Khanty-Mansiysk to Host 7th World Congress of Association of World Reindeer Herders for First Time

Khanty-Mansiysk will host the 7th World Congress of the Association of World Reindeer Herders on 4–8 March in a hybrid format as part of the plan of main events that the Roscongress Foundation is organizing during Russia’s chairmanship in the Arctic Council in 2021–2023. The event is being organized by the Government of the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous District and the Association of World Reindeer Herders, an international organization that represents the interests of all indigenous peoples involved in reindeer herding.

The congress traditionally brings together representatives of the reindeer herding peoples of Arctic countries and plays an important role in preserving reindeer herding around the world. The event takes place every four years and serves as an arena for dialogue between reindeer herders, representatives of the international scientific community, and experts on reindeer husbandry and indigenous peoples. Representatives of 26 reindeer herding regions of the world are expected to attend the event in person and remotely this year.

The event programme includes a professional skills competition among reindeer herders of the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous District for the Yugra Governor’s Cup, a digital salon of social projects ‘Circumpolar Networks in the Development of the Traditional Way of Life of Indigenous Peoples’, creative ethno-workshops, the ‘Taste of the North’ gastronomic ethno-festival, and the ‘Children in Reindeer Herding 2022’ exhibition of children's drawings. A new council of the Association of World Reindeer Herders will also be selected during the congress.

For more details, please visit the event’s official website 7wrhc.admhmao.ru.