Indigenous Knowledge in Protected Area Management: Adaptation, Sustainability and Opportunities in the Circumpolar North.

Delia Siivola

doi:10.25907/00711

Indigenous knowledges have long been valued as knowledge systems that can contribute to decision-making in resource management yet there is little analysis of how this is meaningfully achieved. Indigenous voices have largely been absent from discussions that consider the effectiveness of co-management. This research aims to better understand the contributions and opportunities of Indigenous knowledge to effective protected area management, as perceived by Indigenous peoples across the circumpolar North. These understandings can augment the effectiveness of future co-management through ensuring the engagement of Indigenous perspectives in decision-making. Two complementary methodologies were used in this research: case studies with Altaians in Uch Enmek Nature Park, Russia and Inuit in Auyuittuq National Park, Canada, and grounded theory. A combination of three methods were used: participant observation, semi-structured interviews, and document analysis. This research addresses literature gaps that exist in acknowledging Indigenous perspectives and agency involved in exercising land management, understanding factors that influence Indigenous knowledge application, and recognising the impacts of worldview in protected area co-management. This research finds that knowledge is applied actively and purposefully, cognisant of context and shaped by unique worldviews which inform how, when and what knowledge is shared, tailored to each group of people to support their cultural survival. Findings from both case studies exemplify the expression and application of holistic knowledges as manifested through spiritual, emotional and experiential means in protected area co-management. These findings apply irrespective of whether or not a role for Indigenous knowledge is formally recognised through government or co-management arrangements. Altaians and Inuit exercise their agency in co-management by strategically and purposefully applying their knowledges in different ways such as sharing and withholding knowledge through codified practices of how knowledge is shared and by whom, based on gender, age and other societal factors. Indigenous people’s action to ensure both knowledge continuity and the subtle changing of their knowledges and its use to suit evolving and different co-management contexts emerge from both case studies. Altaians and Inuit influence the application of their knowledges in a number of ways, such as through its multi-dimensional usage perceiving and interpreting knowledge through the senses, and the application of Indigenous pedagogies which emphasise experiential learning. Altaian and Inuit worldviews impact the application of Indigenous knowledges in co-management by favouring their knowledges when engaging with the dominant culture, asserting the relevance of Indigenous worldview to ensure meaningful partnership in co-management, and providing opportunities to enhance their participation, for example through the fusion of global Western positivist influences with their own. Some distinctions are evident between the case studies, driven by differing worldviews. Varying approaches to applying Indigenous knowledge include the Altaian focus on spiritual development and the Inuit attention to interpersonal development. Different aspects of land management define local priorities as a consequence of circumstance, such as Altaian preservation of sacred sites and Inuit concerns with human safety. Variation in the applications of knowledge exist, particularly with respect to the role of Indigenous knowledge in shaping public park narratives either through Altaian empowerment of individuals or Inuit emphasis on Indigenous values. There also exist distinctions in the role of place as a source of cultural grounding and belonging for Altaians or a facilitator for strategic visitor experiences in Nunavut. Unique findings also reveal increased Altaian emphasis on the role of cultural protocols and practices, and greater Inuit attention to social, cultural and intergenerational involvement in knowledge sharing. Recognising that these similar and distinct aspects of Indigenous knowledge application occur independently of the intended Western positivist co-management frameworks attests to the effectiveness of the ongoing Indigenous management of native lands and assertion of continued Indigenous sovereignty. This thesis argues that Indigenous peoples apply their knowledge in co-management through strategic and purposeful agency that preserves their worldview, while also adapting their knowledge and its maintenance, preservation and transmission to suit changing circumstances such as governance arrangements, tourist behaviours, economic needs and that of teaching youth and others for a sustainable future. This adds to protected area managers’ and all state and public actors’ understandings of the purposeful and subtle contributions of Indigenous peoples who co-manage protected areas. The findings from this research provide for the development of more ethical future practice in co-management processes by recognizing the present role of Indigenous knowledge in co-management arrangements, promoting more effective application of Indigenous knowledge to decision-making and the development of more equitable power sharing arrangements in protected area management.

Indigenous Knowledge in Protected Area Management: Adaptation, Sustainability and Opportunities in the Circumpolar North.

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