Resilience in Indigenous Communities

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Resilience in Indigenous Communities

• EAS 295
• January 15, 2009
• Image from http//www.baystgeorgemikmaqpowwow.com/
  benoitfirstnation.jpg

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Indigenous Peoples

• UN declared there is no universal definition
• But generally - Any ethnic group who inhabit the
  geographic region with which they have the
  earliest historical connection.

Image from http//vihistory.uvic.ca/images/kwaswe
lth.large.jpg
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Indigenous Peoples

• In Canada Aboriginal Peoples
• First Nation, Métis, and Inuit

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s/777.jpg, http//www.phmc.gc.ca/cmh/book_images/h
igh/v3_c2_s04_ss02_01.jpg, http//data2.archives.c
a/e/e092/e002282605.jpg
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Vulnerability Definition

• Vulnerability the conditions determined by
  physical, social, economic, and environmental
  factors or processes, which increase the
  susceptibility of a community to loss from hazard
  impacts
• (United Nations 2005)

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Resilience Definition

• Resilience A measure of how well people and
  societies can adapt to a changed reality and
  capitalize on the new possibilities offered
• (Paton, 2006)

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Vulnerable or Resilient?

• Are Indigenous Communities
• Vulnerable or Resilient?

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Vulnerable or Resilient?

• All the typical vulnerability criteria apply to
  most Indigenous communities
• Income
• Education level
• Geographic location

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Vulnerable or Resilient

• But many characteristics that point to resiliency
• History
• Knowledge
• Relationships

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sc/ap_027.jpg
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The Big Question

• So can a community be vulnerable but still be
  resilient??
• Lets look at some case studies that show
  examples of resiliency in Indigenous communities.

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Objectives

• Increased Resilience
• Local (Traditional) Knowledge
• Social Capital
• Decreased Resilience
• Influence of Colonialism
• Current government interference
• External Aid

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Local Knowledge

• Some prefer the term Traditional Knowledge
• Based on observation
• Relationship with the land
• Context-specific
• Handed down through generations
• (ONeil et al., 1997)
• Important for effective Emergency Management
• Any community can have it

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Local Knowledge

• Oral Histories and Ecological Knowledge
• Oral Histories either
• Detail actual experience with a hazard
• Discuss experience and knowledge of general
  events
• Look to reinforce moral codes
• Ecological Knowledge

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Local Knowledge

• Can be incorporated into emergency management
  (King Goff, 2006)
• Inform risk perception and raise community
  awareness
• Provide insight into past hazards and the
  communitys experience with them
• Provide examples of past community response and
  recovery
• Provide community monitoring of environmental
  changes

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Local Knowledge Oral History

• Indian Ocean Tsunami
• Video http//www.youtube.com/watch?vo175nrvTQLw

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West Coast Oral Histories

• Pachena Bay Oral History
• Earthquake and Tsunami Event (McMillan
  Hutchinson, 2002)
• Gitskan Oral History
• Landslide 3500 years ago
• (McMillan Hutchinson, 2002) (Gottesfeld et al.,
  1991)

Image from http//www.dananaye.yk.net/photos/bear.
jpg
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Using Oral History in Emergency Management

• La Push, Washington St. (Becker et al., 2007)
• Education program about tsunamis incorporates
  local stories from the communitys oral history
• Indigenous community responded successfully to
  tsunami warning test

Image from http//www.forks-web.com/jim/AirLapush.
jpg
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Ecological Knowledge

• Aboriginal burning (Lewis, 1982)
• Advanced knowledge of fire behaviour
• Used as a tool

Image from http//www.climatechange.umaine.edu/Re
search/Contrib/images/13fig1.jpg
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Ecological Knowledge

• Maori place names (King Goff, 2006)
• Mangakino dangerous stream
• Ongarue place of shaking

Image from http//radio.weblogs.com/0100269/image
s/2003/09/18/k30201f.JPG
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Relevance of Traditional Knowledge Today??

• Climate Change
• Urbanization
• Traditional Knowledge changes.
• The important thing is that it is local knowledge!

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So why dont we just rely on Local Knowledge??

