Indian time: time, seasonality, and culture in Traditional Ecological Knowledge of climate change

Abstract (from SpringerLink): Western climate science and Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) represent complementary and overlapping views of the causes and consequences of change. In particular, observations of changes in abundance, distribution, phenology, or behavior of the natural environment (including plants and animals) can have a rich cultural and spiritual interpretation in Indigenous communities that may not be present in western science epistemologies. Using interviews with Indigenous elders and other Traditional Knowledge holders, we demonstrate that assumptions about the nature, perception, and utilization of time and timing can differ across knowledge systems in regard to climate change.Our interviewees’...

Categories: Publication; Types: Citation; Tags: Indigenous Peoples, Northwest CASC, Tribes and Tribal Organizations

Final Report: Assessing Climate Change Effects on Natural and Cultural Resources of Significance to Northwest Tribes

This research project sought to understand the ways in which aspects of Native American culture have been affected by climate change in the Northwest region of the U.S. There are aspects of tribal culture, such as songs, stories, prayers, and dances that include Mish, wildlife, or plants as central images or main symbolic Migures, and therefore may be affected by environmentally driven changes. The intimate connections that tribes have maintained with the natural environment are more spiritually rich and complex than non-Native consumptive views of natural resources. After careful consideration of tribe size, level of cultural activity, strength of ties to the environment, and connection to culturally significant...

Categories: Publication; Types: Citation; Tags: Indigenous Peoples, Northwest CASC, Tribal, Tribes and Tribal Organizations, adaptive capacity