I am a Sami reindeer herder from northern Norway. My family and I have herded reindeer for generations. It is not just our livelihood, but an integral part of Sami culture – a way of life built on respect for nature, community and continuity. We make our living from the land, and we are proud of who we are and what we do.
Today, that way of life is under serious threat.
The Norwegian government is planning to build several hundred wind turbines on our grazing lands. These projects would disrupt reindeer migration routes, damage fragile ecosystems and undermine the very foundations of Sami reindeer herding. I am speaking out because if this goes ahead, we risk losing not just our income, but our culture. This is why I am part of Amnesty International’s Write for Rights campaign this year.
I grew up in a small place called Tana, where there were just 12 children in my school class. Of the five of us who were Sami, two came from families of reindeer herders. At the time, I believed the rest were Norwegian. Later, I learned that everyone in my class was Sami. Their parents had been pressured to hide who they were.
When I was at school, the Norwegian state wanted all Sami people to be known simply as Norwegian. We were forced to speak the national language instead of our own. We were not allowed to speak Sami in school or sing Sami songs. At one point, even our traditional drum — used to connect with nature’s spirits — was banned by the church. These policies were designed to erase us, and they left deep scars that remain today.
Thankfully, my parents allowed me to speak Sami at home, even though it was considered a forbidden language. I have always been proud of my heritage, but many others were denied that opportunity. We have struggled for decades to reclaim rights that should never have been taken from us.
I decided early on that I wanted to become a reindeer herder. It felt natural, rooted in the life I knew and loved. My husband and I married young and chose to follow in our ancestors’ footsteps. For a long time, we lived peacefully, believing that we would continue this life as generations before us had done.
That peace has not lasted.
Today, the government is taking our land. This will have a devastating effect on our income and on the reindeer themselves. From winter to spring, the reindeer graze in one area before migrating for the summer. They migrate on their own and give birth in the same place every year. Our role as herders is to follow them, not to control them. When migration routes are broken, the entire system collapses.
In 2023, several hundred wind turbines were suddenly proposed directly on our summer grazing lands in Corgas. These plans threaten to destroy grazing areas, sever migration routes and undermine ancient herding traditions. Despite fierce opposition from Sami communities, the authorities are rushing approvals.
We know what wind turbines do to reindeer. The animals avoid the areas entirely. If these projects go ahead, the land will become unusable. While the Norwegian state claims ownership of the land, the Sami people were granted the right to use it hundreds of years ago. Now, that right is being pushed aside in favour of industrial development. Our children risk being left with nothing.
Reindeer herding sustains our community in many ways. The reindeer provide meat and materials for traditional handicrafts. My family also runs a small company that shares Sami knowledge and culture with visitors. Every year, about 4,000 people from all over the world come to learn about our way of life. If these wind farms are built, we risk losing everything we have built together.
What makes this even harder to accept is the justification. We are told this is about green energy and the future. But at what cost, and to whom? Norway already has abundant electricity. Why is nature valued only when it can be exploited? We are the ones living with the effects of climate change. When I was growing up, winter temperatures could reach minus 40 degrees Celsius (minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit). Today, winters are warmer. Sometimes it rains instead of snow, forming ice that prevents reindeer from accessing food. We need this land to survive a changing climate, not to sacrifice it.
For more than a year, I have been fighting to defend our land and our community. I attend meetings with energy companies to explain how wind turbines will harm our livelihoods and the animals. I try to make our case to government officials, but it feels like no one is listening.
Seven wind farm projects are now planned, involving hundreds of turbines. I have explained again and again what this will mean for us, yet the decisions seem already made. I feel like I am losing my life to this fight, simply to protect what should never have been threatened.
I have three children and eight grandchildren. I worry deeply about the future they are being forced to inherit. Young people should not have to grow up constantly fighting for the right to exist.
This struggle has taken a toll on my mental health. Some days, I am still trying to understand how to survive what is happening. My community supports me as best they can. They tell me I am strong, and their support gives me strength. I am not doing this only for my own family. I am doing it for the entire community.
I will not stop. I protest outside government buildings with friends. We go together, because solidarity matters. I cannot sit back and watch our land be taken. As long as I have the strength to fight, I will.
I have always been an activist. When I was six years old, I fought to speak Sami at school. I wanted it to be our first language, not our second, and I was not afraid to say so. That fight has never really ended.
I am grateful that Amnesty International is supporting our case today. Their solidarity reminds me that we are not invisible, even when our own government treats us as if we are. This is our life. I do not know another way of living. We must protect our land so that future generations can continue to live as Sami.
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance.