• Superstitions can come into play
• Inaccurate knowledge
• Chronology traditions float in time

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When Science is Disregarded

• Nevado del Ruiz
• 35,000 people died despite warnings from
  scientists

Image from http//www.geology.sdsu.edu/how_volcan
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Objectives

• Increased Resilience
• Local (Traditional) Knowledge
• Social Capital
• Decreased Resilience
• Influence of Colonialism
• Current government interference
• External Aid

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Social Capital

• Putnam (2000)
• Social networks, relationships, and the
  associated norms of reprocity
• Can be positive or negative
• Communities that are resilient are generally
  thought to have high social capital

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Social Capital

• Historically high in Indigenous communities
• However, social capital appears to be decreasing
  in many Indigenous communities
• Growing too rapidly
• Experiencing social change

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Social Capital

• Flooding, wildfire, soil and water contamination
  in Manitoba (Epp et al., 1998)
• Community cohesion helped in response and
  recovery in all First Nation communities

Image from http//www.severeweather.state.mn.us/I
mages/EGF_97-AlongtheRed-River.jpg
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Social Capital

• Métis communities and wildfire
• Reliance and trust in local knowledgeable
  residents has resulted in an increase in local
  capacity
• Community works together to decrease wildfire
  risk

Image from http//www.albertametis.ca/getfile/aaa
17b9d-230e-4810-b6a4-37f5c4e46581/flag.aspx
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So Indigenous communities are resilient?

• Lets look at the flipside and examine some
  factors that lead to decreased Indigenous
  community resiliency

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Objectives

• Increased Resilience
• Local (Traditional) Knowledge
• Social Capital
• Decreased Resilience
• Influence of Colonialism
• Current government interference
• External Aid

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Remaining Effects of Colonialism

• Perception of Indigenous culture and knowledge as
  inferior
• Arrival of Capitalism has undermined traditional
  Aboriginal values of sharing and mutual aid
  (Shkilnyk, 1985)
• Lack of Trust

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Objectives

• Increased Resilience
• Local (Traditional) Knowledge
• Social Capital
• Decreased Resilience
• Influence of Colonialism
• Current government interference
• External Aid

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Current Government Interference

• Lack of attention by govt to local knowledge can
  decrease resiliency by (Gardner and Dekens,
  2007)
• Introduced facilities and people may be located
  in unsafe areas
• New technologies may increase vulnerability
• New institutions can erode the local livelihood
  and sustainability of communities

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Current Government Interference

• Risk communication about contaminants in the
  North
• Has caused major social, psychological, economic,
  and lifestyle disruptions (Furgal et al., 2005)

Image from http//www.itk.ca/environment/contamin
ants-wildlife-humans.php
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Current Government Interference

• Devaluation of Traditional Risk Reduction
  Activities
• Aboriginal burning vs. Smokey the Bear
• Has actually increased wildfire risk

Image from http//johnstodderinexile.files.wordpr
ess.com/2007/08/smokey-the-bear-classic.jpg
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Current Government Interference

• Devaluation of Traditional Risk Reduction
  Activities
• Himalayas Indigenous building practices reduced
  earthquake risk (Rautela, 2005)
• Had western style mitigation forced on them that
  were less effective

Image from http//www.caep.ca/CMS/images/eq-mcmil
lan-fc.jpg
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Objectives

• Increased Resilience
• Local (Traditional) Knowledge
• Social Capital
• Decreased Resilience
• Influence of Colonialism
• Current government interference
• External Aid

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External Aid

• Resulted in growth of communities in vulnerable
  areas, the loss of bush-skills, and a dependence
  on outside sources
• (Newton, 1995)
• Many communities have lost their self-reliance

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External Aid

• Mississippi River (Changnon, 1998)
• Over last 150 years
• Various mitigation measures costing billions of
  dollars
• Loss of lives and property continues to this day
• Government relief programs allow people to remain
  on the floodplain
• Need more emphasis on personal responsibility and
  less reliance on external aid

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rch/photos/images/1927-59A.gif
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In conclusion

• All of these factors can influence Indigenous
  community resiliency
• Traditional/ Local Knowledge
• Social Capital
• Influence of Colonialism
• Current government interference
• External Aid

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So What Do You Think?

• Can a community have elements of vulnerability,
  but also features of resiliency?