Indigenous food harvesting as social–ecological monitoring: A case study with the Gitga'at First Nation
Abstract Indigenous peoples have been monitoring and managing the natural resources in their homelands and waters for millennia. Meanwhile, social–ecological systems thinkers are embracing the capacity of Indigenous knowledge systems, which are informed by land‐based practices, to inform adaptive ma...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2020-12-01
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| Series: | People and Nature |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/pan3.10135 |
| _version_ | 1818618617487425536 |
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| author | Kim‐Ly Thompson Cameron Hill Jaime Ojeda Natalie C. Ban Chris R. Picard |
| author_facet | Kim‐Ly Thompson Cameron Hill Jaime Ojeda Natalie C. Ban Chris R. Picard |
| author_sort | Kim‐Ly Thompson |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Indigenous peoples have been monitoring and managing the natural resources in their homelands and waters for millennia. Meanwhile, social–ecological systems thinkers are embracing the capacity of Indigenous knowledge systems, which are informed by land‐based practices, to inform adaptive management. Following the collaborative design of a community‐based social–ecological monitoring system over two traditional seafood harvesting seasons, we conducted a conceptual framework analysis of meeting notes and interview transcripts with Gitga'at harvesters and knowledge holders to discern how Gitga'at people monitor their territory and what indicators they focus on. An interconnected set of social–ecological concepts and indicators emerged, evidencing an intrinsic part of Gitga'at life: Gitga'at harvesters closely monitor their coastal social–ecological system through ongoing land‐ and sea‐based practices. The conceptual framework highlights the importance of maintaining and revitalizing Indigenous knowledge and harvesting practices to inform social–ecological monitoring and adaptive management at local and broader scales. Amidst discussions of marine and coastal resource co‐management in British Columbia, our results also suggest opportunities for scientific approaches to situate themselves within and support existing Indigenous frameworks and priorities. This research also adds to the discussion on the development of appropriate regional and global indicators and frameworks to monitor the resilience of social–ecological systems. A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-16T17:24:26Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-37b153fce993432c82fb918c82068858 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2575-8314 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-16T17:24:26Z |
| publishDate | 2020-12-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | People and Nature |
| spelling | doaj.art-37b153fce993432c82fb918c820688582022-12-21T22:23:06ZengWileyPeople and Nature2575-83142020-12-01241085109910.1002/pan3.10135Indigenous food harvesting as social–ecological monitoring: A case study with the Gitga'at First NationKim‐Ly Thompson0Cameron Hill1Jaime Ojeda2Natalie C. Ban3Chris R. Picard4School of Environmental Studies University of Victoria Victoria BC CanadaHartley Bay School Hartley Bay BC CanadaSchool of Environmental Studies University of Victoria Victoria BC CanadaSchool of Environmental Studies University of Victoria Victoria BC CanadaGitga'at Oceans and Lands Department Gitga'at First Nation Hartley Bay BC CanadaAbstract Indigenous peoples have been monitoring and managing the natural resources in their homelands and waters for millennia. Meanwhile, social–ecological systems thinkers are embracing the capacity of Indigenous knowledge systems, which are informed by land‐based practices, to inform adaptive management. Following the collaborative design of a community‐based social–ecological monitoring system over two traditional seafood harvesting seasons, we conducted a conceptual framework analysis of meeting notes and interview transcripts with Gitga'at harvesters and knowledge holders to discern how Gitga'at people monitor their territory and what indicators they focus on. An interconnected set of social–ecological concepts and indicators emerged, evidencing an intrinsic part of Gitga'at life: Gitga'at harvesters closely monitor their coastal social–ecological system through ongoing land‐ and sea‐based practices. The conceptual framework highlights the importance of maintaining and revitalizing Indigenous knowledge and harvesting practices to inform social–ecological monitoring and adaptive management at local and broader scales. Amidst discussions of marine and coastal resource co‐management in British Columbia, our results also suggest opportunities for scientific approaches to situate themselves within and support existing Indigenous frameworks and priorities. This research also adds to the discussion on the development of appropriate regional and global indicators and frameworks to monitor the resilience of social–ecological systems. A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.https://doi.org/10.1002/pan3.10135biocultural indicatorscommunity‐based monitoringconceptual frameworkenvironmental monitoringindigenous food systemsindigenous knowledge |
| spellingShingle | Kim‐Ly Thompson Cameron Hill Jaime Ojeda Natalie C. Ban Chris R. Picard Indigenous food harvesting as social–ecological monitoring: A case study with the Gitga'at First Nation People and Nature biocultural indicators community‐based monitoring conceptual framework environmental monitoring indigenous food systems indigenous knowledge |
| title | Indigenous food harvesting as social–ecological monitoring: A case study with the Gitga'at First Nation |
| title_full | Indigenous food harvesting as social–ecological monitoring: A case study with the Gitga'at First Nation |
| title_fullStr | Indigenous food harvesting as social–ecological monitoring: A case study with the Gitga'at First Nation |
| title_full_unstemmed | Indigenous food harvesting as social–ecological monitoring: A case study with the Gitga'at First Nation |
| title_short | Indigenous food harvesting as social–ecological monitoring: A case study with the Gitga'at First Nation |
| title_sort | indigenous food harvesting as social ecological monitoring a case study with the gitga at first nation |
| topic | biocultural indicators community‐based monitoring conceptual framework environmental monitoring indigenous food systems indigenous knowledge |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/pan3.10135 |
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