The many activities this year included instruction on fishing with rods and traps, bullkelp harvesting and uses, boat trips into the territories, a visit to an archeological dig, salmon dissections, and role-playing to learn about traditional Nuu-chah-nulth roles such as Ha’wiih (hereditary Chiefs), tsa-tsa-thluk (river keepers), and muschim (community members).  The T’aaq-wiihak fishery was also a focus as campers learned about conservation practices such as fishing openings, quota, and gear restrictions.

The science camps continue to be an important part of Uu-a-thluk’s Capacity Building program as they help connect Nuu-chah-nulth’s younger generations to their territories, resources, teachings, and of course, science.  Initially, Uu-a-thluk developed the successful science camp program to generate more Nuu-chah-nulth fisheries biologists by sparking interest and passion in marine and environmental science at a young age. Today, our goal has expanded to introducing young people to the range of career opportunities possible in aquatic resources

Jared Dick, Uu-at-hluk Central Region Biologist leads fish dissection with Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation camp participants

There are 669 UNESCO-designated BRs in 120 countries, including 20 transboundary sites (UNESCO, Accessed July 11, 2017), all with a mandate to promote biodiversity conservation, sustainable development and livelihoods through research, education and training.  At this meeting, Canadian BRs committed to reconciliation as an additional pillar of their mandate, answering the national call for “collective efforts…to revitalize the relationship between Aboriginal peoples and Canadian society” (Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, 2017).  Each person reflected on what reconciliation means to them individually, and breakout groups identified actions for incorporating reconciliation with Indigenous peoples into the governance and activities of Canadian BRs.

Anthony Blair Dreaver Johnston (Mistawasis Nehiyawak in Saskatchewan) and Genevieve Poirier-Ghys (Mont Saint-Hilaire BR) in group discussions about what BRs can do in terms of their governance and activities to meaningfully engage Indigenous peoples in the spirit of reconciliation. Photo credits: Delphine Doucet

Watch this video of participants speaking about what reconciliation means to them

Over 4 days, CCRN researchers Minerva Arce-Ibarra and Sharmalene Mendis-Millard, along with CCRN affiliate Meriem Bouamrane from UNESCO, enjoyed warm hospitality, field trips and engaging discussions with 60 other participants. Minerva spoke about how Mexican BRs are structured and funded differently, and offered her perspective and curiosity as someone starting to learn about the Canadian BR context.  Sharmalene facilitated small group discussions, and Meriem reminded the group of the importance of their work, and how they are not alone; others globally are grappling with similar problems and taking actions that ultimately contribute to UNESCO’s goal of a peaceful world.

Minerva Arce-Ibarra and Sharmalene Mendis-Millard (CCRN); Meriem Bouamrane (UNESCO), Rebecca Hurwitz (Clayoquot Biosphere Trust) and Valerie Courtois (Indigenous Leadership Initiative). Photo credit: Nelson Boisvert

The group learned a bit about Canada’s history, international and national commitments, and injustices Indigenous communities and peoples are still facing that shape the need for reconciliation today.  Representatives from the Pessamit Innu First Nation spoke about their efforts to have their rights respected.  As an example, they are calling for a stop to the practice of generating peak energy from a Hydro-Québec dam on their territory, which is causing severe damage to an important river for salmon and their way of life. To learn more about some of what was discussed, watch Larry McDermott’s CCRN webinar, ‘Indigenous Engagement: Principles to Guide Process and Action for Reconciliation‘, and ‘An Indefensible Privilege: Wiping out the Betsiamites River Salmon to Light Up Cities’ about Pessamit Innu First Nation’s story.

The group also heard a song and stories about the resilience of Indigenous peoples, opportunities for working together for a more sustainable future, and work already underway in several BRs. The Pessamit Innu Nation, for instance, has found value in working with Manacouagan-Uapishka BR on conservation and sustainable development projects for mutual benefit. “Groups like UNESCO can benefit from our Indigenous knowledge to create policies and measures to protect the environment….Our partnership with UNESCO becomes a symbol of honour, it is something our young people can be proud of, and it is proof to the outside world we value our land” said Raymond Rousselot, Band councilor for the Pessamit Innu Nation (CBC July 7, 2017).

Watch Eskasoni First Nation’s Kalolin Johnson sing ‘We Shall Remain (It Wasn’t Taken Away)’

As a bonus, the Canada Coast to Coast to Coast (Canada C3) expedition joined the group for a bit. This was fitting, as Canada C3 participants are engaging in conversations about diversity and inclusion, reconciliation, youth engagement, and the environment, and hoping people across the nation follow their journey of discovery.

