Sámi University of Applied Sciences

The lead academic institution for the RIEVDAN project is the Sámi University of Applied Sciences (SUAS). Based in Kautokeino, Norway, it is a singularly important academic institution in the Sami area across 4 nations and it provides instruction both in and through Sámi language. From their website, SUAS is:

• A leading higher education and research institution in the Sámi area and the indigenous world.
• Cooperates with the Sámi community, particularly with young people, to preserve and promote the Sámi language, traditions, occupations, skills and knowledge.
• Supports Sámi society’s progress towards equality with the majority society.

People: Dr. Ellen Inga Turi (project leader), Dr. Inger Marie Gaup Eira (WP 1 leader), Professor Mikkel Nils Sara, Professor Nils Johan Paivio (WP 2), Assoc. Professor Johan Strømgen (WP 2), Prof. Svein Mathiesen (WP 2 leader), Helena Omma (Phd student, WP 1)

University of Tromso, UiT The Arctic University of Norway

UiT The Arctic University of Norway is the third largest in Norway and the northernmost university of the world. Its location on the edge of the Arctic implies a mission. The Arctic is of increasing global importance. Climate change, the exploitation of Arctic resources and environmental threats are topics of great public concern, and which the University of Tromsø takes special interest in. 15500 students and 3300 staff study and work at UiT The Arctic University of Norway. Teaching is research-based. UiT´s eight faculties offer, in spite of a dedication to Northern issues, a broad range of study programmes. The academic community in Tromsø is highly international. More than 20% of the academic staff and 10% of the student body are from abroad. The University offers more than 20 English taught master´s degree programmes, and all faculties offer English taught courses at both bachelor’s and master’s level.

UiT The Arctic University of Norway is a founding member of the University of the Arctic, an international network of 160 study and research institutions of the circumpolar region. But the University cooperates with all parts of the world. 200 international agreements secure an active academic exchange of students and staff with partner institutions worldwide. The University of Tromsø has been through three mergers. On the 1st of January 2009 UiT merged with the University College of Tromsø, and on the 1st of August 2013 with the University College of Finnmark. The latest merge was on the 1st of January 2016 with both the University College of Harstad and the University College of Narvik.

People: Rávdná Biret Márjá Eira, Kia Krarup Hansen (WP 3), Susanne Vars Buljo (WP 2)

Herzen University, St Petersburg, Russia

The Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia (formerly Leningrad State Pedagogical Institute) is one of the largest universities in Russia. Located in Saint Petersburg, it operates 20 faculties and more than 100 departments. Located within the University is the Institute of the Indigenous Peoples of the North, of which Professor Gashilova is the Director. The Institute is renowned across Russia and is comprised of four Departments, Department of Uralic Languages Folklore and Culture, Department of Altaic Languages, Folklore and Culture; Department of Paleosiberian Languages, Folklore and Culture and the Department of Ethno — Cultural Studies. The Institute offers Bachelor and Masters degree programmes.

People: Prof. Ludmila B. Gashilova

Association of World Reindeer Herders (WRH)

Read about WRH

People: Mikhail Pogodaev, Johan Mathis Turi

UArctic EALAT Institute

Read about the UArctic EALAT Institute

People: Svein D. Mathiesen

International Centre for Reindeer Husbandry

Read about ICR

People: Anders Oskal

Global Environment Technology Foundation

The Global Environment & Technology Foundation (GETF), established in 1988, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based near Washington, DC with a mission to promote sustainable development through partnerships and targeted action. GETF seeks to shape a brighter future for communities and the environment by developing innovative strategic plans, creating high-impact partnerships, introducing new technologies and managing programs that have a lasting and positive impact on the world.

GETF focuses upon three core issues as the basis of its efforts:

• Water & Sanitation
• Clean Energy & Climate Change
• Sustainability

GETF has successfully served a wide range of clients including the White House, federal and state agencies, leading foundations, Fortune 500 corporations, non-governmental organizations, and multilateral development agencies. With a result-driven team and a deep breadth of experiences gained over the past 20 years, GETF is uniquely positioned among nonprofit organizations to design and implement high-value, lasting programs and partnerships. GETF’s work is driven by a simple principle: Sustainability challenges are solvable if we work together.

