Societies | Cold United

Bruce Parry in Yakutsk, Yakutia/Siberia

On 06.25.10, In Adventures, Climate, Cultures, Environment, Lives, Photos, Projects, Societies, TV, Travel, documentary, By Bolot

Bruce Parry (with a tripod) and his team in Yakutsk, Yakutia/Siberia

Hurray! Bruce Parry with his IndusFilm crew is in the Siberian town of Yakutsk! What’s he doing here?

Bruce Parry (born 17 March 1969, in Hythe, Hampshire, England) is a former Royal Marine instructor who is now a TV presenter and adventurer, known particularly for the documentary programme series Tribe (known as Going Tribal in the United States), co-produced by the BBC and the Discovery Channel. Resource: Wiki.

I met Bruce Parry two days ago on Lenin Avenue in Yakutsk. Actually he and his team arrived early, on June 17th. They have already visited a village near the town, went for two celebrations of Ysyakh, Yakut national holiday. One was held in Gorny ulus (three hours by a car from Yakutsk) and Megino-Kangalassky region (just in the front of Yakutsk on the opposite bank of the Lena River). On the day of the meeting, they visited Epl Diamonds’ diamonds-cutting and jewelry’s factories and drove around the downtown shooting general views of the city.

First, I would love to tell the story of how his arrival happened to be possible. (more…)

Tagged with: Arctic • BBC • Bruce Parry • Climate change • Culture • documentary • Even • IndusFilms • reindeer herders • Russia • Sakkyryr • Siberia • social change • Yakut • Yakutia • Ysyakh

Indigenous people of Russia battered by hardships

On 05.21.10, In Cultures, Daily, Lives, People, Societies, By Bolot

Resource development has only led to more misery for northern Russia's indigenous peoples, Larissa Abryutina from the Russian Association of the Indigenous People of the North, tells a Laval university conference on the challenges of sustainable development and sovereignty in the Arctic on May 18.

Pollution, alcoholism, poor health care reduce life expectancy to between 40 to 45 years.

QUEBEC CITY — Many of the 280,000 indigenous peoples of Russia’s north are watching their communities and cultures teeter on the brink of extinction as economic hardships force them to leave their homelands and migrate in droves to the city.

Many of those who remain behind have abandoned traditional values and become “profit-driven in their search for compensation for their traditional lands,” Larissa Abryutina of the Russian Association of the Indigenous People of the North said May 18 in a presentation to a conference at Laval University on sustainable development and sovereignty in the Arctic.

Like other speakers, Abryutina revealed a striking irony: that it’s much easier to find bad examples of development and self-determination in the Arctic than good ones.

Abryutina, a Chukchi, is herself a casualty of the desperate choices facing northern Russian indigenous people: a doctor of radiology, she left her home region of Chukotka due to its declining standard of living.

(more…)

Tagged with: alcoholism • Chukotka • community • Culture • Far East • health care • Indigenous Peoples • Nenets • North • North Siberia • pollution • Russia • sovereignty • sustainable development

Snow Change in North Siberia: Indigenous Peoples’ Views on Climate Change and Ecology

On 05.19.10, In Climate, Cultures, Environment, Lives, People, Science, Societies, By Bolot

Reindeer in Yakutia, North Siberia, Russia. Photo by Bolot Bochkarev.

Here I would like to share the current results of the Siberian part of the Snow Change International Research Project realization. It took me real efforts to find this information. The project I am about described has its own website, but its owner doesn’t have time to publish a very interesting research results info on its online resource. Therefore, I asked a regional coordinator, the Northern Forum Academy chairman, Vladimir Vasiliev, to present the text to me. He did, but it was totally written in Russian. So I have translated it into English and not sure yet if some terms sound correctly. If any, just let me know about mistakes.

About: SnowChange is a not-for-profit independent cooperative organisation with headquarters in Finland. Head of International Affairs: Tero Mustonen
Status: Active. Website: SnowChange.org.

Project Mission

The international community network of SnowChange spans all eight Arctic states. Most of the member communities and families are from the various Arctic Indigenous Nations and other subsistence communities.