CBRA President Jean-Phillipe Messier and group tour the Canada C3 boat. Stan Johnson from Eskasoni First Nation (Bras d’Ors BR) talks with musician Heather Rankin. Photo credits: Laurent Gosselin

Finally, the Pessamit Innu First Nation hosted a special National Aboriginal Day event, showcasing traditional Indigenous foods in outdoor barbeque and gourmet styles, their history, songs, dances, and locally-made crafts. At this community celebration, the Canadian Biosphere Reserves Association (CBRA) unveiled a Call to Action, which, in the words of Sébastien Goupil (Secretary General of the Canadian Commission for UNESCO), “…is a strong reminder that the sites designated by UNESCO in Canada and around the world have the responsibility to actively contribute to strengthening ties with indigenous peoples. Canadian Biosphere Reserves are ideally positioned to show how we move from words to action” (National Celebration in Pessamit Press Release, June 2017).

(Left) Innu Nation Elders at the community celebration on National Aboriginal Day. Photo credit: Nelson Boisvert. (Right) Groups identified actions for how to work toward reconciliation in the coming years. Photo credit: Laurent Gosselin.

Author: Sharmalene Mendis-Millard

The session was chaired by CCRN PhD candidate Alison Macnaughton and consisted of five presentations:

Prateep Nayak:
Fisher communities in transition: Understanding meanings and motivations for conservation from a livelihood perspective in Chilika Lagoon, India

Sébastien Boillat:
Linking telecoupled conservation initiatives with environmental justice: A meta-analysis of protected areas in the global South

Alison Macnaughton, Fernando Carvajal-Vallejos, Anthony Charles:
The role of fishing as part of sustainable indigenous livelihoods in the Bolivian Amazon

Rahul Chaturvedi, Pratiti Priyadarshini:
Securing tenurial rights to improve forest conditions and livelihoods in the rainfed regions of India

Verina Ingram, Otto Hospes:
A paradigm shift in sustainability governance? The emergence of sustainable landscape initiatives

CCRN members Philile Mbatha, Prateep Kumar Nayak, and Wayne Stanley Rice presented their research during this session, continue reading to view the abstracts from their presentations.

Plural Governance Systems and Shifting Coastal Livelihood Strategies in South Africa

Philile Mbatha
Department of Environmental and Geographical Sciences
University of Cape Town, South Africa

A number of rural coastal communities in South Africa have a long history of interacting with coastal environment and utilizing coastal resources for livelihoods. However, due to histories of land dispossession and marginalization in terms of coastal resource access and use over the years, the livelihoods of people in rural communities such as Kosi Bay have shifted as a result of various governance processes introduced in colonial, apartheid, as well as democratic eras in South Africa. Through the lens of the Kosi Bay community; this study 1) explores the livelihood strategies employed by rural coastal communities living in conservation areas, 2) describes the complex governance systems relevant to coastal resource use, 3) seeks to understand how people’s livelihood strategies and choices have been influenced by changing plural governance systems and processes, and 4) outlines the different norms, values, principles, images and discourses that inform the governance of coastal resources and resource use sectors in Kosi Bay from the international level, down to the local level. The paper highlights the critical role of governance in assessing people’s livelihood strategies and argues for greater attention to governance in livelihood analyses.

Kosi Bay

Occupational Mobility and its Implications for Human-Environment Connections and Livelihoods in Chilika Lagoon, India

Prateep Kumar Nayak
School of Environment, Enterprise and Development; Environmental Change and Governance Group
University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada

The presentation focuses on key environmental, political, social and economic factors shaping occupational mobility in Chilika Lagoon, Bay of Bengal, India – including (1) fisher’s mobility within and outside the fishery sector as part of their overall livelihood adaptation strategy and (2) geographical spread of fishers’ occupational mobility that exposes them to a number of externally imposed challenges. Using impacts from sectoral and geographical mobility by fishers as a measure, the paper reviews the status of their linkages with existing fishery institutions and the Lagoon resources across various levels to assess the extent to which fishers have been disconnected from the ongoing institutional processes and the Lagoon environment. Conclusion point to emerging trends and future scenarios regarding occupational mobility in Chilika.

