NOMADS World Culture Festival Site, Taij Mountain, Nalaikh
August 21–23, 2026
10:00 AM – 7:00 PM Daily
Perspectives on Pastoralism

Perspectives on Pastoralism

International Film Festival Selections for IYRP 2026

An international festival series highlighting the diversity of pastoralism around the world, presented globally in the context of IYRP.

An afternoon on the pasture

190 min Hungary Zsolt Molnár & Sándor Karácsony Hungarian Puszta Herders Perspectives on Pastoralism

László Sáfián – born into a Hungarian family that has been herding for generations – explains how he, with his dog, manages close-herded grazing on a patchy semi-natural pasture.

Bayandalai: Lord of the Taiga

11 min Mongolia Aner Etxebarria Moral & Pablo Vidal Santos Dukha (Tsaatan Reindeer Herders) Perspectives on Pastoralism

From inside his yurt in northern Mongolia, the reindeer herder Bayandalai ‒ an elder of the Dukhas tribe ‒ muses about the significance of life and death in the largest forest on Earth, the Taiga.

Changing a Landscape to a Lifescape: the Humboldt Ranch

In northeastern Nevada, the Humboldt Ranch is transforming more than 350,000 acres of public and private rangelands through innovative grazing practices.

Climate change and pastoralism

Part of the MOOC course material for Pastoralism in Development created by IIED, MISEREOR, and Saverio Krätli.

Conservation and Traditional Survival

22 min South Africa Humair Hayat Nama Perspectives on Pastoralism

After several years of negotiations with the South African National Parks Board, the local Nama people were allowed to remain living and grazing their livestock in a designated nature conservation area – the Richtersveld World Heritage Site in Northern Cape Province bordering Namibia.

Cowherds of the Savannah

26 min Uganda Mark Michel & Neue Celluloid Fabrik Karamojong Perspectives on Pastoralism

The Karamojong are herdsmen in the North-East of Uganda and guardians of their landscape.

Days of the Wolf

In Italy’s Apennine Mountains, large carnivores are creating problems for herders.

Enchukunoto (The Return)

16 min Kenya Laissa Malih Maasai Perspectives on Pastoralism

In this intimate and groundbreaking film, Laissa Malih, the first female Maasai filmmaker, returns to her ancestral village in Laikipia to explore how climate change is transforming Maasai lands and lives.

Fatuma and Assya – Two Afar Girls in Ethiopia

20 min Ethiopia Francesco Sincich Afar Perspectives on Pastoralism

This film tells the story of two girls in Afar, northeast Ethiopia, and how they face challenges in their young lives: Fatuma seeking to avoid the traditional arranged marriage and Asya trying to deal with livestock theft and conflict with the Somali Issa.

Guardians of the grasslands

13 min Canada Sarah Wray & Ben Wilson / CRSB Canadian Prairie Ranchers Perspectives on Pastoralism

Canada’s native grasslands are disappearing at an alarming rate; they are one of the most endangered ecosystems in the world.

Living in the Mountains of Ladakh

3 min India Stanzin Dorjai Gya Changpa (Ladakh) Perspectives on Pastoralism

In this film, a nomadic woman shares her daily life in Ladakh’s high mountains.

Pastoralism is the future

Man-made climate change is creating conditions on our planet that are increasingly characterised by variability and unpredictability.

Preserving Rajasthan's camel herds

5 min India LPPS & Camel Charisma Raika Perspectives on Pastoralism

Features community-led initiatives in Rajasthan to create sustainable livelihoods from camel milk and camel wool products, aiming to save endangered camel herds and preserve the traditional Raika way of life.

Sharing the Land

14 min Spain Ofelia de Pablo & Javier Zurita Spanish Transhumance Herders Perspectives on Pastoralism

This documentary brings the testimonies of three herders – Fernando, Juan and Sofía – who have learnt to live close to wolves.

Shepherds of the Deccan

For hundreds of years, the Dhangar nomads have kept sheep on the Deccan Plateau in Maharashtra State, India.

Stories from the landscape: cattle drove

30 min Ireland Christopher O'Donnell Irish Cattle Drovers Perspectives on Pastoralism

This film shows the living cultural heritage of transhumance in Europe: moving livestock to different grazing grounds in a seasonal cycle that goes back as long as people have been farming in the region.

Tarlamt: Salt Caravan to Bilma

Filmed in 2000 with lightweight equipment in harsh desert conditions, this documentary follows a Tuareg (Kel Eway Imjaghan) camel caravan traveling across the Sahara to Bilma, documenting traditional trade routes, desert survival, and social organization.

Tes River Mongolians

58 min Mongolia Joseph L. Subbiondo / Asian Cultural Council Mongol Herders Perspectives on Pastoralism

The Tes River flows from the Bulnai Mountains through three Mongolian provinces – Khuvsgul, Zavkhan and Uvs – feeds into Lake Uvs, registered by UNESCO in 2013 as a Natural World Heritage site.

The Custodians of the Andean Gold

32 min Bolivia Bibiana Vilá & CONICET Andean Llama/Vicuña Herders Perspectives on Pastoralism

In the high Andes of Peru and Bolivia, Quechua and Aymara families depend on alpacas and vicuñas for their livelihoods, selling the animals’ prized fiber.

The Kumbhalgarh Raika Story

12 min India LPPS & Hanwant Singh Rathore Raika Perspectives on Pastoralism

Highlights the struggle of the Raika camel herders of Rajasthan, India, as they advocate for grazing access rights within the Kumbhalgarh Wildlife Sanctuary, demonstrating their role as stewards of forest biodiversity.

Presenting hosts

Event partners

Festival supporters