History of Native American land and natural resource policy in the United States: impacts on the field of paleontology

Abstract

We highlight the historical and contemporary policies that govern paleontological research on federally recognized Native American lands. The United States has a long history of fossil dispossession from Indigenous Peoples, and federal policies surrounding the management of Native American lands (i.e., reservations), and the geological resources therein, have changed through time. These changes reflect shifting popular and political ideologies regarding Native American nations’ sovereignty and self-governance. As of 2022, the United States has a government-to-government relationship with federally recognized Tribal entities, but that has not always been the case. Historians have divided post-contact Native American federal policy into distinct eras: Colonial Times to 1820, Native American Removal and Reservation (1820–1887), Allotments and Attempted Assimilation (1887–1934), Reorganization and Preservation (1934–1953), Termination and Relocation (1953–1968), and Tribal Self-Determination (1968–present). Documentation of how the federal policies from each of these eras continue to impact current paleontological research is limited. We summarize major legislative actions, court cases, and historical events that have affected paleontological resource management in Native American territory. We use this historical context to identify federal policy gaps and highlight legal nuances associated with fossil collection and ownership, particularly given the importance of fossils to some Native Americans’ cultural patrimony. Finally, we explore how these gaps affect scientific research and highlight best practices for conducting paleontological research on vertebrate, invertebrate, and paleobotanical body and trace fossils using the CARE (Collective Benefit, Authority to Control, Responsibility, Ethics) Principles for Indigenous Data Governance (https://www.gida-global.org/care).

What is Philosophy of the Geosciences?

“…This legacy of the geosciences points to important philosophical questions, many of which are being debated actively by geoscientists and activists (e.g., Cisneros et al., 2021, 2022; Dunne et al., 2021; Kempf et al., 2023; Monarrez et al., 2021; Raja et al., 2022). For example, Cisneros et al.…”

“…These historical developments shaped geoscientific practice and produced or deepend inequalities in access to natural resources, cultural artifacts, knowledge, and habitable environments. This legacy of the geosciences points to important philosophical questions, many of which are being debated actively by geoscientists and activists (e.g., Cisneros et al, 2021Cisneros et al, , 2022Dunne et al, 2021;Kempf et al, 2023;Monarrez et al, 2021;Raja et al, 2022). For example, Cisneros et al discuss "scientific colonialism," referring to two power asymmetries resulting from the geosciences' colonial history.…”