More than half (54%) of the Earth's land surface is covered by rangelands, vast landscapes that include grasslands, savannahs, deserts, and shrublands. These ecosystems support the livelihoods of more than 500 million pastoralists whose traditional knowledge and livestock management practices have helped sustain both people and landscapes for generations.
To raise global awareness of their ecological, cultural, and economic importance, the United Nations has declared 2026 the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists (IYRP). In recognition of this global initiative, the University of Winnipeg Anthropology Museum is hosting a Perspectives on Pastoralism Film Festival on Friday, October 3 in 3C00.
The festival will showcase a diverse selection of films ranging from short to full-length documentaries, exploring the culture and experiences of pastoralists communities from across six continents.
The Global Perspectives on Pastoralism Film Festival was started in Germany in 2019 by Dr. Margareta Lelea and UWinnipeg alumna Dr. Ann Waters-Bayer (BAH 71) to support an international campaign to convince the UN to designate an IYRP.
Ann an agricultural sociologist, now living in Göttingen, Germany, who worked in several countries in Africa and Asia practising and championing bottom-up research and development led by pastoralists and smallholder farmers
"It's been more than 55 years since I graduated from the University of Winnipeg and went to study in Germany," said Ann, who was delighted to hear that Dr. Eric Thrift, an associate professor in the Department of Anthropology was organizing the local festival, and presented at the 17th Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCP COP17) last month in Mongolia.
"This confirmed for me the international outreach of the University of Winnipeg and strengthened my pride in being an alumna of the university."
"Dr. Waters-Bayer is basically one of the key leaders in getting this festival going and championing the pastoralists to be celebrated internationally," said Dr. Thrift. "My colleagues and I felt it was important to recognize her career and celebrate the impact she has had in our field."
To honour Ann's work, the UWinnipeg festival will screen Fulani Dairywoman (run time 19 minutes), a film shot by Ann on a super-8 camera in central-Nigeria in 1984.
Originally, this film was used in universities in Germany and the Netherlands to help students of tropical agriculture learn about Indigenous dairying techniques and gender roles. Now, more than 40 years later, it serves as a historical ethnographic document
The festival will also screen For Ann - a five-minute short - dedicated to Dr. Waters-Bayer to recognize her lifetime of advocating for and promoting advocacy by pastoralist worldwide.
The festival is free to attend. To learn more about the schedule and programming, readers are invited to visit the festival website.
