BIONÆR-Bionæringsprogram

In Sweden, equestrian sports are even bigger than in Norway and horseback riding is the second leisure activity, after football. Thus, the horse sector is also a little more organized than in Norway, with several associations and gathering places. The Norwegian equestrian sector is also organized, with overarching bodies such as the Norwegian Equestrian Federation and the Norwegian Equestrian Center, and many riding clubs that often serve as a gathering point. In addition, we have many breed associations that also have their member activities and events, and we have all the equestrian centers and riding schools that are important meeting points in their local environment. But an important feature of the equine sector is still the degree of informal networks and informal organization, and the many small private actors who operate independently. Just think of a stable where the horse owners themselves buy feed and emergency equipment, and share tasks such as feeding, import and discharge. In such environments, it is the informal organization of the work tasks in the stable that is most important for the horse and the horse owner's well-being. These informal structures work very well in many places, but where they do not work, horse owners can quickly find that they are left alone with problems that a more formal network might have helped them with. At the same time, the equine sector may appear to be a bit unstructured from the outside, with no fixed points of reference for players who want to influence the sector. As horse owners, we are completely dependent on a number of goods and services. Many people rent stable space, and depending on the conditions, the horse owner buys feed and spreads himself. In addition, we need specialized equipment and services such as farriers and trainers. Many of these services, especially teaching, are created by the equine sector itself. This means that as the equine sector grows, there will be room for the development of more such services. But when the horse sector is reduced, for example as a result of economic downturns that make it cost too much for many to have a horse, more of those who offer goods and services to horse owners will also notice this and there will not be room for as many players. Everyone who drives a horse thus benefits from a large and vibrant horse sector because it gives us, not only better, but a greater diversity of what we need of goods and services. The equine sector is a complex cluster. The complexity is that there are many ways to have and drive a horse, all of which have slightly different requirements for their surroundings. The vast majority of horse riders have this as a hobby, which means that the income must come from another place. Since more and more people, including horse owners, both live and work in the cities, there are a lot of horses in the countryside near cities and towns. Income, which is largely generated in the cities, is thus channeled to the countryside, and many of the horse sector's companies can also be found here. The horse sector is also important socially, in that horse owners take the whole family with them to make the interest in horses a lifestyle. In this way, the countryside becomes attractive housing for people with an interest in horses, and in this way new opportunities and well-being are created for everyone who lives in the countryside. It may seem as if a touring rider who will never set foot in a riding stable, and a competitive rider on the national team have completely different needs and contributions into the horse sector. But these differences help to make the equine sector diverse, which everyone benefits from. Both riders on the national team and breeders of sports horses benefit from the fact that many children and young people get to cultivate their interest in horses, whether it is at the riding school, or with a borrowed horse in the neighboring stable. Experience from Sweden shows that it is when the horse sector gathers across branch, level, race or other directions within horses that it becomes possible to influence the authorities. Large companies and other actors outside the horse sector, such as feed suppliers, potential sponsors and other interest groups in society, will also be more easily influenced by a more united herd of horse owners, than individuals or small horse companies. The size of the horse sector in Sweden has probably meant that there are several municipal initiatives aimed at horses and riding, but even there, horse people have stated that it is horse people who must take the initiative if they want something to happen. Many horse people are used to not expecting anything from the rest of society, but rather being seen as an annoyance along the road and on paths where other people travel. Then it can be good to remember that we are stronger together and that we benefit from each other even though the way we use the horse can be very different.

Prosjektet meiner å sjå at hestesektoren er av mange i lokalsamfunna oppfatta som ein representant for ein invaderande urban kultur. Det er behov for å redusere denne «kløfta» mellom «oss og dei andre» for å oppnå betre samhandling rundt utforming av dei formelle så vel som det uformelle rammene rundt hestehald og bruk av hest i lokalsamfunna. Utforming av normer og sosiale reglar og rettesnorer for korleis ulike aktørar i eit lokalsamfunn ter seg i høve kvarandre vert svekka som følge av desse opfatningane. Sameleis verkar det inn også på planlegginga og samhandlinga mellom hestesektoren og dei lokale forvaltarane så vel som myndigheitene. Prosjektet anbefaler hestesektoren å jobbe med korleis sektoren vert oppfatta av aktørar utanfor sektoren. Det bør synast fram at aktørane i sektoren er seriøse aktørar og at aktiviteten leverer tenester så vel som kollektive gode. Medan dei sosiale tenestene er godt kommunisert er dei økologiske og miljømessige godane og tenestene lite kommunisert. Dette er i all hovudsak noko ein teoretisk kan anta at sektoren sjølv bør jobbe med og på det grunnlaget vert også organiseringa viktig. Sidan hestesektoren er ein så mangfaldig sektor med eit stort mengde ulike organisasjonar vil sektoren ha stor nytte av å samorganisere seg under ein felles organisasjon, eventuelt ein paraplyorganisasjon, som kan sortere og vekte dei ulike interessene og behova over for lokalsamfunnets ulike andre interessegrupperingar så vel som politiske og administrative lokale einongar. Fleire av dei utfordringane me har sett hestesektoren står overfor kan løysast med betre planlegging. For å lykkast med det vil omgrepet «seriøs fritid» (serious lesure) vere eit nyttig omgrep for å femne om den komplekse gruppa av aktørar innan sektoren. Vidare treng ein å ta inn hestesektoren som ein del av dei kriteria dei lokale planmyndigheitene skal jobbe med. Også planleggingsarbeidet vil drage vekslar på ein betre organisert sektor som kan representere dei ulike interessene på ein meir samlande måte. Alt dette er tilrådingar frå prosjektet som hestesektoren bør jobbe med, gjerne i samarbeid med kommunane. Me ser at kommunar som har tatt rolla som vertskap for kontraurbane «hestefolk» ser ut til å oppnå gode resultat i arbeidet med å redusere konfliktane mellom «hestefolk og andre» i lokalsamfunnet.

This project will study the social, cultural and economic impact of the equine sector on local development. Furthermore, it will study the land and resource use of the equine sector and how it co-exist and collaborate with other sector and other land use locally. The starting point for social and cultural impact with be the riding school or other equestrian center, while land use, economic impact and local development will be studied on the municipal level. Six case study areas, three in Sweden and three in Norway, will be chosen and studied using mainly qualitative methods. The project will provide the equine sector tools they can use to communicate their positive impact on the local community, as well as ways to collaborate with actors and sectors with potentially conflicting interests, with the aim to minimize conflict and maximize synergies