Streaming Media
Presentation Abstract
Formally designating an area as an “ecosystem at risk” can have intentional and unintentional consequences for how that area is treated, including: • The area being formally listed under pieces of legislation • Affecting the ways in which Indigenous nations interact with species or ecosystems in an area • Feeding into decision-making processes like land use planning, environmental assessments, and mitigation • Informing conservation targets, funding, or opportunities for establishing various types of protected areas But what goes into considering an ecosystem at risk? NatureServe and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) have developed standard and respected methods for assessing the risk of ecosystems being lost. However, systems that are often used for describing and classifying ecosystems were not explicitly designed with consideration of Indigenous Knowledge. Furthermore, methods that are typically used for assessing threats to ecosystems often do not account for Indigenous cultural practices that maintain these ecosystems and their unique biodiversity over time. We will provide some examples of potential Indigenous cultural ecosystems, highlighting several that occur near the Salish Sea and elsewhere in British Columbia, Canada. Our work is at an early stage, but we will suggest that partnering with Indigenous knowledge-holders to review and improve established methods for describing, classifying, and assessing ecosystems could lead to better outcomes for conservation of biodiversity in general, and specifically ecosystems at risk.
Session Title
Conservation Through Different Ways of Knowing
Conference Track
SSE2: How We Protect the Salish Sea
Conference Name
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference (2022 : Online)
Document Type
Event
SSEC Identifier
SSE-traditionals-458
Start Date
27-4-2022 9:45 AM
End Date
27-4-2022 11:15 AM
Type of Presentation
Oral
Genre/Form
conference proceedings; presentations (communicative events)
Subjects – Topical (LCSH)
Indigenous peoples--Conservation and restoration--British Columbia; Traditional ecological knowledge--British Columbia; Ecosystem management--Risk assessment--British Columbia; Biodiversity conservation--British Columbia
Geographic Coverage
British Columbia
Rights
Copying of this document in whole or in part is allowable only for scholarly purposes. It is understood, however, that any copying or publication of this document for commercial purposes, or for financial gain, shall not be allowed without the author's written permission.
Type
Text
Language
English
Format
vnd.ms-powerpoint
Included in
Fresh Water Studies Commons, Marine Biology Commons, Natural Resources and Conservation Commons
Incorporating Indigenous Methodologies for Assessing Conservation Risk
Formally designating an area as an “ecosystem at risk” can have intentional and unintentional consequences for how that area is treated, including: • The area being formally listed under pieces of legislation • Affecting the ways in which Indigenous nations interact with species or ecosystems in an area • Feeding into decision-making processes like land use planning, environmental assessments, and mitigation • Informing conservation targets, funding, or opportunities for establishing various types of protected areas But what goes into considering an ecosystem at risk? NatureServe and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) have developed standard and respected methods for assessing the risk of ecosystems being lost. However, systems that are often used for describing and classifying ecosystems were not explicitly designed with consideration of Indigenous Knowledge. Furthermore, methods that are typically used for assessing threats to ecosystems often do not account for Indigenous cultural practices that maintain these ecosystems and their unique biodiversity over time. We will provide some examples of potential Indigenous cultural ecosystems, highlighting several that occur near the Salish Sea and elsewhere in British Columbia, Canada. Our work is at an early stage, but we will suggest that partnering with Indigenous knowledge-holders to review and improve established methods for describing, classifying, and assessing ecosystems could lead to better outcomes for conservation of biodiversity in general, and specifically ecosystems at risk.
