| Summary: | Coastal Indigenous Peoples worldwide have relied on fish and other marine resources for millennia, and continue to do so despite recent degradation of ocean systems. Their traditional ecological knowledge, comprised of experiences, observations, beliefs, and lifeways, is relevant for modern marine management and conservation. This thesis explores the utility of traditional and local ecological knowledge for extending an understanding of changes over time for places or periods in which scientific data are unavailable. This thesis had three goals: 1) undertake research that is collaborative and inclusive, and that addresses priorities established by participating First Nations; 2) contribute to fisheries management and conservation recommendations by focusing on a species of cultural importance and exploring the applications of traditional and local ecological knowledge to species-level understandings; and 3) contribute a marine social-ecological case study that investigates the use of traditional and local ecological knowledge to understand change over time and provides appropriate context. Two main objectives allowed me to accomplish my goals: 1) demonstrate the application of traditional and local ecological knowledge to establish historical baselines that extend farther back in time than scientific surveys, and investigate reasons for changes, and 2) investigate the utility of a social-ecological trap framework in assessing impacts to a social-ecological system and identifying ways to escape such a trap. My case study occurred in collaboration with four First Nations (as many Indigenous Peoples of Canada are called) on the Central Coast of British Columbia, Canada. My methods included semi-structured interviews with knowledge holders to examine traditional and local ecological knowledge of a culturally and economically important species, Yelloweye rockfish (Sebastes ruberrimus). In this study, I interviewed First Nations fishers and Elders (n=43), asking about: observed changes to the body sizes (length) and ...
|
|---|