‘A change of heart’: Indigenous perspectives from the Onjisay Aki Summit on climate change

Abstract

In June 2017, the Turtle Lodge Indigenous knowledge centre convened the Onjisay Aki International Climate Summit, an unparalleled opportunity for cross-cultural dialogue on climate change with environmental leaders and Indigenous Knowledge Keepers from 14 Nations around the world. In collaboration with Turtle Lodge, the Prairie Climate Centre was invited to support the documentation and communication of knowledge shared at the Summit. This process of Indigenous-led community-based research took an inter-epistemological approach, using roundtable discussions within a ceremonial context and collaborative written and video methods. The Summit brought forward an understanding of climate change as a symptom of a much larger problem with how colonialism has altered the human condition. The Knowledge Keepers suggested that, in order to effectively address climate change, humanity needs a shift in values and behaviours that ground our collective existence in a balanced relationship with the natural world and its laws. They emphasized that their diverse knowledges and traditions can provide inspiration and guidance for this cultural shift. This underscores the need for a new approach to engaging with Indigenous knowledge in climate research, which acknowledges it not only as a source of environmental observations, but a wealth of values, philosophies, and worldviews which can inform and guide action and research more broadly. In this light, Onjisay Aki makes significant contributions to the literature on Indigenous knowledge on climate change in Canada and internationally, as well as the ways in which this knowledge is gathered, documented, and shared through the leadership of the Knowledge Keepers.

“I see my culture starting to disappear”: Anishinaabe perspectives on the socioecological impacts of climate change and future research needs

“…Although Western science can describe the natural world, it does not speak to "how" to live respectfully with nature (McGregor 2018). Indigenous Knowledge, built on respect, reciprocity, and responsibility (Kimmerer 1998;Pierotti and Wildcat 2000), provides "original instructions" for caring for and relating to the land (McGregor 2004(McGregor , 2018Cajete 2018;Cameron et al 2021). Moving forward, approaches that respectfully and meaningfully braid together Indigenous and Western knowledge (e.g., Two-Eyed Seeing), and promote respectful partnerships among Indigenous and non-Indigenous nations, will not only help restore the land and systems damaged by climate change, but also heal our relationship with the land through reciprocity, responsibility, and reconciliation (Kimmerer 2018;Cameron et al 2021).…”

“…Indigenous Knowledge can provide observations and in-depth knowledge on local changes in ecological processes and (or) relationships in ways that Western science cannot. Complex environmental issues, like climate change, could benefit substantially from approaches that braid together Indigenous and Western ways of knowing (Turner and Clifton 2009;Ford et al 2016;Makondo and Thomas 2018;Cameron et al 2021). For example, Two-Eyed Seeing is a process described as learning to see from one eye with the strengths of Indigenous Knowledge and ways of knowing, and from the other eye with the strengths of Western knowledge and ways of knowing, but using both eyes, together, to work towards shared goals (Bartlett et al 2012;Reid et al 2020).…”

“…Reduced access to traditional foods and medicines, less time out on the land, and water quality issues are all linked to adverse effects on physical health (Richmond et al 2005;Harper et al 2011;Berrang-Ford et al 2012;Ford 2012). And, ultimately, for people and entire nations whose sense of community, identity, and well-being emerge from strong connections to the land and to place (Adelson 2000;Wilson 2003;Parlee and Berkes 2005;Kral et al 2011;Mikraszewicz and Richmond 2019), these biophysical changes and disruptions to ways of life are linked to declining emotional, spiritual, and sociocultural well-being (Berry et al 2010;Furberg et al 2011;Cunsolo Willox et al 2012;Ford 2012;Willox et al 2015;Cameron et al 2021).…”

“…Moreover, Indigenous Peoples have developed a capacity for adaptation and resilience through generations of surviving environmental change (Turner and Clifton 2009;Whyte 2017) including the undermining of political, economic, legal, and governance systems through historical and ongoing colonial policies and practices of cultural genocide (Reo and Parker 2013;The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) 2015;Makondo and Thomas 2018;National Inquiry 2019). As such, creating space for Indigenous voices in climate change research and decision-making will provide a more robust and accurate characterization of environmental change and associated socioecological impacts, as well as "instructions" for adaptation, sustainability, and living in harmony with the environment (Turner and Clifton 2009;Ford et al 2016;Makondo and Thomas 2018;Cameron et al 2021).…”

“…This knowledge is accumulated through generations of lived experience and particular relationships with the land and cannot be separated from the people and the places that hold and (or) practice it (McGregor 2004(McGregor , 2018Latulippe and Klenk 2020). However, when considered alongside knowledge shared by other Nations (e.g., Guyot et al 2006;Cunsolo Willox et al 2012;Ford et al 2013;Brinkman et al 2016;Cameron et al 2021), it reveals how climate change impacts and priorities are both the same and different across locations and contexts. Considering the magnitude of the current environmental crisis, all available knowledge and expertise, including Indigenous and Western, from local to global scales, will be essential for identifying, understanding, and mitigating the multidimensional impacts of climate change.…”