This week I will delve deeper into examples of TEK

Traditional Ecological Knowledge and Climate Change

I did not need any more convincing that TEK is valuable for the fight against climate change, this text source may be more accessible for some.

As Indigenous Peoples’s have a reciprocal relationship with the land and water, manipulation to the land and water is done to benefit the land. Extraction is not embedded in Indigenous resource use, instead, a value of care and respect is embodied.

Examples of TEK:

I was introduced to Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw Clam Gardens and estuarine root gardens in the Environmental Studies 321 (Ethnoecology) course at Uvic.

I was introduced to Reef Net Fishing through my own research in an Indigenous Studies course. Reef Net Fishing is a W̱SÁNEĆ fishing technology.

I was introduced to the Songhees Nation’s management of Camas in Garry Oak Meadows through volunteering with Cheryl Bryce (invasive species removals).

Clam Gardens

Intro:

Developing an understanding of how Clam Gardens are built, maintained, cared for, and the benefits they provide to the community that constructed them. I developed this understanding through reading the article below and watching Mysteries of Ancient Clam Gardens.

Article: Ancient Clam Gardens Increased Shellfish Production: Adaptive Strategies from the Past Can Inform Food Security Today

Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw People have cultivated Clam Gardens for centuries. In order to enhance the productivity and habitat zone of the clams, a rock wall is constructed along the low tide. This rock wall is built by rolling boulders and smaller rocks further down the intertidal zone.

As time passed, the rock wall allowed “sediment, mud, and nutrients carried in by high tides” to accumulate, thus extending the surface area of productive clam substrate.

Care Practices

Digging sticks are used to aerate the soil which helps with the growth of the clams, as well as, aiding in harvesting clams.

Selective harvesting of clams is done in order to prevent localized overharvesting and selectively harvesting of the larger clams leaving the smaller ones to continue to mature. –> Leaving the smaller clams to mature is an important concept in sustainability practices.

Clam gardens are unique in that they create a better growing environment for the clams. I will focus on clam gardens for my science lesson.