Opportunities and impediments for use of local data in the management of salmon fisheries

Janessa Esquible,Michael L Jones,Brendan Connors,William R Bechtol,Sarah C Inman

doi:10.5751/es-12117-260226

Abstract

Inman, S. C., J. Esquible, M. L. Jones, W. R. Bechtol, and B. Connors. 2021. Opportunities and impediments for use of local data in the management of salmon fisheries. Ecology and Society 26(2):26. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-12117-260226

Highlights

Public engagement in scientific research is a growing practice in natural resource management as research has shown the importance of incorporating local participation (Theobald et al 2015); the data produced by these programs are often underutilized (Conrad and Hilchey 2011, Buckland-Nicks et al 2016) disincentivizing public engagement in scientific research
We focus our study on the subsistence Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tsawytscha) fishery in the Kuskokwim River to highlight challenges that are often common to fisheries management, namely, managing in a remote region with high costs of stock assessment
Because our research looks at how different knowledge systems are shaped by one another, we recognize the nuance in the usage of terms such as traditional knowledge (TK), Indigenous knowledge (IK), and local knowledge (LK)

Summary

Introduction

Public engagement in scientific research is a growing practice in natural resource management as research has shown the importance of incorporating local participation (Theobald et al 2015); the data produced by these programs are often underutilized (Conrad and Hilchey 2011, Buckland-Nicks et al 2016) disincentivizing public engagement in scientific research. This dynamic is relevant in the Arctic-YukonKuskokwim (AYK) region of Alaska, which is remote, vast, and vulnerable to climate change as many people depend on the resources of the land and sea at physical, mental, and spiritual levels (National Research Council 2005). This work examines the ways that local, mainly Indigenous, people and scientists work together to achieve their goals and to highlight best practices for engaging people in the monitoring of natural resources

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