People: Prof. Bob Corell.

University of Miami

People: Professor emeritus, Nancy Maynard.

WP leader: Prof. Nils Oskal, Sami University of Applied Sciences

The information and analysis developed by the three work packages will be integrated by interpretative means in order to communicate the result from the project. The aim is to provide an overall picture of the research field for different target groups and to promote greater public interest in the topic, as well as to give the students a comprehensive understanding of the field. The international integration and synthesis of the results will be carried out in collaboration with the University of Miami, the Global Environment Technology Foundation, the International Centre for Reindeer Husbandry and the Association of World Reindeer Herders.

WP leader: Prof. Svein Mathiesen. Participants: Dir. Anders Oskal, International Centre for Reindeer Husbandry and Prof. Ludmila B. Gashilova, Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia). PhD Students: Rávdná Biret Márjá Eira, Kia Krarup Hansen, UiT The Arctic University of Norway

Traditional knowledge in Sámi reindeer herding related to reindeer welfare, handling of animals and Sámi food culture is rich. With the multifactorial rapid changes reindeer herding face today there is a risk that this knowledge accumulated in Sámi pastoralism during generations might be lost. At the same time, industry structure and governance networks for reindeer herding products in Norway seems not to be in line with the needs for local value added for reindeer herders facing Arctic change (Reinert, 2006; Reinert et al, 2009). We propose that knowledge about reindeer herders’food culture is essential to the future ability to adapt to these changes and maintain cultural and economic sustainability. Objective of this project: To sustain Sámi reindeer husbandry by increasing the value of traditional knowledge and scientific knowledge about reindeer herders’ food culture. Reindeer herders’ traditional knowledge and scientific knowledge about slaughtering, processing of meat, conservation of meat will be investigated to find out if there two sphere of knowledge affect reindeer herders ability to adapt to rapid change?

Production from RCN RIEVDAN WP3:

