedicated to the buildings of Røros, one dedicated to the Sámi culture, one dedicated to nature conservation management, one to mining and quarrying and one to the World Heritage. A permanent position as Sámi researcher was established in 2001. The establishment of the Museum as the World Heritage centre of Røros and the Circumference in 2017, allowed the enlargement of the World Heritage narrative to the Sámi relationship to the place already existing in the museum. In this space, it is clarified that the Sámi were in the area before the copper-works started. The sami community has existed through history on its own terms but also in interaction with the society around the copper-works. Interaction could be based on trading with reindeers, with handicraft, withreindeer-skins, or as hosts for reindeers that were owned by people who owned the copper-work, tradesmen and farmers. The landscape of the Circumference has been to some extend also shaped in relation to the reindeers, and Sámi managed this relationship in a sustainable way.

  • Collection on Sámi culture (i.e. objects, visual archive) already existing in the Museum
  • In 2012, it was decided by the Norwegian Parliament that all World Heritage properties shall have a World Heritage centre. 
  • In 2017, the Røros Museum started working as the World Heritage centre of Røros and the Circumference. 

It was a long process to find the financing for the World Heritage centre of Røros. There are only two persons engaged specifically for the World Heritage centre function at the Museum, even though the whole museum works in some way, as a World Heritage centre. In order to finance these two persons and their activities, the State provides 60%, the counties 20% and the municipalities 20%. Regional financing for that last 40% needed to be arranged and consented by all local parties.