Climate Change, Tribes, and Tribal Health

1. First Foods & Traditional KnowledgeUCUT-ATNI Climate Change WorkshopDon Sampson, ATNI Climate Change Project DirectorAcknowledge the CRITFC’s ppt 1

2. Climate Change, Tribes, and Tribal Health Psychological stress from loss of cultural identity in Native cultures due to: • Decline or loss of key plant and animal species • Loss of reservation land • Loss of cultural sites to sea level rise and flooding • Impacts to Tribal health and economies • Loss or changes in traditional foods Coast Salish Canoe Journey 2009 landing in Pillar Point; photo by Carol Reiss, USGS

3. How will climate effects on plants and animals shape elements of tribal culture? How will climate effects on plants and animals shape elements of tribal culture? Subsistence Diet Legends Stories Ceremonies Symbols Beliefs Songs Rituals Prayers Dances Language

4. First Foods Salmon Berries Water Elk/Deer Roots

5. First Foods In the tribal creation belief, the Creator asked the foods “who will take care of the Indian people?” Salmon was the first to promise, then other fish lined up behind salmon. Next was deer, then cous, then huckleberry. The First Food serving ritual in the longhouse is based on this order and reminds people of the promise the foods made and the people’s reciprocal responsibility to respectfully use and take care of the foods. Each “First Food” represents groupings of ecologically related foods.

6. First Foods

7. First Foods

8. Umatilla Tribe Climate Change Work Umatilla River Department of Natural Resources Mission Statement based on First Foods - Developed the Umatilla River Vision Women’s Food and Climate Change: Looking at physiological responses and plant community interactions including diversity and distribution Umatilla Climate Assessment Study Climate Information for Enhanced Tribal Decision-Making: Gathering climate data, web portal, outreach and education

9. First Foods Mission Statement To protect, restore, and enhance the First Foods - water, salmon, deer, cous, and huckleberry - for the perpetual cultural, economic, and sovereign benefit of the CTUIR. We will accomplish this utilizing traditional ecological and cultural knowledge and science to inform: 1) population and habitat management goals and actions; and 2) natural resource policies and regulatory mechanisms.

10. First Foods Mission Statement The end goal of the First Foods-focused management strategy is the sustainable stewardship of natural systems in CTUIR tribal lands, using the long-term production and harvesting of the full First Foods order by the tribe as a primary benchmark for success.

11. First Foods Mission Statement The First Foods framework prioritizes efforts to re-naturalize processes that sustain First Foods and provides a direct and culturally appropriate means for monitoring and reporting restoration progress to the tribal community.

12. Potential distribution of First Foods across the Umatilla Basin, including historically salmonid-bearing streams and potential cous and huckleberry habitats.

13. Salmon DeclineReturning Columbia River salmon (chinook, steelhead, sockeye, coho) Estimated Average 17,000,000 millions of fish 2,574,373

14. Big RiverBig Dams • The tribes never anticipated massive changes to the river when the treaties or executive orders were signed in mid 1800’s. • Our treaties and executive orders are contracts with the United States. • We reserved our rights to the First Foods.

15. Climate Impacts on Fish Increasing frequency and severity of winter flooding – eggs and overwintering juveniles Summer Low Flows – Migrating/Spawning Adults Higher Water Temperatures – will stress migrating adults, and may disrupt growth and downstream migration timing of juveniles

16. CRITFC Climate Change Work • Initiated in 2005 due to tribal observations and media attention • CRITFC Commission resolution in July 2009: treaty rights protecting First Foods be given the highest consideration in legislation and policy • Work on increasing and sustaining funding opportunities nationally for tribes for climate related projects

17. CRITFC Climate Change Work • Assist tribes in climate-related work and make resources available on the CRITFC website • Conduct tribal workshops, presentations and collaborate with numerous agencies and organizations • Participate in federal, regional and national climate change forums including the NW Climate Science Center, Oregon Climate Change Research Institute and the Landscape Conservation Cooperatives • Collaborated with ATNI and CBFWA in December 2008 on the Developing a Northwest Tribal Climate Change Strategy Workshop

18. 2010/2011: Satus and Toppenish Watersheds (Tributaries of Yakama Basin), Part of Larger Cooperative Project with the USGS • 2011/2012: Upper Grande Ronde River Basin • 2012/2013: Clearwater River Basin Completed Water Temperature Modeling for Future Climate Change Scenarios

19. CRITFC Climate Change Work Pat Clayton Analyzed physiological and genetic mechanisms for thermal adaptation in salmon and trout in the PNW

20. Evaluating Climate Change Impacts on Pacific Lamprey and Eulachon Evaluating Climate Change Effects and Ocean/Inriver Connection

21. Developing Information Tools to Assess Climate Change and Other River Use Impacts on First Foods • Conducting a CRITFC Climate Change Survey with tribes on impacts to First Foods and Traditional Knowledge to develop a CRITFC Climate Strategic Plan • Collaborating with other regional, national and international forums to obtain robust climate change and ecosystem science data • Enhancing the CRITFC Information System Model (CIS)

22. Traditional Knowledges

23. Understandings of Traditional Knowledges Intergenerational World View of Interrelationships with the environment Community Traditions, Rituals Practices, and Moral Values Often expressed orally through Language, stories, legends, folklore, songs, taboos, and laws TK Transmitted interpersonally by showing to individuals entrusted with care Sharing Through Rules and Practices of Governance What is it? Image courtesy of Gary Morishima

24. Indigenous Frameworks for Observing and Responding to Climate Change

25. Utilizing Traditional Ecological Knowledge The Tribes and Intertribal organizations should clearly identify a strategy and process on how to best incorporate TEK in their climate change assessment and adaptation efforts including, but not limited to: • Local-scale expertise • A source of climate history and baseline data • Formulating research questions and hypotheses • Insight into impacts and adaptation in communities

26. Local Environmental Observer (LEO) Network - Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium (ANTHC) Comprised of local Native experts who share their knowledge and experiences to describe environmental events in their communities. Apply local and traditional knowledge and modern technology to share their observations and raise awareness about the changing conditions of the circumpolar north. LEOs are connected with technical experts to increase communication and understanding about our changing environment. Observations are then mapped using an interactive interface on the ANTHC website. LEO has 100 observers in over 60 communities.

27. Protecting Traditional Knowledge: Free, Prior and Informed Consent • "Free" • implies indigenous control over decisions related to consent free from force, intimidation, manipulation, inducements, coercion, or other pressure by any government, agency, company, or external entity in a process that is unbiased and neutral as to outcome. • "Prior" • means that indigenous peoples must be engaged before alternatives are identified and actions or decisions are made. • "Informed" • means that all relevant information must be made available and provided in language/forms understandable to indigenous peoples and that indigenous peoples must have access to independent information and experts on law and technical issues upon request. • "Consent" • means that Indigenous Peoples have the right to say "yes" or "no" at each stage of the decision making process.

28. Protecting our First Foods