• Nechei M. Serotetto (2016): Intercomparison of reindeer herding vocabulary in northern Sami and Nenets languages. In Lyublinskaya MD and VS Ivanova eds (2016): Deer in the culture of the peoples of the North: a collection of materials of the scientific and practical seminar “Reindeer-breeding vocabulary in the Uralic languages” (St. Petersburg, INS, April 20, 2016), p. 58-72. Russian State Pedagogical University – AI Herzen, Institute of the Peoples of the North, St. Petersburg, Russia. Herzen University Press, 2016. – 110 p. ISBN 978-5-8064-2322-2. Сэротэтто Н. А. Сопоставление оленеводческой лексики северного саамского и ненецкого языков// Под ред. М. Д. Люблинской, В. С. Ивановой: Олень в культуре народов севера: Сборник материалов научно-практического семинара «Оленеводческая лексика в уральских языках» (Санкт-Петербург, ИНС, 20 апреля 2016 г.) / Под ред. М. Д. Люблинской, В. С. Ивановой. — СПб.: Изд-во РГПУ им. А. И. Герцена, 2016. с.58-72.
• Wilbert van Rooij, Philip Burgess, Per Arild Garnåsjordet, Svein D. Mathiesen and Iulie Aslaksen (2017): Ecological change in Arctic regions – a GLOBIO3 pilot study of impacts on biodiversity. In The Economy of the North, Solveig Glomsrød, Gérard Duhaime and Iulie Aslaksen (eds.) page 147- 162. Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group Report. Statistisk Sentralbyrå, 2017. ISSN 0804-3221.
• Davin Holen, Drew Gerkey, Even Høydahl, David Natcher, Martin Reinhardt Nielsen, Birger Poppel, Paul Inge Severeide, Hunter T. Snyder, Mary Stapleton, Ellen Inga Turi and Iulie Aslaksen (2017): Interdependency of subsistence and market economies in the Arctic. In The Economy of the North, Solveig Glomsrød, Gérard Duhaime and Iulie Aslaksen (eds.) page 89-125, Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group Report. Statistisk Sentralbyrå, 2017. ISSN 0804-3221.
• Minna Turunen, Anna Degteva, Seija Tuulentie, Anatoli Bourmistrov, Robert Corell, Edward Dunlea, Grete Hovelsrud, Timo Jouttijärvi, Sari Kauppi, Nancy Maynard, Bob van Oort, Arja Rautio, Hein Rune Skjoldal, Natalia Anisimova, Valery Chashchin, Dmitrii Denisov, Anastasia Emelyanova, Elena Eriksen, Jaakko Erkinaro, Jon L Fuglestad, Geir Wing Gabrielsen, Ludmila Maria Granberg, Leena Grandell, Andrei Gudkov, Ingeborg G Hallanger, Antti Hannukkala, Petri Heinimaa, Boris Ivanov, Edda Johannesen, Lis Jorgensen, Timo Jouttijärvi, Panu Juntunen, Sari Kauppi, Carina Keskitalo, Asta Kietäväinen, Juha Kiviluoma, Oleg Korneev, Kari Lehtonen, Lars Lindholt, Pavel Lyubin, Frode Nilssen, Teuvo Niva, Jon Oyvind Odland, Julia Olsen, Willy Østreng, Riku Pasonen, Stanislav 2017. Impact analysis and consequences of change. In AMAP (2017) Adaptation Actions for a Changing Arctic: Perspectives from the Barents Area. Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program (AMAP), Oslo, Norway. Pages 127-166. Barents scientific report. ISBN-13 978-82-7971-102-5.
• Anna Degteva, Anders Oskal, Svein D. Mathiesen, Philip Burgess Iulie Aslaksen, Kathrine Johnsen, Anne-Maria Magga, Wilbert van Rooi Camilla Brattland, Robert Corell, Andrey Dubovtsev, Per Arild Garnåsjordet, Aslak Holmberg, Konstantin Klokov, Nancy G. Maynard, Christian Nellemann, Beaska Niillas, Per Jonas Partapuoli, Mikhail Pogodaev, Erik Reinert, Per Sandström, Igor Slepushkin, Inger A Smuk, Jannie Steffanson, Zinaida Strogalschikova, Alexey Tsykarev, Levi Westerveld (2017): Indigenous peoples’ perspectives. In Arctic Council report Adaptation Action in Changing Arctic page 167-194, Arctic Council AMAP, Oslo, Norway. «AMAP, 2017. Adaptation Actions for a Changing Arctic: Perspectives from the Barents Area. Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program (AMAP), Oslo, Norway. xiv + 267pp. ISBN-13 978-82-7971-102-5.
