In Scandinavia there is a growing concern that the reindeer husbandry is in a state of crisis, but results from our recent study indicates that the Swedish reindeer husbandry is in fact in better condition now compared to the past (1945-1965).
In Scandinavia there is a growing concern that the reindeer husbandry is in a state of crisis, but results from our recent study indicates that the Swedish reindeer husbandry is in better condition now compared to the past (1945-1965). Continue reading “The pursuit of populations collapses: long-term dynamics of semi-domestic reindeer in Sweden”
People rely on one another in fundamental ways, but cooperation in groups can be fragile. Every day, we face tensions between acting in a socially responsible manner and following our own self-interest. These situations are called social dilemmas and they come in varying shades of subtlety, from littering and eBay to overpopulation and climate change. Overcoming these dilemmas can make all the difference, especially for marginalised groups such as pastoralists – people who make their living from herding animals.
Pastoralists use about a quarter of the world’s land for grazing their herds. Nowadays, all over the world, governments are privatising many of their pastures, and so herders must work together in increasingly fragmented places.
We wanted to learn how groups of Saami reindeer herders living in Norway’s Arctic Circle worked together. Our study, just published in the journal Human Ecology, found that cooperation pivoted around the ‘siida’: a…
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I’ve just got a paper accepted in Land Use Policy about nomadic pastoralists in Tibet and hunting. As we all know, space is limited in scientific journals, so here is additional text as well as pictures. Continue reading “Tibetan lives: Hunting”
It’s the time of the year when we eagerly await the results from the year’s (many) research proposals.
In 1227 Genghis Khan died leaving behind a legacy of conquest and the largest land empire in history, only fully realized by his Grandson Kubhlai Khan with the establishment of the Yuan Dynasty in 1267 (Chaliand 2004). Continue reading “Predatory or prey – the rise of nomadic empires”
Just got paper published in Human Ecology that looks at the old question of what exactly motivates nomadic pastoralists. Continue reading “Market economy vs. risk management: how do nomadic pastoralists respond to increasing meat prices?”
Just returned from an amazing trip to Kyrgyzstan. I participated on a summer school for students from the University of Tromsø (UiT) and the American University of Central Asia (AUCA).
My (somewhat limited) experience teaching anthropology (particularly ecological anthropology) has left me somewhat flabbergasted as to what is taught at universities about science.
Continue reading “Anthropology, science and the challenge of subjectivity”
In connection with the project “The Erosion of Cooperative Networks and the Evolution of Social Hierarchies: A Comparative Approach” and NIKU‘s 20th anniversary, a workshop will be arranged on Wednesday 18th of February in Tromsø, Norway.
Time: Wednesday February 18 12:30-16:00 Continue reading “Workshop in Tromsø February 18”
Last week I got the news that I got a 4 year research grant funded by the Research Council of Norway.
Continue reading “HIERARCHIES: New research project from the Research Council of Norway”
Pastoralism, Climate Change and Policy 