OTTAWA – Hon. Leona Aglukkaq, Minister of the Environment, the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency, and the Arctic Council has named five aboriginal people with traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) to join American and Mexican experts at the Commission for Environmental Co-operation (CEC) meeting July 14-15, 2015, in Boston, MA.
" When considered alongside science, traditional knowledge contributes to improved understanding of ecological processes, increased efficiency in scientific research and new opportunities for capacity building and learning," the Canadian government said in a release.
Canada's nominees have expertise in areas such as biology, ecology, law, land management, and agriculture. The nominees are Dr. Donna Hurlburt (First Nations), Nova Scotia; Kathy L. Hodgson-Smith (Métis), Saskatchewan; Leah Manik Muckpah (Inuit), Nunavut; Melissa Hotain (First Nations), Manitoba; and Norman Sterriah (First Nations), Yukon.
Canadian miners know how important TEK can be to successful resource development. Now the same expertise is being utilized in the management of our polar bear population, to engage indigenous peoples in projects from initial design to preparation and interpretation, and to develop guidance at Environment Canada for more effective and consistent use of TEK.
Click here to read biographies of the nominees.
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