Research led by Alejandro Frid has shone a light on a key loophole in Canada’s fisheries management policies. Yet these policies are unlikely to include Indigenous knowledge. The resulting scientific study was published in one of the top fisheries journals, Fish and Fisheries. It reviewed 78 publicly available documents that were produced or co-produced by Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO). Making the unknown visible The results point to some troubling gaps in our recognition and integration of Indigenous perspectives. This concern has become even more urgent following the 2019 modernization of Canada’s Fisheries Act.
The research revealed an alarming figure. In total, an overwhelming 87% of the documents reviewed failed to even mention Indigenous peoples or their perspectives. Only one document, titled Haida Gwaii ‘íináang | iinang Pacific Herring: An Ecosystem Overview and Ecosystem-based Rebuilding Plan, fully integrated Indigenous approaches. Development of this document’s collaborative process greatly increased our collective understanding of herring ecology. It helped to show the relative impacts of various fisheries and gear types on the ecosystem.
Frid’s research highlights the need for meaningful partnership between Indigenous peoples and governments. Following the Haida Gwaii ‘íináang | iinang Pacific Herring management plan, this handbook provides a successful example of incorporating Indigenous knowledge. This collaboration is a model for the power of partnerships to inform better decision-making processes. This collaborative approach fostered co-governance, supporting the direct involvement of different governance actors in shared decision-making, a key characteristic of sustainable fisheries management.
What we didn’t expect was… At the same time as they prioritized Western science it only averaged three percent of the documents integrating any Indigenous knowledge systems. Indigenous peoples were named in only 9 percent of the documents as being involved in the research. They did not go far enough to fully incorporate their traditional ecological knowledge systems. This failure to provide meaningful engagement calls into question the integrity of participation and representation in matters of fisheries management.
Frid and his colleagues are just as happy to have their results shared with the DFO. To foster this collaboration, they have shared a pre-print version of their results. They’re calling on governments to make Indigenous knowledge the basis of their management decisions about Canada’s fisheries. That means sustaining, deepening or establishing the structures and discipline to support this effort and practice. This call to action aims to ensure that Indigenous voices are not only heard but actively shape policies that affect their communities and ecosystems.
The study also pointed to a troubling pattern when it came to representation in advisory board meetings. Of 48 participants at a recent peer review advisory meeting, just eight were Indigenous. This disparity raises critical questions related to inclusiveness in policy-making. It further underscores the need for Indigenous peoples to be represented and to promote their rights.
