Svartárkot (Black River Cottage), hitherto known as a sheep farm in Bárðardalur, NE Iceland, is shortly to become renowned as the site of an international centre for research and education on Icelandic culture and nature. Three courses will be run here, on the model of a general course that was successfully piloted nearby in Kiðagil in a conference in the summer of 2007. This had some 25 participants from universities worldwide who explored Icelandic nature, listened to lectures on Icelandic nature, history and culture and also enjoyed such activities as whale-watching at the summer solstice out of Húsavík under the midnight sun, as well as eating and drinking at white-night barbecues in the wilds of Svartárkot and Mývatn. The three courses of Svartárkot will be taught in the fields of cultural history, geography, and environmental studies.
Svartárkot, as the farm highest up the Bárðardalur Valley, borders the Ódáðahraun, the wildest uninhabited lava interior of Iceland. To the south and east lie the rugged uninhabitable areas of the highlands, the domains of glaciers and lavafields, while a colourful cultural history is also to be found further down the valley towards the lowlands. Svartárkot lies on the western bank of Svartárvatn (‘black river lake’), at the southernmost point of Fljótsheiði (‘river heath’), around 400 meters above sealevel, at the foot of the Ódáðahraun (‘lava of fouldeeds’). To the south, a wilderness extends all the way to the Vatnajökull (‘glacier of lakes’), a glacier which is also the largest ice-cap in Europe. Ancient settlements are known to have existed deep in this wilderness along the Skjálfandafljót (‘trembling river’), and to the north along Fljótsheiði the remains of numerous nineteenth-century heathland settlements are to be found.
Svartárkot maintains a handsome sheep husbandry, and there is excellent troutfishing in the lake. Of a few turf outbuildings still in use , one is the house for smoking the local trout. Down in the valley is a flourishing settlement with an extensive cultural history reflecting, right from the time of its earliest records, the unending struggles of local people with the forces of nature. The ‘frontier’ location gives the place an extraordinary power to challenge one’s understanding of human history as a continuous dialogue between people and nature. This location was itself our inspiration for founding an international centre for research and education in Svartárkot. All three courses – one on the early cultural history of Iceland, the second on local nature and culture, the third on the relationship between nature and culture in Iceland – are designed to a standard in accordance with both undergraduate and graduate teaching at the international university level. Universities across the world will be invited to send students to these courses, which will also be assessed for credit similarly in accordance with international standards.
These courses at Svartárkot,which will be supervised by the Reykjavík Academy, have been devised so as to exploit to the utmost the experience of living in the place, the farm, the settlement and the wilderness, as well as showing both the dynamic connection between past and present and the integration of ecology with cultural studies. The Svartárkot courses will reconnect today’s society to the environment, for instance allowing participants to fish in the lake, earn the catch and eat it. A diverse range of teaching methods will be offered, combining lectures at the centre, 2-3 day journeys in the central highlands, day trips to the local history museums and to the community archive at Húsavík, as well as visits to spectacular waterfalls and geothermal areas. Other possible excursions and activities include whale-watching, hikes across the highlands, visits to farms and lectures on stories in the past and present at the sites of abandoned farms. Specific programs will emphasize material culture, folklore, craftsmanship, cuisine, horsemanship and anything else which emerges.
Our courses are intended for any students with an interest in cultural studies, literature, history, anthropology, folklore, geography, geology, ecology and natural science, with the focus on integrating the study of culture and nature. The first teaching will take place in the summer of 2008. On a preliminary basis, our courses will be held a few miles north of Svartárkot, in the community center at Kiðagil.
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