Komi was an UNPO member between 1993 and 2009. 

The Komi people, one of Russia’s Indigenous Finno-Ugric groups, have faced ongoing concerns around preserving language and culture, exercising local governance, and addressing socio-economic and environmental challenges. Although the Komi language is officially recognised alongside Russian in the republic’s constitution, in practice Russian continues to dominate public life. Efforts to use Komi in legislative sessions have been blocked, reflecting broader worries about effective linguistic rights and the vitality of the Komi language in education, media, and administration. 

In terms of governance and resource control, the Komi region is rich in forests, oil, natural gas, and mineral deposits. While this wealth presents economic opportunities, it has also raised issues of environmental degradation, limited local control, and displacement of traditional livelihoods. For example, timber-processing waste and mining-related pollution are reported problems in the republic. Komi civil society groups argue that decisions over large resource-projects are often made with little meaningful input from Indigenous Komi communities, undermining their agency and increasing risk of marginalisation. Additionally, the Komi have raised concerns about under-representation and assimilation pressures. The population of those identifying as Komi, and especially those using Komi as their first language, has been declining. 

Advocacy work by Komi organisations focuses on strengthening Komi-language education, expanding media in Komi, protecting traditional livelihoods in the face of industrial expansion, and ensuring genuine participation in local and regional decision-making. 

The Komi people are a Finno-Ugric ethnic group native to the Komi Republic in northwestern Russia, primarily inhabiting areas along the Pechora and Vychegda rivers. Their identity is closely tied to the Komi language, traditional livelihoods, connection to the northern taiga and rivers, and a heritage blending pre-Christian animist beliefs with Orthodox Christianity. 

Language is a central marker of identity. Komi is written in a modified Cryrilic script and includes major varieties such as Komi-Zyrian and Komi-Permyak. Although Russian dominates public life, the language remains vital in family, community, and cultural contexts. LIvelihoods and material culture have historically revolved around hunting, fishing, herding, and forestry. Traditional crafts such as woodworking, birch bark items, embroidery, and textile work continue to be important expressions of cultural heritage. Folk music, dance, and song also preserve narratives from nature and ancestral traditions. Rituals and faith combine Christian and older animist elements, with seasonal gatherings, respect for natural spirits, and ancestral commemorations. 

The Komi people are a Finno-Ugric group whose ancestral territory lies between the Pechora and Vychegda river systems in north-western Russia. Archaeological findings show the region inhabited since the Mesolithic era; by the 10th-11th centuries the ethnographic formation of the Komi was taking shape in the land known as “Perm.” In the 14th century, the missionary Stephen of Perm arrived (circa 1379) and created the Old Permic script, thereby enabling the Komi language to enter written form and facilitating Christianisation. By approximately the late 15th century, Komi lands had come under the influence of the Moscow Principality when Russian governors replaced local dukes. During the Russian Empire period the Komi region saw increased colonisation and exploitation of its forests and mineral wealth. 

With the establishment of Soviet rule, the administrative structure for the Komi people began to formalise: on 22 August 1921 the Komi Autonomous Oblast (AO) was created within the Russian SFSR. In 1936, it was elevated to the Komi Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (Komi ASSR). The Soviet era also brought major socio-economic change. Large-scale industrialisation, natural-resource extraction (coal, oil, timber) and the establishment of the gulag system in the region transformed both demographic and cultural landscapes. Many Komi found their traditional livelihoods disrupted, and the influx of non-Komi settlers accelerated the decline in proportion of the Komi population and Komi-language speakers. 

In 1990 the Komi ASSR adopted a declaration of sovereignty. In 1992, the region’s status was changed formally to the Komi Republic within the Russian Federation. Since the post-Soviet period, the Komi people have sought to reaffirm their cultural identity, language rights and participate in regional governance, even as they face modern pressures of demographic change, linguistic assimilation and economic transformation.