Meeting of a Norforsk research consortium with participants from Finland, Norway, Russia and Sweden, hosted by the Anthropology Research Team, Rovaniemi, Arctic Centre, 19-20 April, 2008.

The aim of this meeting is to reinforce contacts between specialists from Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia in the sphere of multidisciplinary research on reindeer herding and fishing local communities of Northern Europe. Research on different aspects of life of these local communities is being undertaken now in the universities of Tromso, Umea, St.-Petersburg, and Rovaniemi.

The European North is distinguished from the rest of the continent by the prevalence of a multi-ethnic population of reindeer herders and fishermen, mostly of Finno-Ugric origin, with the exception of Norwegians, Swedes and Pomory. In the Fennoscandian countries, these livelihoods are mostly practiced by Saami, but also Finnish, Norwegian and Swedish northerners. In Russian northern Europe, Saami, Komi, Nenets and Pomory are engaged. The development of local communities of Northern regions is very specific and depends on their contacts with more populated areas of European countries. The perspectives of their development are connected with tourism, global ecological processes (changes of arctic climate) and industrialisation of the North. 

Special attention should be paid on the challenges of coexistence between land-based livelihoods and industrial development – oil&gas resources in Russia and Norway, mining in Finland and Sweden. Problems include but are not limited to exploration and extraction, community relocation, pipeline and infrastructure development, and cumulative environmental & social impacts.

Participants are welcome to attend. If you want to present your research or ideas, please contact Florian Stammler before the meeting.

See here for more information.