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  • OPEN ACCESS
    Taking care of knowledge, taking care of salmon: towards Indigenous data sovereignty in an era of climate change and cumulative effects
    FACETS • Vol. 9 • pp. 1 - 21
    In this paper, we argue that Indigenous data sovereignty (IDS) is vital for addressing threats to ecosystems, as well as for Indigenous Peoples re-establishing and maintaining sovereignty over their territories. Indigenous knowledge-holders face pressure from non-Indigenous scientists to collaborate to address environmental problems, while the open data movement is pressuring them to make their data public. We examine the role of IDS in the context of cumulative effects and climate change that threaten salmon-bearing ecosystems in British Columbia, guided by content from an online workshop in June 2022 and attended exclusively by a Tier-1 audience (First Nations knowledge-holders and/or technical staff working for Nations). Attention to data is required for fruitful collaborations between Indigenous communities and non-Indigenous researchers to address the impacts of climate change and the cumulative effects affecting salmon-bearing watersheds in BC. In addition, we provide steps that Indigenous governments can take to assert sovereignty over data, recommendations that external researchers can use to ensure they respect IDS, and questions that external researchers and Indigenous partners can discuss to guide decision-making about data management. Finally, we reflect on what we learned during the process of co-creating materials.
  • OPEN ACCESS
    Identifying indigenous knowledge components for Whudzih (Caribou) recovery planning
    FACETS • Vol. 10 • pp. 1 - 11
    In Canada, recent advances towards reconciliation have introduced new collaborations between Indigenous and non-Indigenous governments, including for species-at-risk recovery planning. During these collaborations, Indigenous Knowledge (IK) is often requested, however, clear expectations of what IK is being sought and how diverse knowledge systems will be woven to produce tangible benefits to species recovery are often limited. Here, we provide a case study of a two-stage process to identify and collect IK components that can aid whudzih (caribou) recovery planning. First, we surveyed non-Indigenous government professionals involved in caribou initiatives to specify what IK would benefit recovery planning. Responses were used to guide the development of semi-structured interview questions. Interviews were conducted with knowledge holders from Lhtako Dene, a Southern Dakelh Nation in British Columbia, Canada with historic socioecological ties to caribou. Responses of government professionals highlighted 24 topics for caribou recovery, and interviews with Lhtako Dene knowledge holders revealed strong linkages between ecological and social information types. In some cases, the IK requested was not available from knowledge holders. Collaborations for caribou recovery would benefit from clarity on expectations and outcomes of IK sharing. We suggest that structured processes that respectfully facilitate IK requests and collection become commonplace in species recovery planning.
  • OPEN ACCESS
    Remanufacturing of paper waste for pencil production: a sustainable business assessment
    FACETS • Vol. 9 • pp. 1 - 12
    Large amounts of waste paper are generated annually worldwide. Although some of it is recycled, up to 50% is landfilled or incinerated. The remanufacturing of waste paper to produce pencils is proposed as a novel, sustainable business solution. A sustainability analysis of this process was performed to quantify indexes of technical, environmental, economic, and social sustainability. Small-to-medium business models were evaluated, in which 15 000 pencils/shift/day can be produced from 135 kg of waste paper, with a maximum productivity of 64 800 pencils/day. Productivity, operating costs, power consumption, land footprint, machine delivery cost, and number of workers were used to analyze the technical feasibility. The cost-to-profit ratio, cost and profit per pencil, and daily profit were used to evaluate economic sustainability. The amounts of municipal solid waste and recovered paper waste, saved embodied energy, and prevented CO2 emissions were used to analyze environmental sustainability. The number of workers and labor costs were used to evaluate human development and social sustainability. The machines required for the remanufacturing line are considered sufficiently mature, remanufactured pencils are less expensive to produce than wooden pencils, and the proposed process minimizes the amount of waste paper sent to landfills and avoids the use of new wood for producing pencils, thereby satisfying technical, economic, and environmental sustainability, respectively. The final sustainability index of 0.9 is considered very high and sufficient for operating a profitable, sustainable business with a profit of 252–583 USD/day.
  • OPEN ACCESS
    Ărramăt: an example of Indigenous Peoples’ holistic approach of health and well-being
    FACETS • Vol. 10 • pp. 1 - 10
    Status quo frameworks are highly Eurocentric and narrow in scope protecting; biodiversity conservation in many parts of the world and reflect a kind of dichotomized conservation that has created and perpetuated patterns of poverty, food insecurity, and socio-economic marginalization, particularly among Indigenous Peoples. By dichotomized conservation, we mean an approach to conservation that is not taking into consideration the intrinsic interdependence of environment, people, and all the species. It is the management of conservation of different ecosystems and species separately. This framework is opposed to the Indigenous approach to conservation in which people cannot think about their health and well-being without thinking about the health and well-being of Mother Earth. New conceptualizations of biodiversity are needed that are holistic in nature and confront these historical and systemic patterns of exclusion of Indigenous Peoples.
