To help manage the complex ecological relationships between humans and nature, Uu-a-thluk is working on the Marine Traditional Knowledge (MTK) Mapping project with Nuu-chah-nulth Nations. Funded by Fisheries and Oceans Canada, the goal of the project is to establish data-sharing protocols between the Nations and emergency response agencies to allow the responder to have quick access to the locations of crucial marine habitat areas.
“With protocols in place, federal agencies responding to a major catastrophe, such as an oil spill, will have quick access to the data provided by each Nation to protect critical marine habitat while also preventing any misuse of the data collected through the mapping project,” said Luc Bibeau, MTK Mapping Project Coordinator.
He added that Marine Traditional Knowledge data and maps will remain with—and be under the control and management of—each Nuu-chah-nulth Nation.
Through workshops and meetings with elders, fishers, other knowledge holders, and Nuu-chah-nulth youth, Luc is working with Nations to collect data through a map review, in this case primarily with marine charts.
Community members mark down areas that they use or have knowledge about by drawing or writing on the hard copy of the map. This is done either in a group or individually, depending on what each person feels most comfortable doing.
For each area marked down, Luc asks questions to get more information about the area. The connection to these places and the history of the Nations that rely on them are essential to developing comprehensive MTK maps.
“I’m mining for ‘data diamonds,’” he said, adding that the what, where, when, and how questions help build a detailed picture of how community members have used the territory historically and how they’re using it today.
These hard copies will then be digitized and compiled with any previous data that the Nation provides. Although the project was proposed as a way for the Nations to communicate and help protect important areas in the event of a marine incident, it has the potential to act as a broader tool.
Some Nations are recognizing the potential of the data being used for future consultation with the tourism industry, in resource planning, and to help transmit knowledge to the next generation.
Recording Nuu-chah-nulth place names and stories associated with culturally significant sites are information that can increase the value of the MTK Mapping project to the Nations. For Nations that may already have done their own mapping, this project can complement that work.
“As our Nation is close to passing down its chieftainship for the next generation to take over, it’s important to teach our kids the value of management and our responsibilities to the ecosystems that sustain us,” said Archie Little, Nuchatlaht First Nation, speaking on behalf of Tyee Ha’wilth Walter Michael.
Nuu-chah-nulth Nations can contact Luc at Luc.Bibeau@nuuchahnulth.org or (250) 725-3899 to take advantage of this opportunity to document and map critical marine habitat in their territories.