The Importance of Social Relations and Networks for Implementing and Governing Coastal-Marine Community-Based Conservation Initiatives: The Case of The Bay of Ranobe, South-West Madagascar

Wayne Stanley Rice
Department of Environmental and Geographical Sciences
University of Cape Town, South Africa

Natural resources are unde r threat in the absence of effective governance institutions at the appropriate scale. Commons research has long advocated, based on historical and contemporary evidence, the ability of local resource users to manage and allocate benefits from natural resources equitably over long periods of time with limited inefficiencies. Furthermore, concerns surrounding national and international conservation agendas’ promotion at the expense of local livelihood requirements has generated interest in community-based conservation initiatives, encouraging local community participation and knowledge in natural resource management. Nonetheless, many scholars agree early interest has largely diminished, due to various studies depicting a lack of success in meeting ecological and social goals. However, whilst the implementation of community-based conservation initiatives has yielded mixed results, this may be due in part to conventional scientific approaches not having adequately incorporated complex human dimensions. The failures to devolve decision-making powers to local communities, the difficulty of equitable community representation and distribution of benefits, and weak participation have perhaps equally contributed. Consequently, the importance of social relations and networks is increasingly noted to be influential for implementing and governing more socially just conservation initiatives. Research undertaken in the Bay of Ranobe, south-west Madagascar, appraised social relations and networks present/ absent, and the influence thereof on governing natural resources present. Village presidents and local fisher association community representatives were identified as central actors within the network. However, several concerns were expressed by community members regarding these actors due to limited knowledge diffusion and inequitable benefit distribution. Moreover, mixed community perceptions of coastal-marine community conserved areas were highlighted, citing a lack of community involvement leading to decreased levels of community buy-in. This research informs and enriches conservation planning and governance approaches, and contributes to the theory and practice of more community-inclusive conservation regionally and globally.

Click to view a PDF of this policy brief

During the 2016 IUCN World Conservation Congress, marine conservation practitioners and researchers (including CCRN affiliate Nathan Bennett) met to discuss the need for a code of conduct for marine conservation. During this meeting, the group discussed the benefits, key principles, and steps necessary to create a code of conduct for marine conservation. From this initial discussion, and following a review of key policy documents, a draft code of conduct has been created. Information on this draft is available as a policy brief and as a scientific publication in the Journal Marine Policy.

This draft code of conduct for marine conservation is separated into three main objectives and includes details on how to achieve each objective. The first objective is to ensure fair conservation governance and decision making processes, the second objective is to guarantee socially-just conservation actions and outcomes, and the third objective is to assure accountable conservation initiatives and organizations.

The authors recognize that the development and implementation of a universal code of conduct for marine conservation requires the support of conservation donors, NGO’s, and global conservation organisations. The type of support needed includes discussions with key stakeholders, production of guiding documents and the consideration of additional accountability mechanisms.

This post was created with details from “An appeal for a code of conduct for marine conservation.” The featured image was taken by Nathan Bennett.

To address this, Dr. Andrew Merrie orchestrated the Radical Ocean Futures project. For this project, Dr. Merrie, who recently received his PhD in sustainability science, utilized various forms of art (Science Fiction, graphics, and music) to communicate sustainability in alternative ways, that may resonate more strongly with communities than academic papers.

The project highlights four different sci-fi stories which describe four possible futures for our oceans. These stories are grounded in science, referencing current peer-reviewed publications, news articles and credible websites, and describe what our oceans may look like in the future. To further convey the scenarios described in Dr. Merrie’s work, images of these possible futures were created by graphic artist Simon Stålenhag with musical interpretations provided by K. La Luna (also known as CCRN member Dr. Kaitlyn Rathwell).  The goal of this project is to help us understand the complexity of our oceans and how unexpected changes and responses to these changes can influence the future of our oceans.

The first story “Oceans back from the brink – May 2070,” is told from the perspective of a transcript of a talk presented by a renowned ocean sustainability researcher and activist. This story describes how the oceans were once heavily polluted and what series of events took place that allowed the Oceans to be clean by 2070.

The second story “Obituary: Astrid Amundsen, CEO of FISH Inc. – January 2070,” is written as an obituary of a CEO from a company that maintained significant control of the world’s aquatic resources. In this scenario, the world is in the midst of an environmental crisis. The human population  is sustained by bio-engineered tuna and jellyfish paste.

The third story “Rime of the last fisherman: Dispatches from a dying ocean – 2070” is a series of diary entries by the world’s last fishermen. Through these transcripts, the fishermen describes the death of the oceans.

The forth story “Rising Tide – Visiting Tarawa station” is told from the perspective of a journalist who describes how sea level rise forced parts of humanity to learn how to live under the sea. In this future, a treaty has been created between nations to ensure the sustainable harvest of aquatic resources, and the ocean is slowly recovering from past transgressions.

The art work showcased in the featured image was created by graphic artist Simon Stålenhag

During the summer of 2016, the Alberta-based natural gas company AltaGas diverted a section of the Sipekne’katik River to create a mixing channel. AltaGas aims to dump mine waste in the Sipekne’katik River, drill salt caverns, and store natural gas on land belonging to the Mi’kmaw First Nation. This project threatens the river ecosystem and poses a risk to the health and livelihood of the Mi’kmaw communities in this area. The Peace and Friendship Treaties signed between the Mi’kmaw and colonialists indicate that this land belongs to the Mi’kmaw. Additionally, the treaties guarantee the right for the Mi’kmaw to hunt and fish as usual.

