Abstract
Coastal Indigenous and Traditional communities are starting to see changes to their lives from climate change, whether this is from species range changes or displacement from land changes. For many of these communities, the ability to adequately adapt to these changes is limited by the governance structures they are required to live within, which differ from their customary practices and culture. In November 2019, a group of Indigenous and Traditional Peoples, attended the Future Seas 2030 workshop and discussed the consequences of climate change, the biggest barriers for their communities, and barriers for using traditional knowledge in order to contribute towards a more sustainable future that in the end will benefit all of earth’s people. The aim of this workshop was to highlight and give a voice to the various backgrounds and real-life situations impacting on some of the world’s Indigenous and Traditional communities whose connection with the oceans and coasts have been disrupted. This paper presents these issues of oppression, colonisation, language and agency, making it difficult for these groups to contribute to the current management of oceans and coasts, and asks scientists and practitioners in this space to be allies and enable the needed shift to earth’s guardians taking a leading role in nurturing her for our future.
Highlights
Indigenous and Traditional Peoples have successfully utilised marine and coastal resources using traditional management practices, practices which are rooted within their epistemologies and ontologies (Kinnear 2007; Prosper et al 2011)
All authors on this paper identify as Indigenous, First Nations or Traditional People from diverse cultural, gender, age, and biodiverse backgrounds
For many Indigenous and Traditional Peoples, we come from the lands, waterways, and seas, and as such the stewardship for maintaining a healthy country is synonymous with maintaining our own health (Ganesharajah 2009; Jarvis 2019; Kingsley et al 2013)
Summary
Indigenous and Traditional Peoples have successfully utilised marine and coastal resources using traditional management practices, practices which are rooted within their epistemologies and ontologies (Kinnear 2007; Prosper et al 2011). Management structure is often through informal processes, tied to individual and community customary rights, ceremonies, songs, taboos, and totems which result in ‘restrictions’ in marine resource use between clan groups, and serve to achieve sustainability of the shared resources. Whilst these long successful and sustainable stewardship practices are deeply important and have strong cultural links to Indigenous and Traditional communities, they are marginalised and excluded in colonised management processes resulting in degraded marine and coastal environments. Many communities are striving to continue their stewardship over their homelands and waters by partnering with broader management entities (Ban and Frid 2018; Ban et al 2008; Diggon et al 2019; Nursey-Bray and Jacobson 2014; Ross et al 2009)
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