Wabanaki Sweetgrass Harvesting in Acadia National Park
By: Eva Thibeault
People of the First Light, created by Abbe Museum
Aug. 6, 2018
Key words: revival, sustainable harvest, sweetgrass, basketmaking, national parks, decolonization
https://peopleofthefirstlight.wordpress.com/2018/08/06/wabanaki-sweetgrass-harvesting-in-acadia-national-park/
The Abbe Museum is is concerned with decolonizing efforts centered on land use, reclamation, and harvesting. In a presentation by Suzanne Greenlaw, a member of the Houlton Band of Maliseets and University of Maine PhD Candidate, to speak about her work on native reclamation concerning sweetgrass harvesting in Acadia National Park, which had been previously restricted. Her work has demonstrated that sweetgrass harvesting for basket making is sustainable and in fact may reinvigorate the plants. TEK can be a tool for decolonization through its revalorization as in conversation with, not seen to be inferior to, Western scientific systems of knowledge.
Enhancing Federal-Tribal Coordination of Invasive Species
By: Invasive Species Advisory Committee (ISAC) Federal-Tribal Task Team
December 6, 2017
Key words: TEK, FPIC, consultation, invasive species
https://www.doi.gov/sites/doi.gov/files/uploads/isac_federal-tribal_white_paper.pdf
This white paper discusses the significant land holdings of indigenous peoples in the United States and appropriate collaboration with interested tribes is one way to address invasive species, per E.O. 13112.
Regaining Our Future; an Assessment of Risks and Opportunities for Native Communities in the 2018 Farm Bill
By: Janie Simms Hipp and Colby D. Duren
Seeds of Native Health
2017
Key words: Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community, Indigenous Food and Agriculture Initiative
https://seedsofnativehealth.org/regaining-our-future-report/
Some of the relevant opportunities highlighted include recognition of TEK-based conservation, the creation of a Tribal Technical Committee with equal standing to other state technical committees, and using TEK-based conservation practices in compliance considerations.
Tribal Climate Change Principles: Responding to Federal Policies and Actions to Address Climate Change
By: Bob Gruening, Kathy Lynn, Garrit Voggesser, and Kyle Powys Whyte
Tribal Climate Change Project
2015
Key words: Tribal sovereignty, representation, climate change, federal-tribal partnerships
https://cpb-us-e1.wpmucdn.com/blogs.uoregon.edu/dist/c/389/files/2010/11/Tribal-Climate-Change-Principles_2015-148jghk.pdf
This policy paper outlines eight principals the federal government can use in legislative and administrative decisions towards climate change and indigenous peoples. The document highlights the gaps traditional knowledge holders may be able to address, and how to go about developing federal-tribal partnerships.
The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Silencing of Native American Worldviews
By: Kurt E. Dongoske, RPA, Theresa Pasqual, Thomas F. King, PhD
Environmental Practice 17 (1)
March 2015
Key words: National Environmental Policy Act, Environmental Impact Statement, Zuni, Acoma
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/276379243_The_National_Environmental_Policy_Act_NEPA_and_the_silencing_of_Native_American_worldviews
The article discusses the United States' National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and the issues Native American tribes have with it. NEPA is written with a western science materialistic view, which does not acknowledge Native American views, values and relationships with the environment. The authors look at examples of the clashes of views when NEPA is applied to the Indigenous cominity as well as offer some changes in consideration of the Native American world view.
Negotiating Ethical and Legal Mazes in the Federal Workplace
By: Muriel Crespi and Carla Mattix
National Park Service
Key words: Federal workplace, ethical issues, federal resource management, national parks, cultural patrimony, confidentiality, Freedom of Information Act, Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, National Historic Preservation Act
https://www.nps.gov/ethnography/mandate/negotiating.htm
The mandates that control actions in the federal workplace often challenge academic principles of conduct. Particularly vulnerable is the anthropologists' image of themselves as champions of powerless and voiceless groups in an arena perceived as dominated by a hostile government. This is coupled with convictions that socially responsible anthropology respects individual privacy while disseminating data to encourage culturally informed public and federal decisions. Using examples involving federal cultural and natural resources, we show conflicts within this suite of perspectives and with the demands of the federal workplace. The need for legally defensible decisions, responses to publics with diverse agendas, and requirements for confidentiality and public access to government records test our anthropological convictions as well as available legal protections of individual privacy and the public's right to know. Perhaps the anthropological community will strategize about more effective remedies for the problems of meeting the concerns of the individuals and the publics it cares about.
Integrating Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) into Natural Resource Management
By: Moran Henn, David Ostergren, & Erik Nielsen
Park Science, 27(3):48-55
Winter 2010-2011
Key words: Traditional Ecological Knowledge, tribes, Native Americans, co-management, public involvement, natural resources management
https://in.nau.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/128/2018/08/NAU-315-ek.pdf
A growing interest in traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) in the National Park Service (NPS) is emerging out of an understanding that the original peoples of the land and their unique knowledge have much to offer modern land management. While little information exists regarding the nature, location, and outcomes of TEK integrated projects, even less information exists regarding the perceptions of its integration among managers in the world’s first protected area system, the U.S. National Park System. With many parks now managing lands that were inhabited for centuries by native tribes, understanding the nature of TEK-integrated projects is especially important.
Perspective: Building Partnerships Between American Indian Tribes and the National Park Service
By: David Ruppert
Ecological Restoration, 21:261-263;doi:10.3368/er.21.4.261
December 2003
Key words: Tribal rights, access, cultural resources protection, cultural knowledge, communication, ecosystem restoration
https://www.jstor.org/stable/43442706
This article talks about relationships between tribes and the federal government and discusses some of the specific challenges which arise in relationships with National Park Service as opposed to other agencies. The article talks about the mission of national parks and strategies for building stronger relationships with tribes while staying true to that mission.
Reintroducing Indian-Type Fire: Implications for Land Managers
By: Gerald W. Williams
Fire Management Today, Vol. 60, No. 3, page 40
2000
Key words: Fuel loading, restoration challenges, degraded ecosystems
https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fsbdev3_000384.pdf
Land management practices changed dramatically after the removal of Indians from their traditional territories. Williams gives a short history between that time and current policies, then gives the arguments and considerations for including Indian-style burning in a contemporary setting.
Last updated: July 7, 2023