During the summer of 2016, a truckhouse was built on the banks adjacent to the Alton Gas site and eel traps were placed in the diverted section of the river. The purpose of these constructions is to ensure that access to the river, which is protected in the Peace and Friendship Treaties, is available to everyone. Further, these additions act to demonstrate that the Mi’kmaw people and allies are resistant to the Alton Gas project but hope to explore how everyone can come together in peace and friendship.

Featured image was taken by Sadie Beaton

Paiche fish (Arapaima gigas)

The purpose of the book was to document existing fisheries as well as the expansion of introduced species, highlighting some of the associated challenges and opportunities and providing policy recommendations. While fisheries in the Bolivian Amazon make use of a high diversity of species and are an important aspect of livelihoods for thousands of rural families as well as urban-based commercial fishers, the sector is only recently receiving more attention in the form of developing regulations and institutional support frameworks. In a rapidly changing landscape of growing regional centres and transportation networks, newly recognized indigenous territories, increasing pressures from resource extraction industry, hydroelectric dam development, and extreme climate events such as floods, fisheries may contribute to sustainable development for communities, if appropriately managed. Fishery production overall is increasing and moving towards growing regional and national markets. The focus of commercial fisheries is shifting towards the introduced paiche (Arapaima gigas), a large bony-tongued fish of high commercial value but which is not commonly part of local diets. In Brazil, where it is native, and known as pirarucú, the fish has been the subject of significant overfishing resulting in fishery closures and more recently an impressive story of recovery through innovative community-based management. While paiche is not native to Bolivia, it has become an established fishery with a significant economic value, and there is interest in managing it for sustainable use in a way that is complementary with the conservation of native fish that are traditionally part of Amazon diets.

Alison led a chapter exploring diversified livelihoods in indigenous communities in the region and the role of fishing for native species and paiche. The research, carried out in collaboration with Faunagua, revealed some of the complexities of livelihood strategies in the region, where many communities live in remote rural locations, isolated from regional markets and social support services. Seasonal harvesting of non-timber forest products (mainly Brazil nuts) is the primary economic activity, while hunting, fishing, and smallholder agriculture are carried out mostly for subsistence purposes, with some occasional trade at the level of regional markets; this appears to be shifting towards greater connectivity and increasing participation in regional markets. Fish is a critical part of local diets and fishing is one of the main livelihood activities, but this value is not readily apparent when it is analyzed in terms of relative contribution to household income. Overall incomes are low and there are few established resource management plans. Despite the presence of paiche in the region, it’s not yet clear if the fish will be accessed by local communities to generate additional income and how it will be managed. Alison also contributed to two other chapters including a detailed survey of indigenous fisheries in the region, and together with Tiffanie and others, the formulation of recommendations for developing and improving the sustainability of the new paiche fishery, while conserving native fish resources that are a cornerstone of local food security and livelihoods. 

The book’s launch follows the recent approval (April 2017) of national-level legislation for fisheries and aquaculture in Bolivia. The new law represents the culmination of many years of work, including expert advice and extensive consultation with actors from all levels of fish value chains, facilitated in large part by Faunagua. Moving forward, policy and programs will be developed using a multi-level governance approach, considering regionally and locally appropriate regulation, management and development of fishery and aquaculture resources.  It is a socially and strategically important step, for the participatory nature of the development process, for improving the recognition and valuing of how fish and people involved in fisheries contribute to food security and sovereignty in Bolivia, and for strengthening protection for the country’s rich aquatic biodiversity (follow this link for more information). 

Tiffanie, now with World Fisheries Trust, is responsible for coordinating Canadian contributions with a focus on participatory research and locally appropriate solutions as part of the Peces para la vida project in Bolivia, supported by the Canadian International Food Security Research Fund.

Alison is one of the graduate students associated with the project, working under the joint supervision of Dr. Tony Charles (Saint Mary’s University) and Dr. Mark Flaherty (University of Victoria). Her research focuses on fishing as part of livelihoods, transformation and community development.

Currently in its 6^th year of implementation, Peces para la vida is a collaboration of Canadian and Bolivian organizations working together to support the contributions of fisheries and aquaculture to food security and improving livelihoods, with a focus on the economic empowerment of indigenous women and families in the Bolivian Amazon. Developing multi-stakeholder networks, strengthening local fisheries organizations, providing credit and financial tools, improving fish quality and regional fish value chains and markets, and new technology for sustainable aquaculture with native fish are among the strategies being developed and tested in partnership with local actors.