Taina Máret Pieski is director of the Sámi Museum Siida in Inari, Finland, a national museum of Sámi culture. The institution is dedicated to the identity and culture of Finnish Sámi – traditionally Sámi-speaking Indigenous peoples. It has partnering museums with Sámi culture collections in Nordic countries and Russia. Sámi Museum Siida was named the European Museum of the Year 2024.
In her acceptance speech at the awards, Taina Pieski said: “Sámi Museum Siida, as an Indigenous museum, is primarily for the Sámi people themselves. But we are extremely pleased to see how our Sámi story resonates with the entire European museum community and people around the world.”
The museum said in a statement: “We hope that this award gives us strength to continue our important repatriation work for our community. For this work, we need the support of the entire European museum community so that the artefacts of our ancestors return home to Sápmi.”