The project involves working with the various Northern areas and peoples on the topics of ecological, especially climatic and weather changes from the scientific and traditional knowledge point of view. In addition to the community documentation Snowchange as well works to advance local Indigenous knowledge in the global context and advance decolonisation of the North in the face of rapid changes.

The scientific priority of Snowchange is currently in the following areas of the North:
- The Saami territories of Finland, Russia, Sweden and Norway
- Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), Murmansk and Republic of Karelia in Russian Federation
- Savo, North Karelia and Kainuu, Finland
- Iceland and Faroe Islands
- British Columbia, Northwest Territories and Nunavut, Canada
- Alaska, USA

In addition to the operations in all Arctic countries (United States / Alaska, Canada, Iceland, Greenland and Faroe Islands (Denmark), Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russian Federation) SnowChange has partners in Bolivia, Nepal, Ghana and New Zealand.

Report on the Snow Change project realization in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia)
Information from its regional coordinator, Vladimir Vasiliev
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Tagged with: Arctic • Climate change • climate changes • Environment • Evenk • Finland • Iengra • Indigenous Peoples • Indigenous Peoples of the Russian North • Kolyma • NGO • North Siberia • Northern Forum • Northern Siberia • Reindeer • reindeer herders • research project • Russia • Science • Siberia • snow change • snow report • Yakutia • Yukagir

Nice tips: How to save on energy in the cold weather

On 11.28.09, In Daily, Lives, Societies, By Bolot

The US-based natural gas marketer Coweta-Fayette EMC Natural Gas have recently published cold weather energy efficiency tips for its customers to make their homes well prepared to keep warm, and prevent their bills going up. A nice intention, a good sign of customers care, and well-done PR trick. Whatever it can be, I found their tips pretty useful and appropriate.

However, I and my relativies use some of the listed tips only:

We check the seams around doors and windows before the start of the winter.
We prefer not to use a dishwasher.
My relatives, who have private houses, check attic insulation regularly.

(more…)

Tagged with: energy efficiency • saving • USA • Weather • winter

Two years ago: Yakutsk in November by Bjorn Steinz

On 11.11.09, In Clothes, Daily, Lives, People, Photos, Societies, By Bolot

I have a German friend, Bjorn Steinz. He is a pro photographer based in Prague. Two years ago he visited Yakutsk in November. He spent a few days just walking around on streets and taking pictures of people. Since then I promote his works and website oka2 Photography on every occasion, and I am grateful to him for giving such an permission

Here are what he came out with.

Yakutsk in November. By Bjorn Steinz. 2007. Yakutia/Siberia.

(more…)

Tagged with: Russia • Siberia • snow • winter • Yakutia • Yakutsk

Nunamiut Eskimo Dance

On 11.09.09, In Cultures, People, Societies, Videos, By rpiereck

This video was shot during Fairbanks’ 2009 annual Festival of Native Arts, where artists from all around Alaska and the Outside come to celebrate their native heritage by showcasing arts and crafts, dances, native games, and other cultural activities.

These are Nunamiut dancers from Anaktuvuk Pass, one of the coldest towns in Alaska. The Nunamiut are inland Eskimos, who hunt caribou rather than whales. Anaktuvuk Pass is only accessible by airplane, or by going through the bush in the winter, using snow machines or SnoCats.

They performed a couple of dances, most of them from 30 seconds to 1 minute long. Sometimes I wished they went on for longer as they were quite entertaining, you could tell the dances told a story and I wish I understood their language. On all dances the males stomped one foot on the ground to the beat of the drums, while the women did not stomp. Their drums were large but light, made of some animal skin (possibly caribou) stretched over a round wooden frame. They were the only instruments used by the performers.

Looking by the number of people on stage it looks like most of the village came down to perform; the total population is only 249!

Tagged with: Alaska • anaktuvuk pass • dance • drums • eskimo • foot • inuit • nunamiut • stomp

Six Dog Night

On 11.04.09, In Adventures, Cultures, Photos, Societies, Sports, By rpiereck

Six Dog Night. That is an Alaskan expression for those deep, frigid days that the Alaskan Interior is famous for. Temperatures bordering -60 degrees Fahrenheit (-51 Celsius) are not unheard of in January and February.