{"id":73809,"date":"2021-02-19T11:43:40","date_gmt":"2021-02-19T16:43:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsroom.carleton.ca\/?p=73809"},"modified":"2025-08-19T09:36:26","modified_gmt":"2025-08-19T13:36:26","slug":"mobilizing-action-and-creating-space-for-indigenous-knowledge-are-key-for-nature-conservation-in-canada","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/2021\/mobilizing-action-and-creating-space-for-indigenous-knowledge-are-key-for-nature-conservation-in-canada\/","title":{"rendered":"Mobilizing Action and Creating Space for Indigenous Knowledge are Key for Nature Conservation in Canada"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n Mobilizing Action and Creating Space for Indigenous Knowledge are Key for Nature Conservation in Canada\n <\/h1>\n \n \n <\/header>\n\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n

From the haunting call of a loon on a remote lake, to whales breaching along the longest coastline in the world, nature is central to Canada\u2019s national identity.  But the science is clear, nature is under serious threat and solutions are needed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carleton University and Environment and Climate Change Canada brought together Canada\u2019s leading conservation experts to identify the type of information needed to best conserve nature in Canada\u2019s. They agreed that Canada must move beyond just collecting information and instead focus more on effective action. As well, the team highlights the crucial role of Indigenous knowledge systems in conservation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The study has now been published in Biological Conservation:<\/em> https:\/\/authors.elsevier.com\/sd\/article\/S0006-3207(21)00035-5<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt was heartening that in a room of researchers and knowledge keepers, the consensus was that we need to move from research to action, to support nature and make room for Indigenous knowledge and rights in the process.\u201d said Rachel Buxton<\/a>, lead author and post-doctoral researcher in Carleton\u2019s Department of Biology<\/a>. \u201cWe need to make conserving nature part of everything that we do, and we need to do this quickly \u2013 human actions are undermining the natural systems on which humanity depends.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the global conservation community negotiates a post-2020 biodiversity conservation framework, Canada has an enormous role to play. The country is responsible for safeguarding much of the world\u2019s intact forests, freshwaters and wetlands. Yet, Canadian natural environments are at risk, with many  Canadian species in decline. And while Indigenous peoples and their lands have a critical role to play in maintaining biodiversity, there are still significant barriers to the meaningful and rightful participation of Indigenous peoples in conservation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSince colonization, Indigenous ways of knowing and being have been in many ways severed from the landscapes on which they were formed,\u201d said Andrea Reid<\/a>, study co-author and Nisg<\/u>a\u2019a scholar at The University of British Columbia<\/em>\u2019s Centre for Indigenous Fisheries. \u201cWe need to see a return of power into Indigenous hands, to amplify Indigenous voices, and to cultivate greater public awareness that Indigenous knowledge systems are, in effect, also science.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some of the innovative ideas emerging from these discussions relate to using big data for nature conservation. \u201cWe live in the information age \u2013 we have enormous amounts of data and information at our disposal to help problem-solve,\u201d said Joseph Bennett<\/a>, study co-author and professor in Carleton\u2019s Department of Biology. \u201cAs scientists, we like collecting new data, but with big data being generated by social media and citizen science, often these data are being collected for us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis project was an effort to recalibrate our priorities for nature conservation, and a clear take home message was that some of our biggest information needs are not facts and figures about plants and animals,\u201d said Paul Smith<\/a>, study co-author and research scientist with Environment and Climate Change Canada. \u201cRather, we need a better understanding of how to motivate people, influence economies and alter policies in ways that benefit nature. From toxicologists to Indigenous Elders to social scientists, all agreed that interdisciplinary thinking is needed to solve these complex problems.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019re in the middle of a biodiversity crisis, but thankfully many of us are united by our common desire to protect the natural world,\u201d said Buxton. \u201cIt\u2019s time to work together, respect a diversity of voices, and move from knowledge to action if we\u2019re going to protect nature before it\u2019s too late.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Media Contacts
\n<\/strong>Steven Reid
\nMedia Relations Officer
\nCarleton University
\n613-265-6613
\nSteven.Reid3@carleton.ca<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\nCOVID 19 Updates: https:\/\/newsroom.carleton.ca\/coronavirus-covid-19\/messages\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

From the haunting call of a loon on a remote lake, to whales breaching along the longest coastline in the world, nature is central to Canada\u2019s national identity.  But the science is clear, nature is under serious threat and solutions are needed. Carleton University and Environment and Climate Change Canada brought together Canada\u2019s leading conservation […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":410,"featured_media":62947,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[175,139,91],"class_list":["post-73809","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-releases","tag-biology","tag-partnerships","tag-research"],"acf":{"cu_post_thumbnail":false},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73809","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/410"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=73809"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73809\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":73811,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73809\/revisions\/73811"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/62947"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=73809"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=73809"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=73809"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}