EALAT Information Report from Yar Sale, September 2007

While EALAT is an IPY project, it also falls under the Arctic Council, and has been approved by the Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group. Under this project, a small team went to the Yamal Peninsula (September 20-24, 2007) with an ambitious program – including a seminar to be held in the tundra village of Yar-Sale, a short helicopter flight from Salekhard, the booming oil and gas town of the Yamal Nenets Autonomous Okrug. Read the report here.

The seminar was to be preceded by a workshop held on the tundra as guests of Brigade 17 of the Yarsalinski sovkhoz, where we were hosted by Brigadier Juri Serotetto. Details and arrangements were coordinated and organized by the Association of World Reindeer Herders, the Association of Yamal Reindeer Herders, the Administrations of YNAO and the Yamal district (Yamal'skogo raiona).

The team consisted of EALAT project leader Svein Mathiesen, Assn of World Reindeer Herders General Secretary Johan Mathis Turi, reindeer herder and student of the University of Tromso Ole Isak Eira, Masters student at the University of Oslo, Ellen Inga Turi who grew up in a reindeer husbandry background, Lars Miguel Utsi, a Sami from the Swedish side of Sapmi who also grew up in reindeer husbandry and currently attending the University of Tromso, Anna Degteva a Vepsian graduate of the University of Tromso and the Institute of Traditional Crafts’ Technologies for the Indigenous Peoples of the RF in St Petersburg, and Philip Burgess of the International Centre for Reindeer Husbandry in Kautokeino.

Ole Isak Eira, Johan Mathis Turi, Anna Degteva, Svein Mathiesen, Lars Miguel Utsi, Ellen Inga Turi

In Moscow airport, the team met up with Alexander Komarov, the Vice President of the Reindeer herders Union of Russia (RHUR) with whom we travelled north to Salekhard. On arrival, the delegation was met by Association of World Reindeer Herders President, Dmitry Khorolia, and Leonid Khudi, Chair of the Board of Directors of the Reindeer Herders Union of Yamal and the EALAT project coordinator for the Yamal Peninsula. There were several interviews made by local media with Johan Mathis Turi, Dmitry Khorolia and Svein Mathiesen. The next morning saw the group, which had now expanded to include some distinguished guests including Sergei Haruchi, State Speaker to the Duma and President of RAIPON, the Russian Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North. We travelled North by helicopter stopping briefly in Yar-Sale to refuel and add some passengers - media interest in the delegation was high as a film crew was also on hand from the Russian network RBK along with media from Salekhard . The helicopter dropped down on the tundra and we were warmly greeted by our hosts and introductions were made by the guests and short presentations were made by Dmitry Khorolia, Johan Mathis Turi, Svein Mathiesen and Lars Miguel Utsi.

We were invited for food and refreshments into several chums and intense discussions followed on the nature of traditional knowledge, the issues surrounding climate change, the practical challenges of reindeer herding and the issues that development brings from the perspective of the herders, as experiences were exchanged between the delegation from Sapmi and those on Yamal. The workshop moved outside to see reindeer work at first hand.

Castrates - draught animals are a critical part of Nenets reindeer husbandry 

Draught animals – castrates - were corralled adjacent to the chums and there were demonstration of slaughtering techniques and a unique demonstration of a traditional castration method - a key element of traditional knowledge that persists in everyday usage in Nenets reindeer husbandry herd structure management that the Sami delegation explained was no longer allowed in Norway. The response to this was that were such regulations in force on Yamal, Nenets reindeer husbandry would be in need of a lot more cash to buy and maintain machines for travelling. Ear marking methods and reindeer terminologies were also discussed and animal handling techniques were demonstrated.

Brigadier Yuri Serotetto Brigade 17 of the Yarsalinski sovkhoz and Assn. of World Reindeer Herders President, Dmitry Khorolia

A formal dinner was held in Yar-Sale that evening attended by the guests of honor. On Saturday, September 22, the reindeer herder workshop was held in the new and impressively equipped administration buildings in Yar-Sale - alongside the equally new hotel and residential school, which we were informed, is one of the largest in Russia. Seminar keynote presentations were made by Sergei Haruchi, Andrey Kugaevsky (Deputy Governor of the Yamal Nenets Autonomous Okrug), Lidia Vello (Director of the Dept. of Northern Indigenous Affairs of the YNAO) among others. A presentation was given by scientist Andrei Yuzhakov in which he stated quite clearly that peoples selection was at least as if not more important in determining the herd structure and quality within Nenets reindeer husbandry. Other presentations were made by EALAT project leader Svein Mathiesen, WRH General Secretary Johan Mathis Turi, RHUR General Secretary Alexander Komarov and Leonid Khudi, Ellen Inga Turi and Lars Miguel Utsi.

Unfortunately, discussion time was short as not only was Yar-Sale was celebrating its 80th anniversary that same weekend and the visiting delegation were among the guests of honor but we also had to fit in a visit to the new Finnish built slaughter house for the Yamalsky Olen reindeer meat company where the delegation was given a tour by the managing director. The company was recently awarded an EU export certificate and shipments of reindeer meat to Germany have already started. Lunch with local products was served and then it was on to a concert in school theatre given by Yar-Sale students, a meal at the sovkhoz headquarters, followed by an outdoor concert. The evening was wrapped up in a chum hosted by a local Nenets family.

The EALAT delegation and others at the Yar-Sale 80th Anniversary. From L-R Lars Miguel Utsi, Ellen Inga Turi, Anna Degteva, Vasilii Serotetto, Johan Mathis Turi, Unknown, Ole Isak Eira, Svein Mathiesen, Sergei Khudi, Dmitry Khorolia, Leonid Khudi.

The next day saw more celebrations for the advent of Yar-Sale’s anniversary. Coincidentally, connections were made with a number of brigadiers who were in town for meetings with regional oil and gas companies, including Vasilii Serotetto (Brigade 2), Sergei Serotetto (Brigade 8) and Nyadma Khudi (Brigade 4).

We departed Yar-Sale by boat on the Ob River for Aksarka, from where there is a road connection to Salekhard. En route we stopped at Panaevsk, the birthplace of Assn of World Reindeer Herders Dmitry Khorolia where we were given a tour of the town’s impressive new facilities – an administration facility, a large gym hall, hi-tech classrooms, a seminar room and even an astroturf pitch and community leaders were proud to display the recent benefits of Yamal’s new found wealth. Dinner was served at the Sovkhoz headquarters before departing. On Monday, our final scheduled meeting was held at the Salekhard headquarters of the Yamal Meteorological Institute where the team, accompanied by Dmitry Khorolia and Leonid Khudi met with the Director Boris V. Popov. The EALAT project was presented briefly and at a very fruitful meeting it was agreed that meteorological information and data would be shared actively which will provide exciting possibilities for the development of Work Package 1 within the EALAT project. The delegation returned to Moscow and a valuable debrief was held before some headed back to Norway. Johan Mathis Turi, Svein Mathiesen, Anna Degteva and Philip Burgess stayed on another night in Moscow and met with Alexander Komarov in his office for a meeting, where the possibilities of a future EALAT workshop in Chukotka (where Komarov worked as a Veterinary technician for many years) was discussed, the importance of traditional knowledge and the recent issues and the many challenges facing reindeer husbandry in Russia were addressed.

A full report will be developed and initial findings will be presented at the Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group meeting in Vadso, October 30-1, 2007

More…

Watch the Video Webcast of the Seminar

View Photographs from Visit to the Tundra

See Google Map location of Salekhard