The Canadian Arctic Marine Ecological Footprint and Free Prior Informed Consent: Making the Case for Indigenous Public Participation through Inclusive Education

Abstract

Public participation of the Inuit concerning climate change adaptation in the Canadian Arctic is essential, given the extensive knowledge they possess about their traditional territories, especially as it relates to resources management. Unfortunately, much of this knowledge is not incorporated into the tertiary educational system and hence not part of the knowledge set of the people most likely to engage in public policy discussions and decisions. This article adopts a transdisciplinary approach, using an analysis of historic fish and marine mammal catch with the marine ecological footprint calculated for the year 2000. This scientific data, supported by the principle of free and prior informed consent as defined in United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as well as the Tsilhqot'in case in Canada, demonstrates the need for inclusive education. We conclude that indigenous participation in climate change adaptation policies would benefit immensely from the offering of university programmes that incorporate, in a meaningful way, Inuit traditional knowledge and indigenous rights.