• Miriam Huitric, Garry Peterson and Juan Carlos Rocha, Marcus Carson, Douglas Clark, Bruce Forbes, Grete K. Hovelsrud, Svein D. Mathiesen, Ashley Perl, Allyson Quinlan Hanna Ahlström, Rawaf Al Rawaf, Derek Armitage, Dag Avango, Svetlana Avelova, Heather Bell, Adrian Braun, Clara Burgard, Christopher Cosgrove, Daniele Crimella, Enoil de Sousa Júnior, Anna Degteva, Lara Dominguez, Niels Einarsson, Viktoriia Filippova, Melanie Flynn, Jonas Gren, Hannah Grif ths, Gustav Grusell, Elin Högström, Elinor Holén, Henry Huntington, Hanna Kylin, Matilda Lenell, Katrin Lindbäck, Linda Lindström, Cornelia Ludwig, Tobias Luthe, Katja Malmborg, Svein D. Mathiesen, Viveca Mellegård,Yasir Muhammad, Tero Mustonen, George Noongwook, Julia Olsen, Roweena Patel, Aliaksei Patonia, Shealagh Pope, Kaitlyn Rathwell, Fernando Remolina, Stine Rybråten, Carmen Seco Pérez, Nikolas Selheim, Philip Siegel, Jessica Spijkers, Dries Stevens, Andrea Utas, Lize-Marie van der Walkt, Liliia Vinokurova, Kate Williman, Alexander Winkler (2016): What factors build or erode resilience in the Arctic? In Carson M and Peterson G et al. (2016) Arctic Council Arctic Resilience Report, Chapter 4, pp 96-125. Stockholm Environment Institute and Stockholm Resilience Centre, Stockholm, Sweden. (www.arctic-council.org/arr). ISBN 9789186125455.
• Kathrine Ivsett Johnsen, Svein Disch Mathiesen, and Inger Marie Gaup Eira (2017): Sámi reindeer governance in Norway as competing knowledge-systems: A participatory study. Ecology and Society, Stockholm (Accepted for publication).
• Mathiesen, SD, Mathis P. Bongo, P. Burgess, Robert W. Corell , Anna Degteva, Inger Marie G. Eira, Inger Hanssen-Bauer, Alvaro Ivanoff , Ole Henrik Magga, Nancy G. Maynard, Anders Oskal, Mikhail Pogodaev, Mikkel N. Sara, Dagrun Vikhamar Schuler, and Ellen Inga Turi (forthcoming 2017): Indigenous Reindeer Herding and Adaptation to New Hazards in the Arctic, In Nakashima et al (forthcoming 2017): Indigenous Knowledge and Climate Change – Foundations for assessement and adaptation. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK (Accepted for publication).
• Philip Burgess, Elena Antipina, Svetlana Avelova, Anna Degteva, Andrey Dubovtsev, Binderiya Dondov, Alena Gerasimova, Svein D Mathiesen, Anders Oskal, Mikhail Pogodaev Eilene Adams, Roksana Avevkhay, Burmaa Batkhishih, Khoschimeg Bayandalai, Olesya Bolotaeva, Karrie Brown, Máret Rávdna Buljo, Anna Chuprina, Sonita Cleveland, Rávdna Biret Márjá Eira Sara, Sarantuya Ganbat, Bayarmagnai Ganbold, Inger Marie Gaup Eira, Nadezhda Gerasimova, Tsetsegmaa Gombo, Chantal Gruben, Maxim Gulyaev, Jacey Firth-Hagen, Kia Krarup Hansen, Cyrus «Naunġaq» Harris, Vlada Kaurgina, Zhanna Kaurgina, Mikkel Anders Kemi, Aleksandr Krasavin, Irina Krivoshapkina, Elvira Okotetto, Marta Okotetto, Nikolay Osenin, Maria Pogodaeva, Alena Prokopjeva, Udval Purevjav, Elna Sara, Nechei Serotetto, Lyubov Sidorova, Inger Anita Smuk, Anatoly Sorokin, Marjorie Tahbone, Sandy Tahbone, Valentina Tokhtosova, Issát Turi, Suanne Unger, Maria Yaglovskaya, Olesya Yakovleva, Sofia Zakharova, Uudus Zolzaya, Zagalmaa Zorigt (2017): Indigenous youth, Arctic Change and Food Culture – Knowledge and How We Have Thrived on the Margins. Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group Report 2015–2017, pp: 160. ISBN 978-82-998051-1-7.

