"Like the plains people losing the buffalo": perceptions of climate change impacts, fisheries management, and adaptation actions by Indigenous peoples in coastal British Columbia, Canada
Rapidly developing and complex climate change impacts have profound implications for coastal communities, demanding adaptation actions for both social and ecological systems. Along the coast of British Columbia, Canada, Indigenous peoples developed a tightly coupled social-ecological system that was...
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2020
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Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-12027-250433 https://doaj.org/article/602fdeea1d7b4646a9e252f5514b6fec |
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:602fdeea1d7b4646a9e252f5514b6fec 2023-05-15T16:16:53+02:00 "Like the plains people losing the buffalo": perceptions of climate change impacts, fisheries management, and adaptation actions by Indigenous peoples in coastal British Columbia, Canada Charlotte K. Whitney Alejandro Frid Barry K. Edgar Jennifer Walkus Peter Siwallace Iris L. Siwallace Natalie C. Ban 2020-12-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-12027-250433 https://doaj.org/article/602fdeea1d7b4646a9e252f5514b6fec EN eng Resilience Alliance https://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol25/iss4/art33/ https://doaj.org/toc/1708-3087 1708-3087 doi:10.5751/ES-12027-250433 https://doaj.org/article/602fdeea1d7b4646a9e252f5514b6fec Ecology and Society, Vol 25, Iss 4, p 33 (2020) adaptation climate change fisheries food security governance indigenous stewardship transformation Biology (General) QH301-705.5 Ecology QH540-549.5 article 2020 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-12027-250433 2022-12-31T05:25:50Z Rapidly developing and complex climate change impacts have profound implications for coastal communities, demanding adaptation actions for both social and ecological systems. Along the coast of British Columbia, Canada, Indigenous peoples developed a tightly coupled social-ecological system that was interrupted by the arrival of settler colonialism in the 1800s. Although both climate change adaptation and the impacts of colonization have been well studied, little research has examined how these themes interact, and the conditions that may support or prevent people's ability to adapt to the social-ecological changes that emerge. Through a collaborative partnership with four First Nations and their umbrella organization for technical support, we examined people's perceptions of social and ecological aspects of adaptation to climate change. Using semistructured interviews (n = 50), four key strategies emerged as critical for climate change adaptation: (1) strengthening Indigenous governance autonomy and authority, (2) promoting knowledge sharing for adaptation practices within and among communities, (3) promoting adaptive comanagement among governance scales, and (4) developing learning platforms for climate impacts and adaptive strategies. Actions typically proposed by non-Indigenous government, including marine protected areas and ecosystem-based management were not prioritized. We found diverse attitudes toward climate change impacts, indicating that people's perceptions of adaptation strategies are strongly influenced by exposure to observable impacts, the social-ecological context in which they live, and perceptions of governance and self-determination. Our study suggests that supporting Indigenous peoples' ability to adapt to climate change will require transforming the current governance model into one that acknowledges Indigenous social, cultural, and food needs and how these relate to marine resources and territorial management rights. Article in Journal/Newspaper First Nations Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles British Columbia ENVELOPE(-125.003,-125.003,54.000,54.000) Canada Ecology and Society 25 4 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
adaptation climate change fisheries food security governance indigenous stewardship transformation Biology (General) QH301-705.5 Ecology QH540-549.5 |
spellingShingle |
adaptation climate change fisheries food security governance indigenous stewardship transformation Biology (General) QH301-705.5 Ecology QH540-549.5 Charlotte K. Whitney Alejandro Frid Barry K. Edgar Jennifer Walkus Peter Siwallace Iris L. Siwallace Natalie C. Ban "Like the plains people losing the buffalo": perceptions of climate change impacts, fisheries management, and adaptation actions by Indigenous peoples in coastal British Columbia, Canada |
topic_facet |
adaptation climate change fisheries food security governance indigenous stewardship transformation Biology (General) QH301-705.5 Ecology QH540-549.5 |
description |
Rapidly developing and complex climate change impacts have profound implications for coastal communities, demanding adaptation actions for both social and ecological systems. Along the coast of British Columbia, Canada, Indigenous peoples developed a tightly coupled social-ecological system that was interrupted by the arrival of settler colonialism in the 1800s. Although both climate change adaptation and the impacts of colonization have been well studied, little research has examined how these themes interact, and the conditions that may support or prevent people's ability to adapt to the social-ecological changes that emerge. Through a collaborative partnership with four First Nations and their umbrella organization for technical support, we examined people's perceptions of social and ecological aspects of adaptation to climate change. Using semistructured interviews (n = 50), four key strategies emerged as critical for climate change adaptation: (1) strengthening Indigenous governance autonomy and authority, (2) promoting knowledge sharing for adaptation practices within and among communities, (3) promoting adaptive comanagement among governance scales, and (4) developing learning platforms for climate impacts and adaptive strategies. Actions typically proposed by non-Indigenous government, including marine protected areas and ecosystem-based management were not prioritized. We found diverse attitudes toward climate change impacts, indicating that people's perceptions of adaptation strategies are strongly influenced by exposure to observable impacts, the social-ecological context in which they live, and perceptions of governance and self-determination. Our study suggests that supporting Indigenous peoples' ability to adapt to climate change will require transforming the current governance model into one that acknowledges Indigenous social, cultural, and food needs and how these relate to marine resources and territorial management rights. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Charlotte K. Whitney Alejandro Frid Barry K. Edgar Jennifer Walkus Peter Siwallace Iris L. Siwallace Natalie C. Ban |
author_facet |
Charlotte K. Whitney Alejandro Frid Barry K. Edgar Jennifer Walkus Peter Siwallace Iris L. Siwallace Natalie C. Ban |
author_sort |
Charlotte K. Whitney |
title |
"Like the plains people losing the buffalo": perceptions of climate change impacts, fisheries management, and adaptation actions by Indigenous peoples in coastal British Columbia, Canada |
title_short |
"Like the plains people losing the buffalo": perceptions of climate change impacts, fisheries management, and adaptation actions by Indigenous peoples in coastal British Columbia, Canada |
title_full |
"Like the plains people losing the buffalo": perceptions of climate change impacts, fisheries management, and adaptation actions by Indigenous peoples in coastal British Columbia, Canada |
title_fullStr |
"Like the plains people losing the buffalo": perceptions of climate change impacts, fisheries management, and adaptation actions by Indigenous peoples in coastal British Columbia, Canada |
title_full_unstemmed |
"Like the plains people losing the buffalo": perceptions of climate change impacts, fisheries management, and adaptation actions by Indigenous peoples in coastal British Columbia, Canada |
title_sort |
"like the plains people losing the buffalo": perceptions of climate change impacts, fisheries management, and adaptation actions by indigenous peoples in coastal british columbia, canada |
publisher |
Resilience Alliance |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-12027-250433 https://doaj.org/article/602fdeea1d7b4646a9e252f5514b6fec |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-125.003,-125.003,54.000,54.000) |
geographic |
British Columbia Canada |
geographic_facet |
British Columbia Canada |
genre |
First Nations |
genre_facet |
First Nations |
op_source |
Ecology and Society, Vol 25, Iss 4, p 33 (2020) |
op_relation |
https://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol25/iss4/art33/ https://doaj.org/toc/1708-3087 1708-3087 doi:10.5751/ES-12027-250433 https://doaj.org/article/602fdeea1d7b4646a9e252f5514b6fec |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-12027-250433 |
container_title |
Ecology and Society |
container_volume |
25 |
container_issue |
4 |
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1766002739005882368 |