It’s not easy to live in Greenland, where isolation and an inhospitable environment can be stressful. Locals, however, have discovered a solution: tuning into nature.
Nothing compares to sleeping on a 3km-thick slab of ice supported by snow that fell more than a million years ago. Camp Ice Cap near Kangerlussuaq provides an extraordinary opportunity to camp for a night on the Greenland Ice Sheet, which covers approximately 80% of the country, an experience normally reserved for research or expedition purposes.
But this isn’t Greenland’s only extraordinary camping experience. The world’s largest island, with its mostly inhospitable ice sheet, frequently stormy seas, and the world’s largest land predator, the polar bear, has recently entered the glamping game.
Kiattua Camp is located two hours by boat from Greenland’s capital, Nuuk. You could be relaxing in a hot tub with a steamy view of the world’s second-longest fjord system before enjoying a meal prepared in an outdoor kitchen and retiring to your luxurious teepee. Meanwhile, in South Greenland, you could be fishing, foraging, kayaking, or hiking beside a dramatic fjord overlooked by towering mountains at Tasermiut Camp, where the emphasis is squarely on exposing you to Greenlandic nature’s awe-inspiring sights as medicine for the soul.
These experiences, far from being a tourist fad, are part of a broader realisation in Greenland about the value of its unique nature – a combination of dramatic mountain scenery, deep ice-filled fjords, untouched wildernesses, and sprawling glaciers – for health, particularly mental health. And, while plenty of research shows that nature is good for your wellbeing and mental health, something is happening in Greenland that adds a different perspective.
Dr Naja Carina Steenholdt, a researcher at Syddansk University in Copenhagen investigated the relationship between Greenlanders and wellbeing for her PhD, focusing particularly on what she calls the “Greenland Paradox”. Greenland has the highest suicide rate per capita of any country in the world, and it is plagued by well-documented social problems. Many of these are related to its post-colonial legacy. Despite the fact that this remote island has a population of only 56,000 people, the majority of those surveyed by Steenholdt expressed high or very high levels of satisfaction with their lives.
She was curious as to how people could be so happy in these circumstances. And it piqued her interest in the first place in what constitutes a good life in Greenland.
While social connections in the country’s tiny towns and fjord-side villages are highly valued, Steenholdt’s research discovered that nature was the most important factor for quality of life in Greenland.
People would answer: ‘Without nature, I would have no family. I wouldn’t be able to live my life. I get food and energy from nature.’
“There is a deep understanding that nature comes first,” she explained. “People would respond, ‘Without nature, I would have no family. I wouldn’t be able to go on living my life. Nature provides me with food and energy.’ This was a common response.”
Steenholdt went on to say: “It struck me how many people valued nature more than family. It is seen as more than just a source of food; it is so fundamental that it takes precedence over family and work. It is a necessary condition for a happy life.”
This understanding and respect for nature pervades all aspects of life in Greenland. People have historically had to fight for their own survival. surviving harsh winters in landscapes where little grows and predatory polar bears prey on the few livestock that survive. Nowadays, hunting, fishing, and boating are popular pastimes, and nearly everyone has a chest freezer full of locally hunted meat. The local food supply chain is frequently only one or two links long; wild nature is never more than a step away.
According to public health researcher Ingelise Olesen of the Greenland Center for Health Research in Nuuk, the Greenlandic relationship to nature is complex, making it central to culture, community, and lifestyle.
“It’s not as simple as saying that nature heals everything, and certainly not [among] the bigger challenges we have here,” she said, referring to the country’s suicide and mental health issues. “A beautiful view does not solve anything. It’s about the significance of your relationship with nature. It’s how nature interacts with culture, instilling a sense of national pride and independence in you. The value is in how it interacts with culture, community, and history, as well as how it aids in feeding, hunting, and survival.”
Having a great view doesn’t solve anything. It’s more about the meaning of your relationship with nature. It’s how nature interacts culturally, giving you a sense of national pride and independence
Her most recent pilot project brought a mixed group of elders and younger people to a remote camp to connect through culture, nature, and traditions. It allowed young and old to exchange knowledge, catch and prepare fish, build fires, and cook dinner on hot rocks. She described it as a huge success, with the groups sharing knowledge about ancestral traditions and technology and creating a sense of belonging that had previously been lacking.
As a visitor, it is simple to experience the healing side of Greenlandic nature. To begin with, flying into the country takes your breath away, revealing mile after mile of jagged mountains stretching into the distance. So much dramatic, largely unexplored, and uninhabited space provides an instant perspective shift. putting you in a position where your problems will undoubtedly be dwarfed by something else. The vastness of Greenland’s nature immediately forces you into a different relationship with it – it’s not optional, you can’t hide from it, and you have to engage with it.
Another significant shift in perspective is that as a tourist, you must accept that you are not in control. Flights are cancelled, boats cannot sail due to high winds, and guides may be unavailable even in good weather because it is prime hunting season. Nature dictates behaviour here, as opposed to life in a modern city, where nature is tamed to meet the needs of society. It’s a refreshing experience, and it raises an interesting thought: how would you behave differently if you let nature dictate your actions back home? And would you be happier as a result of it?
More concretely, extraordinary outdoor experiences abound across the country, inspiring awe and wonder in nature – and in life. To name a few activities, you could work up a sweat hiking to the edge of the Greenland Ice Sheet along a grey-blue glacial river, sinking into an ancient hot spring with views of passing icebergs, or watching polar bears swim in the Greenland Sea from a safe distance.