Passionate about natural resource conservation and safeguarding Earth’s ecological relationships.
You can get all the formal training our institutions offer and still not know everything about a specific ecosystem; nor how to properly manage it. That's why I have long been a proponent of adaptive, collaborative decision making models that unite scientists and non-scientists in the process of: 1) diagnosing a problem and setting socio-ecological objectives; 2) finding acceptable solutions, where ALL stakeholders share the risks and rewards of the management strategy; and 3) evaluating the management strategy to determine which objectives need to be tweaked/replaced and what new management procedures should be adopted. In the attached article, Ty Werdel of Texas A&M discusses the extent to which traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) has been adopted by wildlife biologists. I think his following quote is especially critical for all natural resource professionals who seek partnerships with indigenous communities. "[J]ust because someone is a wildlife management professional, that does not mean they are entitled to TEK [traditional ecological knowledge]. If professionals are going to embrace TEK, they need to embrace authentic relationships with knowledge holders and Tribal communities. This is not a task that can be taken lightly."
TWS member Ty Werdel has been steeped in both Western and Indigenous approaches to wildlife. In a paper in The Journal of Wildlife Management, he explores the state of traditional ecological knowledge in the wildlife profession. https://hubs.li/Q02tVMXY0
