Spiralkampagnen: Forced Contraception and Unintended Sterilisation of Greenlandic Women by
Juliette Pavy (France) is a documentary project exploring the severe and lasting impacts of the
involuntary birth control campaign led by Danish authorities in Greenland in the 1960s and 1970s. This
series examines the spiralkampagnen, in which several thousand Inuit women, some as young as 12,
were implanted with intrauterine devices without their consent. The project traces the programme’s
origins through to the present day, including the ongoing investigation by the Danish government.
Placing the victims’ perspectives at the forefront, the narrative structure of Pavy’s project is shaped by
these difficult and important reflections on the collective trauma experienced by a community. The
series uses a variety of photographic formats; from situating shots of the city of Nuuk and its clinical
spaces, to X-ray imagery and archival photographs of the young women involved, alongside recent
portraits of victims and of doctors who worked in Greenland during and after the programme, to the
Danish parliamentarian investigating the spiralkampagnen in the present day.
Spiralkampagnen 2024 © Juliette Pavy, France, Photographer of the Year, Professional competition, Documentary Projects, Sony World Photography Awards 2024
Nuuk, the capital of Greenland, is located on the west coast and has a population of around 19,000. Naja Lyberth, one of its residents, was among the first women to publicly recount the forced contraception she underwent as a teenager.
Commenting on her award, Pavy says: ‘I am truly honoured to be named the Photographer of the
Year and for my work to be recognised among such a remarkable selection of projects and stories
celebrated here tonight. With this Award I hope to give a voice to those who were silenced for almost
half a century, and to all the women in the world who are constantly fighting for their rights. By telling
this story, I want to raise awareness of the violence against Inuit women and the social and
psychological repercussions of this forced contraception campaign, and the unintended sterilisation
of many of its victims.’
Commenting on Pavy’s winning project, Monica Allende, Chair of the 2024 Professional Competition
Jury says: ‘The Sony World Photography Awards jury lauded Juliette Pavy's empathetic portrayal of
her subjects, capturing them in a manner that is both dignified and profoundly intimate, thereby
highlighting her exceptional talent. Pavy's dedication to exposing the stark realities faced by
marginalised communities, coupled with her compelling narrative approach, has not only earned her
the prestigious recognition from the Sony World Photography Awards but also underscores the jury's
belief in her potential and the importance of supporting her career trajectory.’
Spiralkampagnen 2024 © Juliette Pavy, France, Photographer of the Year, Professional competition, Documentary Projects, Sony World Photography Awards 2024
An X-ray showing an IUD – more commonly known as a ‘spiral’ – used during the Greenlandic forced contraception campaign (Spiralkampagnen) from 1966 to 1975. These IUDs were far too large and unsuitable for the bodies of young teenage girls, the youngest being only 12 years old at the time of insertion. In addition to the pain and bleeding, these ‘spirals’ sometimes caused serious infections that have made some victims permanently sterile.Flags
Spiralkampagnen 2024 © Juliette Pavy, France, Photographer of the Year, Professional competition, Documentary Projects, Sony World Photography Awards 2024
Archive photo of Anne Lise Albrectsen as a teenager. She had a spiral implanted at the age of 15, without any explanation. At the time, she said, I need to talk to my parents about this, but they said, No, it's okay, we'll just do it for you.
Between 1966 and 1975, Greenlandic Inuit women were the victims of an involuntary birth control programme known as the Spiralkampagnen (spiral campaign). Led by the Danish authorities, nearly 4,500 intrauterine devices (‘coils’) were implanted into Inuit women and girls, some as young as 12, many of whom say that the procedure was performed without their consent. This campaign was first revealed by a Danish podcast in spring 2022, and documents now prove that the authorities implemented the policy to reduce Inuit population growth. An official investigation has now been opened, which is set to conclude at the end of 2024.
Juliette Pavy
Documentary photographer Juliette Pavy graduated from the photojournalism program at EMI CFD in Paris under the direction of Julien Daniel and Guillaume Herbaut.
She regularly collaborates with national press such as Le Monde, Libération, Le Figaro, and Mediapart. Concurrently, she develops a documentary approach to photography focusing on environmental and societal issues.
In 2020, she co-founded the Collective Hors Format and was selected for the Kickstarter x Polka project call.
In 2022, she was awarded the National Grand Commission from the BnF and the Ministry of Culture.
The following year, she received the Union of Professional Photographers (UPP) prize and the Françoise Demulder grant from Visa pour l'Image for her reportage on the forced sterilization of women in Greenland.
Her work has been exhibited and showcased at festivals such as L'Oeil Urbain, Visa pour l'Image, Escales Photos, and Les Femmes s'exposent. In 2024, she was named Photographer of the Year at the Sony World Photography Awards (SWPA).
Spiralkampagnen 2024 © Juliette Pavy, France, Photographer of the Year, Professional competition, Documentary Projects, Sony World Photography Awards 2024
In 2019, Naja Lyberth, a psychologist in Nuuk, told her personal story to a local newspaper. Following revelations of the existence of a Danish policy of forced contraception, she created a Facebook group that brought together other victims: ‘We have the right to own our bodies, and it is our human right to have children.’
