TOMSK, Nov 27 – RIA Tomsk. The indigenous peoples of northern Norway, in particular the Sami, joined the SecNet research network, created under the auspices of Tomsk State University (TSU); Norwegian Arctic natives will participate in climatologist research aimed at studying the problems of global climate change, the press service of the university said on Wednesday.
It is explained that the SecNet international research network was created within the framework of the Trans-Siberian Scientific Way (TSSW) Institute of TSU as a tool for studying Siberia and the Arctic. It includes leading institutions of Russia, Great Britain, Norway, the USA, and Canada. The SecNet partners include Iteract II, the University of the Arctic, the American National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON), and the Canadian mountain station network.
"The small indigenous peoples of Northern Norway have joined the SecNet network, created under the auspices of TSU. <...> Representatives of small peoples (Norway) are ready to participate in the research of scientists in the hope that the results will draw the attention of the authorities to their problems", – is said in the message.
According to the director of the Center for International Cooperation at TSU, the coordinator of SecNet, Olga Shaduyko, quoted by the press service, Norwegian Sami are increasingly faced with problems caused by global climate transformation. In particular, reindeer herders note that winters are getting warmer, snow falls later than usual. As a result, reindeer lichen, the mainstay of the reindeer diet, suffers. It is becoming increasingly difficult to feed the herd.
"Norwegian Sami also suffer from another problem – the active development of Arctic tourism. Dozens of people who are there for several days come to the north, ride snowmobiles, hunt, fish, but do not invest in the development of the territory at the same time. They move along the tracks of deer migrations, scare them with loud noises, leave a lot of garbage after themselves", – adds Shaduyko.Norwegian Sami are ready to conduct observations and take readings at weather stations. According to scientists – SecNet partners, aborigines are able to notice something that expedition members may simply not notice. Also, with the filing of the indigenous population, ideas for new projects are born. SecNet, Sami representatives and Luleå University of Technology (Norway) have submitted a joint application for a Nordic grant.