The Interreg Aurora funded small-scale project AirHerd was completed during 2024. The aim was to improve cross-border knowledge exchange about drone use in reindeer herding, and to co-create ideas for a large scale research project in the same field.
The researchers found out that drone use could support the herders in finding and collecting animals in challenging terrain, moving animals away from dangers or to check infrastructure and moving routes – to mention some. Furthermore, drone use instead of helicopter could possibly reduce CO₂ emissions, as well as providing a more soft approach to collecting the reindeers.
A future scenario could be that drones, with help of AI, could count the reindeers.
“It was really eye-opening to compare the process on the Swedish and Norwegian side, with all the similarities in the challenges herders face. At the same time, the innovation spirit is strong in the herding communities, and with financial support and more clarity regarding regulations, drones could provide dramatic advantages to the reindeer herding industry”, says Jonas Harvard, Project manager at Mid University Sweden.
Project partners in AirHerd was Mid Sweden University (MiUn) and the Norwegian Institute for Bioeconomy (NIBIO).
Read the AirHerd report.
Read more about the Interreg Aurora small-scale project AirHerd.
Cover photo by E.Winje, NIBIO.
