The book ‘Samisk reindrift, Norske Myter’ (Sami reindeer husbandry, Norwegian myths) is the primary deliverable from the DÁVGGAS project, an interdisciplinary project involving researchers from NMBU and the Sami University College.
Edited by Tor A. Benjaminsen, Inger Marie Gaup Eira and Mikkel Nils Sara, the book is a collection of articles written by the project resaerchers and is sure to be an important contribution to the ongoing and often contested debates surrounding the continuation of an age old indigenous livelihood with the confines of a contemporary nation state. The book is in Norwegian – you can view the introductory chapter and purchase the book.
- "Mineraler og rein" - Klassekampen (08.10 2012)
- "Useriøst om rein og rovvilt" - Dagens Næringsliv (05.07 2013)
- "Rein, rovvilt og bortforklaringer" - Dagens Næringsliv (18.07 2013)
The Davggas project is a collaboration between the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (UMB) and the International Centre for Reindeer Husbandry (ICR)
The project also includes researchers from Tallinn University of Technology (TUT) and Tallinn University (TLU), as well as affiliated researchers from other institutions.
Researchers and Collaborator
- Tor A. Benjaminsen (Professor, UMB)
- Espen Sjaastad (Professor, UMB)
- Erik Reinert (Professor, TUT, ICR)
- Andrei Florin Marin (Research Fellow, UMB)
- Hugo Reinert (Research Fellow, UMB; Senior Researcher, TLU)
- Kathrine Ivsett Johnsen (PhD Researcher, UMB)
- Anders Oskal (ICR)
- Svein D Mathiesen (ICR)
- Inger Marie Gaup Eira (Associate Professor, Sami University College)
- Mikkel Nils Sara (Associate Professor, Sami University College)
- Ellen Inga Turi (Research Fellow, Umeå University)
- Johan Mathis Turi (Secretary General, Association of World Reindeer Herders)
- Hanne Svarstad (Associate Professor, Oslo and Akershus University College)
The principal objective of Dávggas is to develop research-based policy alternatives for improving the economic output of Norwegian reindeer pastoralism and reducing conflicts between reindeer herders and other stakeholders.
The approach of the project is interdisciplinary, with a political ecology framework that draws on human geography, economics, sociology and anthropology. The geographical focus of the project is on Finnmark, the northernmost district of Norway and home to the majority of reindeer herders in the country.
The project will analyse land-use conflicts in Sami reindeer pastoralism in terms of geographical conditions, climatic dynamics, actors, narratives, values and knowledge. The project also aims to foster new understandings of the economics of reindeer herding, by investigating its political economy and analysing the reindeer-meat value-chain.
Finally, Dávggas seeks to strengthen cooperation between researchers and reindeer herders, through collaborative research, joint publications and targeted dissemination.
Dávggas is a three year multi-institutional research project (2012-2014), funded by the Research Council of Norway (grant 215961) to examine the economics and land-use conflicts of reindeer herding in Finnmark.
Drawing on a political ecology approach, the project combines perspectives from human geography, sociology, economics and anthropology – with the aim of creating new knowledge and developing policy alternatives to improve economic outputs and reduce land-use conflicts within the industry.
In Northern Sámi, Dávggas means elastic, resilient, flexible, tough. The name highlights the resilience and flexible adaptation of pastoralism and reindeer herding – an important point of departure for both research and policy formulation.
