Indigenous Knowledge for Biodiversity Conservation

When I was in school I did alot of research on my own, spending hours in the Library - even falling asleep at my desk!

Since coming back from the sky world after my accident, I knew our legends and knowledge was based in natural scientific knowledge.

this is what natives call 'natural law' as coming from the Creator. Our traditions are rooted in natural law.

The new sciences coming out, and those that like Pari Spolter share their observations beyond the mainstream, are observing nature as she reveals herself, as she was created in natural law by the Creator.

here is an article from Google Scholar about what science has come to call IK or Indigenous Knowledge.
Indigenous peoples with a historical continuity of resource - use practices often posses a broad knowledge base of the behavior of complex ecological systems in their own localities

JSTOR: An Error Occurred Setting Your User Cookie



Abstract


Indigenous peoples with a historical continuity of resource-use practices often possess a broad knowledge base of the behavior of complex ecological systems in their own localities. This knowledge has accumulated through a long series of observations transmitted from generation to generation. Such "diachronic" observations can be of great value and complement the "synchronic" observations on which western science is based.

Where indigenous peoples have depended, for long periods of time, on local environments for the provision of a variety of resources, they have developed a stake in conserving, and in some cases, enhancing, biodiversity.

They are aware that biological diversity is a crucial factor in generating the ecological services and natural resources on which they depend. Some indigenous groups manipulate the local landscape to augment its heterogeneity, and some have been found to be motivated to restore biodiversity in degraded landscapes.

Their practices for the conservation of biodiversity were grounded in a series of rules of thumb which are apparently arrived at through a trial and error process over a long historical time period. This implies that their knowledge base is indefinite and their implementation involves an intimate relationship with the belief system.

Such knowledge is difficult for western science to understand.

It is vital, however, that the value of the knowledge-practice-belief complex of indigenous peoples relating to conservation of biodiversity is fully recognized if ecosystems and biodiversity are to be managed sustainably.

Conserving this knowledge would be most appropriately accomplished through promoting the community-based resource-management systems of indigenous peoples.

Atmospheric Change and Biodiversity in the Arctic

The Canadian Arctic is characterized by a high variation in landform types and there are complex interactions between land, water and the atmosphere which dramatically affect the distribution of biota. Biodiversity depends upon the intensity, predictability and scale of these interactions.

Observations, as well as predictions of large-scale climate models which include ocean circulation, reveal an anomalous cooling of northeastern Canada in recent decades, in contrast to the overall significant increase in average annual temperature in the Northern Hemisphere.

Predictions from models are necessary to forecast the change in the treeline in the 21st century which may lead to a major loss of tundra.

The rate of change in vegetation in response to climate change is poorly understood. The treeline in central Canada, for example, is showing infilling with trees, and in some locations, northerly movement of the boundary.

The presence of sea ice in Hudson Bay and other coastal areas is a major factor affecting interactions between the marine and terrestrial ecosystems. Loss of ice and therefore hunting of seals by polar bears will reduce bear and arctic fox populations within the region. In turn, this is likely to have significant effects on their herbivorous prey populations and forage plants.

Further, the undersurface of sea ice is a major site for the growth of algae and marine invertebrates which in turn act as food for the marine food web. A rise in sea-level may flood coastal saltmarsh communities leading to changes in plant assemblages and a decline in foraging by geese and other consumers.

The anomalous cooling in the eastern Arctic, primarily in late winter and early spring, has interrupted northern migration of breeding populations of geese and ducks and led to increased damage to vegetation in southern arctic saltmarshes as a result of foraging.

It is likely that there has been a significant loss of invertebrates in those areas where the vegetation has been destroyed. Warming will have major effects on permafrost distribution and on ground-ice resulting in a major destabilization of slopes and slumping of soil, and disruption of tundra plant communities.

Disruption of peat and moss surfaces lead to loss of insulation, an increase in active-layer depth and changes in drainage and plant assemblages.

Increases of UV-B radiation will strongly affect vulnerable populations of both plants and animals.

The indigenous peoples will face major changes in life style, edibility of food and health standards, if there is a significant warming trend.

The great need is for information which is sensitive to the changes and will assist in developing an understanding of the complex interactions of the arctic biota, human populations and the physical environment.

abstract
Roger I. C. Hansell1, Jay R. Malcolm2, Harold Welch3, Robert L. Jefferies4 and Peter A. Scott5
SpringerLink - Journal Article