Journal
WETLANDS
Volume 41, Issue 2, Pages -Publisher
SPRINGER
DOI: 10.1007/s13157-021-01410-z
Keywords
Cross-cultural ecology; Indigenous ecological knowledge; Northern Australia; Traditional resource management; Wetland management
Categories
Funding
- Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarship
- University of Western Australia
- Indigenous Ranger program
- IPA program
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Historical and contemporary Indigenous wetland management significantly influences wetland ecology and conservation, with the Multiple Evidence Base approach aimed at enriching understanding and solutions for environmental challenges.
Historical and contemporary Indigenous wetland management influences wetland ecological character and conservation in ways not well recognised by western science and mainstream natural resource management. For example, the Australian government funds Aboriginal-led management of traditional lands, but Aboriginal knowledge is rarely enabled to critique, enrich or provide alternatives to conventional wetland management theory and practice. Emerging processes like the Multiple Evidence Base approach aim to foster synergies across different knowledge systems to enrich understanding of, and solutions for, environmental challenges. A starting point for such negotiations is the mobilisation of each knowledge base to foster mutual comprehension of shared knowledge around a subject. To assist in mobilising Aboriginal knowledge around wetland ecosystem management, we offer a case study of related Aboriginal beliefs, knowledge and practice. Based on oral histories and ongoing expressions, wetland management practices undertaken by two Kimberley Aboriginal groups in northern Western Australia form this article's focus. We describe how and why these groups manage or rehabilitate wetlands, reflecting on ecosystem generation and conservation, and convergences or divergences with western science. We also identify barriers to the mobilisation of Aboriginal knowledge systems within contemporary land management programs, and opportunities to better foster Multiple Evidence Base negotiations.
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