This book itself consists of the following range of arcticles:

• Anders Oskal, Mikhail Pogodaev, Svein D Mathiesen, Alena Gerasimova and Svetlana Avelova (2017): SDWG EALLU 2017 Executive Summary and Recommendations for the Arctic Council. In Indigenous youth, Arctic Change and Food Culture – Knowledge and How We Have Thrived on the Margins, Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group Report, 2017
• Elvira Okotetto, Marta Okotetto and Nechei Serotetto (2017): Nenets: Raw Meat Eaters. In Indigenous youth, Arctic Change and Food Culture – Knowledge and How We Have Thrived on the Margins, Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group Report, 2017
• Issat Turi, Maret Ravdna Buljo, Jon Mikkel Eira, Inger Anita Smuk (2017): Sámi: Smoked and Cooked. In Indigenous youth, Arctic Change and Food Culture – Knowledge and How We Have Thrived on the Margins, Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group Report, 2017
• Irina Krivoshapkina, Maria Yaglovskaya, Zhanna Kaurgina, Vlada Kaurgina, and Olesya Yakovleva (2017): Chukchi: Reindeer blood, the first four ribs and wild plants. In Indigenous youth, Arctic Change and Food Culture – Knowledge and How We Have Thrived on the Margins, Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group Report, 2017.
• Olesya Bolotaeva, Anatoly Sorokin and Roksana Avevkhay (2017): Koryak: Festive food and knowledge in Kamchatka and Magadan. In Indigenous youth, Arctic Change and Food Culture – Knowledge and How We Have Thrived on the Margins, Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group Report, 2017
• Anna Chuprina and Sophia Zakharova (2017): Dolgan: Reindeer eyes and fish. In Indigenous youth, Arctic Change and Food Culture – Knowledge and How We Have Thrived on the Margins, Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group Report, 2017
• Alena Gerasimova, Nadezhda Gerasimova, Lyubov Sidorova and Svetlana Avelova (2017): Evenki: Kapka and blood sausage. In Indigenous youth, Arctic Change and Food Culture – Knowledge and How We Have Thrived on the Margins, Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group Report, 2017
• Maria Pogodaeva, Nikolay Osenin, Mikhail Pogodaev, Maxim Gulyav and Alena Prokopieva (2017): Even: Stomach soup and reindeer yoghurt. In Indigenous youth, Arctic Change and Food Culture – Knowledge and How We Have Thrived on the Margins, Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group Report, 2017
• Valentina Tokhtosova (2017): Yukagir: Yukola and chumuododje. In Indigenous youth, Arctic Change and Food Culture – Knowledge and How We Have Thrived on the Margins, Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group Report, 2017
• Burmaa Batkhishih, Khoschimeg Bayandalai, Sarantuya Ganbat, Bayarmagnai Ganbold, Tsetsegmaa Gombo, Udval Purevjav, Uudus Zolzaya and Zagalmaa Zorigt (2017): Dukha: Hunguun and the wild potato. In Indigenous youth, Arctic Change and Food Culture – Knowledge and How We Have Thrived on the Margins, Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group Report, 2017
• Eilene Adams, Sonita Cleveland, Cyrus «Naunġaq» Harris, Sandy Tahbone, Marjorie Tahbone, and ICC Alaska (2017): Inuit Alaska: Tuttu, mipkuq, ugruk, tunuq, akutaq. In Indigenous youth, Arctic Change and Food Culture – Knowledge and How We Have Thrived on the Margins, Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group Report, 2017
• Chantal Gruben (2017): Inuit Canada: Caribou meat gravy. In Indigenous youth, Arctic Change and Food Culture – Knowledge and How We Have Thrived on the Margins, Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group Report, 2017H
• Suanne Unger (2017): Aleut: Traditional unangan/ unangas (Aleut) food. Subsistence is sustenance for the life. In Indigenous youth, Arctic Change and Food Culture – Knowledge and How We Have Thrived on the Margins, Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group Report, 2017
• Jacey Firth-Hagen (2017): Gwich´in: Caribou are half our heart. In Indigenous youth, Arctic Change and Food Culture – Knowledge and How We Have Thrived on the Margins, Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group Report, 2017
• Karrie Brown (2017): Athabaskan: Moose blood and dry meat soups. In Indigenous youth, Arctic Change and Food Culture – Knowledge and How We Have Thrived on the Margins, Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group Report, 2017
• Nadezhda Gerasimova (2017): The Traditional Cuisine of the Evenki People of Southern Yakutia. Printinghouse DealSib Company, Novosibirsk, Russia. pp. 154. ISBN: 978-82-998051-3-1
• A total of 16 Scientific Abstracts accepted and delivered to IASSA ICASS IX Science Conference: People and Place. Umeå, Sweden, June 8-12, 2017. International Association of Social Scientists in the Arctic.
• A total of 3 Scientific Abstracts accepted and delivered to Arctic Council AMAP Science Conference: International Conference on Arctic Science – Bringing Knowledge to Action. Reston, Virginia, US, 24-27 April, 2017. Arctic Council AMAP.

In addition, the following publications have been submitted in the period:

• Mathiesen SD, A Oskal and R.W. Corell (Eds): Adaptation to a Changing Arctic: Taking Knowledge to Action. Science book, University of Alberta Press. In manuscript.
• Eira, Inger
• Marie Gaup; Mathiesen, Svein Disch. Guođohanbeaivegirji reaidun gozihit dálveguohtoneatnamiid guohtundiliid. Submitted to Sámi dieđalaš áigecála, 2017-18.
• Hansen, Kia K, Monica A. Sundset, Lars P. Folkow, Marte Nilsen & Svein D. Mathiesen: Enteric methane emissions from reindeer are lower on a lichens diet than on a pelleted feed diet. Submitted to Polar Research, 2017.

