Reindeer Blog

The World Society for the Protection of Animals has added their voice to what seems certain to to become an annual right of passage – animals rights organisations using the Christmas season to raise their own profile with media friendly releases about the ‘mistreatreatment’ of reindeer by reindeer herders. Another organisation, VIVA, launched a similar [...]

A Russian film has picked up the top honors at an international film festival in Bulgaria highlighting the best work on extreme sports, adventure and mountains. The award-winning documentary about reindeer herders in the Polar Urals beat 80 films from 27 other countries. “Nyarma” by Edgar Bartenev focuses on the Nenets people, their customs, family [...]

A ‘chum’, the traditional though still in use every day dwelling of the reindeer herding Nenets on the Yamal Peninsula,  will be making a guest appearance at one Russia’s busiest airport: Moscow’s Sheremetyevo. This marks the kick off of a series of events in the nations capital celebrating the life and culture of the worlds [...]

A recent study published in the International Journal for Circumpolar Health concluded that reindeer herding Sami in Sweden, most particularly men, were more likely to suffer from depression and anxiety than others.  Entitled “Depression and anxiety in the reindeer-herding Sami population of Sweden” , the objectives were to investigate symptoms and predicting factors of depression [...]

On Sunday Anne Ollila became the first woman to head the Reindeer Herders’ Association of Finland. Both she and the reindeer herding sector face great challenges, writes the daily Lapin Kansa: “The challenges are not insurmountable because a Finn never leaves a reindeer in the lurch. Lapland wouldn’t be Lapland without reindeers. The reindeer herding [...]

The Board of the University of the Arctic (UArctic) has approved the establishment of UArctic Institute for Circumpolar Reindeer Husbandry, as a result of the International Polar Year (IPY) project and the IPY EALÁT project.

(By Luke Harding, The Guardian) For 1,000 years the indigenous Nenets people have herded their reindeer along the Yamal peninsula. But their survival in this remote region of north-west Siberia is under serious threat from climate change as Russia’s ancient permafrost melts. t is one of the world’s last great wildernesses, a 435-mile long peninsula [...]

By HENRY SANDERSON (AP) – 2 days ago GENHE CITY, China — Herding reindeer and hunting bears and boars in the forests on Siberia’s fringe was Gu Gejun’s life. Now his rifle has been confiscated, and the only reindeer he herds are in an urban tourist park. China has moved most of the small Ewenki [...]

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy (Pic & Story Source: msnbc) HOVSGOL PROVINCE, Mongolia –  Bayanjargal laughed as she watched the three of us from NBC News turn on our cell phones for the first time in 24 hours and maniacally start emailing and texting. We probably were a ridiculous sight – [...]

ABC News have a video about the Dukha reindeer herders of northern Mongolia, one of the oldest reindeer peoples in the world. Also featured is Dan Plumley who has been working with Dukha reindeer herders for over a decade and is Director of the Totem Peoples Preservation Project. Watch the video here.