Tropentag 2024 - filmfestival

Explore opportunities... for managing natural resources and a better life for all

September 11 - 13, 2024
organised by
University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (BOKU), Austria

Film Festival

Second Edition of Perspectives on Pastoralism Film Festival at the Tropentag 2022

Wednesday 14 September 2022 - 19:30-22:00 CEST and Thursday 15 September 2022 - 12:15-13:45 CEST
FTZ building room 116 (ground floor) - the films will be streamed via whova as well

The Coalition of European Lobbies for Eastern African Pastoralism (CELEP) would like to present the second edition of the "Perspectives on Pastoralism" Film Festival as part of the Tropentag 2022 conference in Prague. The first edition of the film festival was launched at the Tropentag held in Kassel in 2019.

The film-selection team comes from the Agrecol Association for AgriCulture & Ecology and the German Institute for Tropical and Subtropical Agriculture (DITSL) in Germany; Veterinarians without Borders (Vétérinaires Sans Frontières, VSF) in Belgium; the Centre for Research and Development in Drylands in Kenya; the Africa Wildlife Foundation in Uganda; and the Agricultural Research Council (ARC) in South Africa.

Widespread misunderstanding about pastoralism has often left it undervalued and a victim of uninformed policies. The film festival seeks to raise awareness and inform about pastoralism as a sustainable nature-based production system and thus a form of agroecology that is ideally suited for drylands and mountainous regions - and for the climatic and economic uncertainties of today.

The film festival will deepen understanding of how diverse peoples across the world gain their livelihoods from extensive livestock production. The relationships between pastoralist people, their animals and their food production systems reflect an intimate intertwining of culture, economy and ecology in highly variable environments, where the mobility of the herds plays a key role.

The films selected for Tropentag 2022 will focus on ecologically appropriate use of natural resources, the rights of pastoralists to continue to use and steward these resources, and the challenges that pastoralists face in maintaining and developing their livelihood systems.

Programme

Part 1: Wednesday 14 September 19:30–22:00 CEST

19:30 - Entry film (silent)

The area near Tanzania’s Mount Meru is increasingly affected by drought. The Maasai herder, Paulo, must find creative ways to feed his family. In the morning, he seeks breakfast for his goats, so that they can produce milk for their own kids – and for Paolo’s young son.

19:45 Welcoming and opening remarks by Hussein Tadicha Wario, Centre for Research & Development in Drylands, Kenya.

20:00 Short films from Africa, Asia, Europe & North America

Human-made climate change is creating conditions on our planet that are increasingly characterised by variability and unpredictability. But, as this animated video explains, pastoralists use variability to their advantage, and their livestock production systems could guide us to a more sustainable future.

Canada’s native grasslands are disappearing at an alarming rate; they are one of the most endangered ecosystems in the world. This film – the result of collaboration between conservationists and local pastoralists (ranchers) – shows how cattle grazing still creates hope on what is left of these iconic landscapes for the plant and animal species that call them home.

Flocks are moved along the traditional livestock routes in Jaén Province, one of the last places in Spain where transhumance is still practised. The video shows the tremendous environmental, social, cultural and economic achievements of these mobile shepherds.

Dialogue between ecological scientist and three herders, who explain their sources of knowledge, their pasture management, the links between traditional livestock breeds and nature conservation, their interactions with conservationists, the effect of economic change on their livelihoods, future perspectives, how herders’ lives could be improved, and cooperation between herders and scientists.

Urmat and Aigul are traditional pastoralists in Kyrgyzstan. Their life depends on the health of their pasturelands and livestock, but they now have to deal with climate change. This is the story of how Urmat, Aigul and their community have been fighting against the clock to restore pastureland and counteract degradation in the face of extreme climate events.

The story of Hajekber Serikbol, leader of a pastoralist community in the western foothills of Mongolia, which calls itself the "friendship community", this film shows these mobile herders’ respect for the environment, living with nature and facing climate-related hazards. Communal management of pasture and water resources is portrayed as key to the sustainability of their pastoral system.

Transhumant nomads in Turkey spend winter on the Mediterranean coastal plains and, in spring, move with their goats into the Taurus Mountains. However, the government, the military and landowners are constantly placing new obstacles in their path. The 63-year-old woman Pervin Savran leads the nomads' fight for their rights to continue their traditional herding system and lifestyle.

For hundreds of years, the Dhangar nomads have kept sheep on the Deccan Plateau in Maharashtra State, India. Their biggest problem was wolves, which they also worship, knowing full well that wolves will take a few animals each year, often the weakest. Now they face a new threat: climate change, bringing extreme weather events. The film traces the path of a few migratory families and the loss they felt when several animals died during unprecedented rains. The nomads ask government to take notice of their situation and create policies to protect their sheep and their livelihoods.

The Maasai herder, Lenina, represents the plight of an entire pastoralist community in northern Tanzania. The film depicts how Mkungunero Game Reserve has been encroaching on the pastoralists’ grazing areas and how this affects their lives.

21:30-22:00 - Panel discussion with CELEP members and partners

Part 2: Thursday 15 September 12:15–13:45 CEST

Feature film from South America

This 1.5-hour film follows the Paradas, a charismatic family of Argentinian gauchos who take their goats on transhumance between the lowlands and highlands, on their arduous journey through the High Andes. It captures their reflections on the threat that “progress” poses to their livelihood, on the parents’ uncertainty whether their children will keep up the generations-old family tradition, and on the beauty of their landscape. The Parada family’s own songs and music accompany the film.

Tropentag 2024: