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Bridging Two Worlds: Integrating Indigenous Knowledge and Western Science in Climate Policy

In the face of accelerating climate change, policymakers and scientists are increasingly recognizing the value of Indigenous knowledge in developing effective climate strategies. This intersection of traditional wisdom and modern science represents a powerful approach to understanding and addressing environmental challenges. However, bridging these two knowledge systems is not without its complexities and challenges.

Understanding Indigenous Knowledge

Indigenous Traditional Knowledge (ITK) represents a sophisticated understanding of specific territories and ecosystems deeply rooted in regional relationships and experiences. This place-based knowledge system encompasses comprehensive environmental understanding, characterized by detailed comprehension of local ecosystems, biodiversity patterns, and seasonal cycles. Knowledge holders maintain intimate awareness of habitat characteristics and local climate variations, which have developed through generations of observation and interaction.

The spatial dimension of this knowledge reflects profound connections to specific landscapes, incorporating a detailed understanding of geographical features within traditional territories. This includes recognition of sacred and cultural sites, alongside thorough knowledge of historical land use patterns that have shaped the environment over time.

Within these knowledge systems, complex ecological interactions are carefully documented and understood in oral histories. Knowledge holders recognize intricate species relationships and environmental indicators that signal changes or warnings within the ecosystem. Traditional resource management practices reflect a deep understanding of wildlife behaviour patterns and plant-habitat associations, enabling sustainable stewardship of the land.

The cultural context of this knowledge adds another vital dimension, expressed through language-specific ecological terms that capture a nuanced understanding of environmental relationships. Traditional stories and teachings serve as vehicles for transmitting this knowledge, while ceremonial connections to land reinforce cultural protocols for responsible stewardship. This knowledge continues to evolve through careful intergenerational transfer, ensuring its relevance and application for future generations.

The Strengths of Western Science

Integrating Indigenous Traditional Knowledge (ITK) and Western science offers significant opportunities for enhanced environmental understanding and management. This complementary relationship manifests in several key areas:

Knowledge Integration Benefits:

  • Long-term Observational Data: Indigenous knowledge provides generations of detailed environmental observations that complement scientific data collection. These observations offer valuable historical baselines and document changes over extended periods, particularly in regions where scientific monitoring is recent or limited.
  • Holistic Understanding: While Western science often focuses on specific components or isolated systems, Indigenous knowledge typically approaches environmental understanding through interconnected relationships. This holistic perspective helps identify complex ecological patterns and relationships that might be overlooked in more narrowly focused studies.
  • Local Expertise: Indigenous knowledge holders possess a detailed understanding of local variations and subtle environmental changes that can inform and enhance scientific research methodologies. Their intimate knowledge of specific ecosystems provides a crucial context for scientific investigations.

Methodological Enhancements:

  • Improved Research Design: Incorporating Indigenous perspectives in research design can lead to more comprehensive and culturally appropriate studies. This includes considering traditional seasonal timing, cultural protocols, and local environmental factors.
  • Enhanced Data Collection: Traditional knowledge can guide where and when to conduct scientific studies, identifying critical areas for investigation and optimal timing for data collection based on generations of observation.
  • Validation of Findings: Indigenous knowledge often provides independent verification of scientific findings while offering additional contextual information that enriches scientific understanding.

Practical Applications:

  • Resource Management: Traditional management practices offer tested approaches for sustainable resource use, often demonstrating effectiveness over centuries or millennia.
  • Climate Change Adaptation: Indigenous observations of environmental changes provide valuable insights for developing climate adaptation strategies, particularly in rapidly changing northern environments.
  • Biodiversity Conservation: Traditional knowledge of species interactions and habitat requirements can inform more effective conservation strategies.

Learning Opportunities:

  • Alternative Perspectives: Western science benefits from exposure to different ways of knowing and understanding environmental relationships.
  • Cultural Context: Understanding the cultural context of environmental knowledge enriches scientific interpretation and application.
  • Ethical Frameworks: Indigenous approaches to environmental stewardship offer valuable ethical perspectives for scientific research and application.

Future Directions:

  • Collaborative Research Models: Development of new research frameworks that respectfully integrate both knowledge systems.
  • Policy Integration: Creation of environmental policies that recognize and incorporate both traditional and scientific knowledge.
  • Educational Programs: Development of educational approaches that teach students to work effectively with both knowledge systems.

This integration requires:

  • Mutual respect and recognition of different ways of knowing.
  • Commitment to genuine collaboration and knowledge sharing.
  • Development of appropriate protocols for knowledge integration.
  • Recognition of Indigenous intellectual property rights.
  • Long-term relationship building between communities and institutions.

Challenges in Integration

While the benefits of integrating Indigenous knowledge and Western science are clear, significant challenges remain, requiring careful consideration and sustained effort to address. These challenges manifest across multiple dimensions:

Structural and Institutional Barriers:

  • Embedded systemic biases in academic and research institutions.
  • Limited recognition of Indigenous knowledge systems in funding mechanisms.
  • Restrictive academic publication and peer review processes.
  • Inadequate representation of Indigenous perspectives in decision-making bodies.
  • Resource inequities in research partnerships.

Knowledge System Tensions:

  • Differing approaches to knowledge validation and verification.
  • Contrasting views on the relationship between humans and nature.
  • Various interpretations of time, causality, and evidence.
  • Distinct approaches to knowledge transmission.
  • Different understandings of what constitutes expertise.

Ethical and Cultural Considerations:

  • Protection of sacred or sensitive cultural knowledge.
  • Appropriate protocols for knowledge sharing and use.
  • Recognition and protection of Indigenous intellectual property rights.
  • Preservation of cultural context in knowledge translation.
  • Fair compensation for Indigenous knowledge contributions.

Methodological Challenges:

  • Reconciling different research approaches and methodologies.
  • Balancing quantitative and qualitative data requirements.
  • Addressing issues of scale and generalizability.
  • Integrating oral traditions with written documentation.
  • Maintaining cultural integrity in research processes.

Implementation Barriers:

  • Limited institutional capacity for cross-cultural engagement.
  • Inadequate funding for long-term relationship building.
  • Time constraints in academic and research contexts.
  • Language barriers and translation challenges.
  • Different expectations regarding research outcomes.

Required Actions for Progress:

  • Development of Indigenous-led research protocols.
  • Creation of appropriate knowledge-sharing frameworks.
  • Establishment of equitable partnership models.
  • Implementation of cultural safety training.
  • Recognition of Indigenous research methodologies.
  • Formation of Indigenous ethics review processes.
  • Creation of Indigenous knowledge protection mechanisms.

Overcoming Barriers: Towards True Collaboration

To address these challenges and foster genuine integration, several approaches are being developed:

Ethical Frameworks for Collaboration

(Image Credit: Getty Images, Licensed from Unsplash+)

Many institutions are developing ethical guidelines for working with Indigenous knowledge. The First Nations Information Governance Centre’s OCAP® principles (Ownership, Control, Access, and Possession) provide a framework for how Indigenous data should be collected, protected, used, or shared.

Co-development of Research

Increasingly, climate research projects are being co-developed with Indigenous communities from the outset. This ensures that Indigenous perspectives and priorities are centred in the research process.

Research institutions increasingly recognize that meaningful collaboration extends beyond consulting First Nations communities. Effective partnerships require true co-creation of knowledge and Indigenous research ethics, ensuring Indigenous Peoples fully participate in all aspects of the research process.

Policy Frameworks for Knowledge Integration

Some jurisdictions are developing policy frameworks that mandate the inclusion of Indigenous knowledge in environmental decision-making. In Canada, the Impact Assessment Act of 2019 requires the consideration of Indigenous knowledge in federal impact assessments.

Indigenous Knowledge in International Climate Policy

The integration of Indigenous knowledge is gaining recognition at the international level. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has increasingly incorporated Indigenous knowledge in its assessment reports, acknowledging its value in understanding climate impacts and developing adaptation strategies.

International policy think-tanks and experts emphasize that the incorporation of Indigenous knowledge in global climate policies extends beyond improving environmental management. This inclusion represents both the acknowledgment of Indigenous peoples’ rights and the validation of their essential contributions to protecting biodiversity and mitigating climate change.

The Way Forward: Co-existence and Mutual Respect

True integration of Indigenous knowledge and Western science in climate policy requires more than just incorporating traditional practices into existing frameworks. It calls for a fundamental shift in how we view knowledge creation and environmental stewardship.

Indigenous Knowledge Holders promote approaches that recognize and utilize the strengths of both Indigenous and scientific ways of knowing, emphasizing the importance of using these knowledge systems together for enhanced understanding.

A Holistic Approach to Climate Change

As we face the unprecedented challenge of climate change, the integration of Indigenous knowledge and Western science offers a path towards more comprehensive, effective, and just climate policies. This approach not only enhances our understanding of environmental changes but also promotes more sustainable and equitable ways of relating to the natural world.

The journey of integrating these knowledge systems is ongoing, requiring patience, respect, and a willingness to challenge long-held assumptions. However, the potential rewards – in terms of more effective climate strategies, preservation of cultural wisdom, and a more holistic approach to environmental stewardship – are immense.

As we move forward in our fight against climate change, this integration of  Indigenous traditional knowledge systems offers not just hope for more effective policies, but a model for how different ways of knowing can come together to address the greatest challenge of our time.

 

Blog by Rye Karonhiowanen Barberstock

 

(Header Image Credit: ThisIsEngineering, Licensed from Unsplash)

 

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Creating Pathways to Indigenous-led Climate Policy in Canada

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How can climate policy be more inclusive of Indigenous rights and knowledge systems, while working toward reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples? Principles for creating ethical spaces and recognizing the Treaty and constitutionally-protected rights of Indigenous peoples are two ways to elevate Indigenous perspectives, knowledge, and approaches to climate mitigation and adaptation policies.

“We Rise Together,” the 2018 report by The Indigenous Circle of Experts (ICE), describes ethical space as “a venue for collaboration and advice, sharing and cross-validation (where one side validates the other).” Ethical spaces create environments where Indigenous and non-Indigenous systems of knowledge can interact, through mutual respect, kindness, and generosity, to generate an exchange of values. There is a difference between the idea of the ethical space, and the practice of it: “[w]hile agreeing to formally enter ethical space may be straightforward for most parties, actually being within that space together requires flexibility.”

Historical legacies of colonialism prevent Indigenous-led solutions for climate change from being effectively implemented. Consequently, researchers propose calls to action to facilitate Indigenous-led climate mitigation and adaptation policies in Canada; these actions include how climate policy must:

  • prioritize human relationships with land and rebalance the relationship between people and Mother Earth.
  • prioritize Indigenous knowledge systems and equally consider diverse knowledge systems.
  • be multidimensional in order to also advance decarbonization and decolonization.
  • position Indigenous peoples as leaders from diverse nations, having inherent rights to self-determination.
  • be forward-thinking, and promote the well-being of Indigenous peoples.

 

By Leela Viswanathan

 

(Image Credit: Lili Popper, Unsplash)

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Evidence of Changing Seasons in the Context of Climate Change

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Climate change reflects a “shifting rhythm of nature.” Government-sponsored high-resolution maps, scientific studies about the impacts of global warming, and witness accounts by Indigenous elders offer evidence of changing seasons due to climate change.

A key sign of how seasons are shifting is the increase in global temperatures. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Earth’s “combined land and ocean temperature has increased” at an average rate of 0.18 degrees Celsius per decade since 1981. The 2018 IPCC Special Report on Global Warming produced the target of 1.5 degrees Celsius, to limit global warming. In 2021, global warming was a key topic for discussion at the COP26 conference where global efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions were highlighted.

More evidence of changing seasons is noted by shifts in plant hardiness zones. A plant hardiness zone is a specified geographic area with a certain range of annual minimum temperatures which are vital for plants to survive. Maps of plant hardiness zones in Canada and the United States are showing that the zones are creeping northward over time. This shift can have an impact on the length of the growing season, rapid adjustments to agricultural practices and to farmers’ crops, and access to food year-round. In turn, urban agriculture projects and residential gardens are also affected.