WP leader: Dr. Nils Johan Päivio, participants: PhD cand. Johan Strömgren, both of the Sámi University of Applied Sciences). Phd Student: (Susanne Vars Buljo, UiT The Arctic University of Norway

The main objective is to study legal protection that both domestic and international law offers Sámi reindeer herders against other, new or changed, land use that may be in conflict with rights to reindeer herding. Furthermore, the aim is to investigate important aspects of converging or conflicting claims between Sámi customs/traditional knowledge within reindeer herding and written law/public administration. Along with the development of increased legal protection of reindeer herders land use, new industrial and political focuses on explorations of natural resources in the north have occurred, putting the reindeer herding communities under new pressure from competitive land use.

This pressure is likely to increase over time. A large part of the reindeer herding act (Reindriftsloven), and other regulations, is based upon existing customs and traditional knowledge on land use, business, family organization, rights to inherit and so on. The written law requires these types of customs and traditional knowledge to be meaningful and functional norms. Indigenous people’s land use, traditional knowledge and customaries are given a special status in international law (for instance CBD art. 8 (j), ICCPR art. 27, ILO 169 art. 8, 14, 23, UNDRIP art. 31). These regulations entail obligations for the state that shall be realized within national law. For instance Sámi customs and traditional knowledge shall be respected as far as possible, preserved and maintained, and regarded by public administration when applying laws and regulations (Naturmangfoldloven).

WP leader: Dr. Inger Marie Eira, participants: PhD cand. Mikkel Nils Sara Sámi University of Applied Sciences), Dr. Robert W. Corell (Global Environment Technology Foundation) and Dr. Nancy Maynard (University of Miami

The objectives of this working package is partly to document traditional reindeer herders’ knowledge and provide an insight into basic understanding of Sámi reindeer husbandry and herding as livelihood and way of life involving and structured by individual ownership of reindeer and the collective fields of family enterprise, herding unit and the internal management system of herding units. Focus will be on aspects of knowledge and practices dealing with the sustainability of nomadic husbandry and herding, i.e. issues like 1) herd management, 2) relationship to local landscape and natural environment, 3) adaptation to varying climatic conditions, and 4) processes of knowledge, ethical considerations and decision making. Furthermore, the project seeks to increase adapting capacity by combining different fields of knowledge. The history of Sámi Reindeer Husbandry in western Finnmark indicate that the years 1917/18, 1967/68 and 1996/97 are typical extreme weather events (goavvi years) with starvation, loss of reindeer and negative impacts on herders’ economy. (Eira, I., 2012) The aim is to test the hypothesis that extreme grazing conditions in winter coincides with strong negative North Atlantic oscillation (NAO) phase in late fall. Combining historical data about reindeer herding, oral stories from elder herders and meteorological data can provide new insights on how the reindeer herding communities coped with and adapted to extreme weather events (goavvi).

The future sustainable governance of Sámi reindeer husbandry will face major challenges related to rapid change in the Arctic. Sámi reindeer husbandry represents a livelihood and way of life based on practices and knowledge developed through long-term experiences in living under harsh and highly variable conditions in the Arctic environment. This research project is based on and according to goals and strategies set by Sami University of Applied Science and will provide a knowledge base for a future Master’s degree Programme in Reindeer Husbandry Studies using a multidisciplinary approach.

The project will research traditional cultural capabilities in Sámi reindeer husbandry and the opportunities embedded in traditional knowledge and scientific knowledge with a focus on adaptation to change and reconciliation, and will attempt to explain the tensions between the two interlinked spheres of knowledge involving different approaches to basic aspects of reindeer husbandry and herding.

RIEVDAN hopes to contribute to new knowledge and understanding in order to increase sustainability in reindeer husbandry and herding, and finally strengthen the reconciliation between the interlinked and conflicted spheres of knowledge.