Postdoctoral researcher University of California-Davis/Southwest Climate Adaptation Science Center, United States
Indigenous knowledge systems are adaptive, time-tested, as well as culturally and environmentally responsive by nature, containing crucial climate observations and adaptation strategies dating back millenia. Although Indigenous Peoples worldwide are on the frontlines of climate change, experiencing extreme impacts along coastlines, the poles, islands, and across arid regions like the Southwestern U.S., these same communities are also leading the way in many innovative adaptation strategies, such as cultural burning. Cultural burning, a type of low-intensity understory burning, increases eco-cultural resilience, by supporting food and material resources for traditional lifeways.
Particularly in the Southwestern regions of the U.S., centuries-long policy of fire suppression and colonial management has created the ripple effect of detrimental impacts on people and ecosystems. In the last couple of years, new policies in California have begun to forward cultural burning policies inclusive of Indigenous-led leadership, which is crucial in facilitating trust, equitable knowledge exchange, and climate change adaptation. This presentation highlights concrete examples of current, and on-going collaborative restoration and Indigenous adaptation leadership as a robust adaptation strategy in California. Examples highlight the importance of trust-building, transparent governance practices, and equitable exchange with Indigenous partners at various structural levels. Lastly, this presentation will further contextualize possible pathways and opportunities for further centering Indigenous-led burning in policy.
