Creates respect for language and culture

When tourists, especially from France, sail on an expedition in East Greenland with the shipping company Ponant, they often meet Jaakusaaq Sørensen from Tasiilaq.

Since 2022, he has imparted knowledge about Greenland to guests as both a cultural mediator, nature guide and polar bear guard.

The local knowledge is popular with guests, and Jaakusaaq Sørensen has been a guide in both Greenland, Iceland and Canada.

Three years ago, he stopped his studies at Aarhus University and returned home to Tasiilaq without any fixed plans.

At the same time, “Ponant” asked the local tourist organization Visit East Greenland for help in finding a local person who could work as a guide on their ships. The connection was made – and Jaakusaaq agreed to three trips to Tasiilaq.

But the captain and colleagues were so pleased with him that the contract was quickly extended.

- That was the start of my career, he says.

A Greenlandic voice on board

On board, he quickly became the link between the ship and Greenland. He speaks English, Danish, East and West Greenlandic – and after many French guests, he has started to express himself a little in French.

His everyday life is a mix of safety and communication: Zodiac trips, landing procedures, nature stories – and periods as polar bear guard with a rifle ready when the expedition moves into areas of risk.

- Sometimes I guide myself in the mountains, other times it's about looking out and creating calm, he says.

Guests come with many questions – and sometimes cultural misunderstandings.

- Some still ask if we live in ‘ice houses’, he says, smiling.

- Then I explain that illu means ‘house’ – and that ‘igloo’ is an old misunderstanding. It often ends with greater respect for the language and culture.

Greenland, Iceland and Canada

The seasons have taken him far and wide – from Timmiarmiut to Trail Island in East Greenland, along large parts of West Greenland and on transatlantic stages to Baffin Island, Labrador, Newfoundland, Saint-Pierre and Miquelon and up the Saint Lawrence River to Montreal.

- I saw polar bears as far south as Akpatok Island in Canada – I didn't expect that, he says.

Along the way, he also met First Nations communities and belugas in the Saint Lawrence – great experiences, he says.

Nature first

The collaboration on board the expedition ship is interdisciplinary: biologists, geologists, glaciologists, oceanographers and cultural mediators. The common denominator is a culture of caution.

- We follow AECO guidelines, clean boots, leave nothing behind – and adjust the gangways according to the wildlife, he explains.

Sometimes guests have critical questions, especially about whaling.

- When I explain how narwhal hunting is done, and that we have been hunting whales in the same way for hundreds of years – and that in Greenland we primarily eat wild animals, so none of them have lived in unnatural conditions – the guests usually have a different understanding, says Jaakusaaq Sørensen.

In order to work as a polar bear guard, he has also obtained a trapper's certificate. The shipping company requires that everyone who handles firearms has documentation that they have been trained to do so. This kind of documentation is difficult to obtain in Greenland, where most people gain experience through their upbringing.

A large part of the work as a guide also consists of signaling that Greenland's nature is not dangerous.

- When tourists are worried about the cold or the landscape, it helps that I act as if it is completely normal – because it is – and then they become calmer, says Jaakusaaq Sørensen.

Gives local trust

When Ponant's ships dock in East Greenland, they are usually well received. In Ittoqqortoormiit in particular, it makes a difference that there is a Greenlandic guide on board.

- Several fishermen have told me that they feel safer when they know I am with them, says Jaakusaaq Sørensen.

- They have previously been worried about whether the cruise ships complied with the rules and showed respect for nature. But when a Greenlander is on board, they know that I can react if something goes wrong – and report it to the fishermen's association or the authorities.

However, he emphasizes that there have never been any problems.

- All expedition leaders I have worked with are very conscious about following the rules. We are careful about where we go ashore, and we never leave anything in nature. It is actually part of our job to ensure that Greenland remains untouched.

Scientist recommends university

Before he started working as a guide, Jaakusaaq Sørensen studied biology. He chose to stop at university because he did not feel at home in Denmark. He told this one day to a scientist on board the ship, who turned out to be a Swedish university professor. The guest suggested that he instead apply to Stockholm University – which he did.

Today he lives in Sweden, where he is studying biology. His dream is to work with biodiversity and fish populations – preferably at the Greenland Institute of Nature.

- It's the type of fieldwork and analysis that I'm passionate about, he says.

The new study means that Jaakusaaq Sørensen is not sure whether he will be available as a guide on an expedition cruise next year. The first draft of the contract that the shipping company sent him coincided with his teaching – and therefore he has asked for a new contract that only covers the summer holidays.

- It's the perfect student job: I get to show my country – and make sure it's understood correctly, he says.