Even a slight increase in temperature has an impact on the start of each season. For example, spring thaw happens earlier and pushes the onset of the first frost. Ultimately “winters are shorter, spring is earlier, summers are longer, and fall arrives earlier.” The phenomenon of “false spring” is also witnessed in North America, more frequently in recent years than in previous decades. False spring happens when temperatures rise suddenly and cause plants and trees to bud and bloom too early, making them vulnerable to the still-present risk of frost. A report by the US-based National Atmospheric and Space Administration (NASA), from almost 20 years ago, had signaled that “regional thawing trends” in North America were “advancing almost one day a year since 1988,” and “[had] the potential to alter the cycle of atmospheric carbon dioxide intake and release by vegetation and soils across the region, potentially resulting in changes in Earth’s climate” and reflects current phenomena.

Changing seasons in Northern communities reveal how earlier spring thaws trigger permafrost thaw and sea ice retreat and ultimately, coastal erosion. When permafrost thaws, the ground becomes permeable and the ensuing degradation has destructive impacts on infrastructure, such as on roads and buildings, and on sustainable development efforts too. Furthermore, while engineering solutions to these problems exist, they are also costly.

Coproducing knowledge with Indigenous communities can offer crucial insights, not always shown in high-resolution maps of coastal erosion, of permafrost degradation, and of the progression of spring thaws over time. Documenting the experiences of Indigenous elders who witness climate change will also help to paint a clearer picture of the impact of changing seasons on plants and wildlife.

 

By Leela Viswanathan

 

(Image credit – Freestocks, Unsplash)

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Award-winning New Tool Helping First Nations Adapt their Infrastructure to Climate Change

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On April 26, 2019, professional service firm Stantec received the Consulting Engineers of Ontario Award for its work developing the First Nations Infrastructure Resilience Toolkit (FN-IRT) in partnership with Ontario First Nations Technical Services Corporation (OFNTSC). The award recognizes the importance and innovative nature of the FN-IRT as a tool that can used by First Nation communities to identify how their infrastructure may be impacted by climate change and develop an asset management plan.

The FN-IRT was adapted from the widely recognized Engineers Canada’s Public Infrastructure Engineering Vulnerability Committee (PIEVC) protocol specifically for use by First Nations communities, many of whom are remote and isolated, and face unique risks from extreme weather, temperature, and precipitation due to climate change. The toolkit works by braiding together engineering information and Indigenous Knowledge to identify potential climate change impacts on a community’s infrastructure. Once these risks are identified, they can be taken into account in decisions regarding the maintenance, repairs, and replacement of roads, bridges, wastewater infrastructure, water treatment facilities, and more.

The FN-IRT is more streamlined than the original PIEVC protocol, making it suitable for use by small or remote First Nations with limited resources. Where First Nation communities may lack historical climate data, lndigenous Knowledge can be used to fill in gaps. Through understanding the risks of climate change to infrastructure, communities will be able to prepare for possible disasters before they happen and recover more quickly when they do occur.

The FN-IRT toolkit has been piloted in three First Nation communities: Mohawk Council of Akwesasne, Oneida Nation of the Thames, and Moose Cree First Nation, where it was used to assess climate change impacts on water and wastewater systems, housing, and schools.  Between 2018 and 2020, Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada’s First Nation Adapt program will be funding ten training sessions on applying the toolkit to 200 participants across Ontario.

We congratulate Stantec on their receipt of the Consulting Engineers of Ontario Award and their excellent work designing the toolkit in cooperation with OFNTSC. We look forward to learning how First Nations are applying this valuable tool in their communities.

 

Photo caption: Elmer Lickers from Ontario First Nations Technical Services (left) and Guy Félio from Stantec (right) receiving the Consulting Engineers of Ontario Award.

 

Author: OFNTSC

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Adapting to Sea Level Rise – Indian Island, New Brunswick (Video)

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