  • OPEN ACCESS
    Adaptive capacity of the Maine lobster fishery: insights from the Maine Fishermen’s Climate Roundtables
    FACETS • Vol. 9 • pp. 1 - 13
    The Gulf of Maine in the northwestern Atlantic Ocean is one of the world’s fastest warming marine regions. Changes in ocean conditions are affecting growth, survival, and distribution of American lobster (Homarus americanus), which supports iconic fisheries along the coast of Maine, USA. In this study, we analyzed 15 years of oral records from the Maine Fishermen’s Climate Roundtables to explore fishermen’s observations of and responses to social–ecological changes. Fishermen reported an overall shift in lobster biomass further east and offshore, resulting in strategic expansion of fishing seasons and areas. Biomass shifts were thought to be connected to increases in temperature, decreases in salinity, a shift in ocean currents, and a loss of predator species. Fishing strategies were categorized according to five domains of adaptive capacity, but the majority of fishers’ responses fell into two domains: “access to assets” and “diversity and flexibility”. Strategies within these domains included increased expansion into federal lobster fisheries and extension of fishing seasons. Fishermen highlighted data gaps that need to be addressed to meet the challenges of climate change. Fisheries learning exchanges, such as the Climate Roundtables, create social networks that foster knowledge sharing to support the continued viability of local livelihoods.
  • OPEN ACCESS
    Royal Society of Canada working group on health research system recovery: strengthening Canada’s health research system after the COVID-19 pandemic
    FACETS • Vol. 9 • pp. 1 - 44
    The Royal Society of Canada Working Group on Health Research System Recovery developed actionable recommendations for organizations to implement to strengthen Canada’s health research system. Recommendations were based on input from participants from G7 countries and Australia and New Zealand. Participants included health research funding agency leaders; research institute leaders; health, public health, and social care policy-makers; researchers; and members of the public. The recommendations were categorized using the World Health Organization’s framework for health research systems and include governance/stewardship: (1) Outline research logistics as part of emergency preparedness to streamline research in future pandemics. (2) Embed equity and inclusion in all research processes. (3) Facilitate streamlined, inclusive, and rigorous processes for grant application preparation and review. (4) Create knowledge mobilization infrastructure to support the generation and use of evidence. (5) Coordinate research efforts across local, provincial, national, and international entities. Financing: (6) Reimagine the funding of health research. Capacity building: (7) Invest in formative training opportunities rooted in equity, diversity, and anti-racism. (8) Support researchers’ career development throughout their career span. (9) Support early career researchers to establish themselves. Producing and using research: (10) Strengthen Indigenous health research and break down systemic barriers to its conduct. (11) Develop mechanisms to produce novel research. (12) Enhance research use across the health research ecosystem.
  • OPEN ACCESS
    Inuit perspectives on climate change and well-being: a comparison between urban and remote communities in the Arctic
    FACETS • Vol. 9 • pp. 1 - 12
    The generational knowledge of weather and climate is a foundational component of subsistence for Inuit in the Arctic. This knowledge is now challenged by the reality of anthropogenic climate change at a pace that, for Inuit, is impeding fundamental aspects of life in a single generation. To better understand how climate change moderates relationships between Inuit communities and the ecosystem services they rely on, the literature on how climate change is perceived in the circumpolar Arctic was systematically reviewed. The perspectives of Inuit as described in 75 studies were contrasted with those queried from a series of semi-structured interviews with 16 residents of Iqaluit, Nunavut. Within the literature, the themes most frequently mentioned in remote communities were concerns arising about the environment, community, and health. However, the inverse was true for studies that focused on urban communities. Participants from the semi-structured interviews described how colonialism still shapes knowledge translation, which has lasting effects on Arctic climate literacy for Inuit and non-Inuit. As such, an academic knowledge gap in the colonial context in which climate change operates was identified, which requires a way forward that can lead to improvements in the social context for Inuit.
  • OPEN ACCESS
    Weaving ways of knowing in practice: a collaborative approach to prioritizing community knowledge and values in wildlife camera monitoring with Magnetawan First Nation
    FACETS • Vol. 9 • pp. 1 - 17
    There is not one singular way to weave together Indigenous and Western knowledges; creating meaningful cross-cultural collaborations requires a foundation of relationships rooted in the context of specific people and place. As interest in working across knowledge systems increases, our goal is to provide an example of respectful and appropriate cross-cultural collaboration within environmental practice. We demonstrate our collaborative, mixed-methods approach to developing a community-based wildlife monitoring program with Magnetawan First Nation that prioritizes community knowledge and values. Through community interviews and a youth sharing circle, participants highlighted values (respect, interconnection, reciprocity, collaboration, and relationship) as well as research priorities, providing examples of what each may look like in practice, to inform our monitoring approach. These examples, paired with reflections from the research team, are shared to explore the process of weaving together knowledge and values to co-create a community-based wildlife monitoring program, applying wildlife cameras as much more than simply a tool for data collection. This research provides tangible examples of weaving together knowledges and values in the context of environmental monitoring, helping guide future cross-cultural collaboration to ensure this work is being done in a good way.
  • OPEN ACCESS
    Exploring the use of the RISK21 approach for Indigenous community-based human health risk assessments: two case studies
    FACETS • Vol. 10 • pp. 1 - 16
    Indigenous peoples in North America are disproportionately exposed to environmental contaminants and may face elevated health risks related to unique socio-cultural ties to the land. Conventional human health risk assessment (HHRA) methods do not account for these unique contexts. Regulators (i.e., Health Canada, US EPA) have called for the development of more ethical and efficient HHRA approaches, but to our knowledge no such approaches have been designed in consideration of Indigenous community contexts. RISK21 is a new HHRA approach gaining regulatory attention. We present two case studies piloting RISK21’s use in collaboration with three unique communities (Cold Lake First Nations, Chipewyan Prairie First Nation, Apsáalooke/Crow Nation). Our objectives are first, reflect upon the benefits and challenges of using RISK21 in these contexts; second, compare RISK21-based to conventional assessments; and third, ideate adaptations and improvements to the approach. The RISK21-based analyses had similar descriptive results to the original conventional assessments, including when using less information. We found RISK21 useful for rapid chemical assessment and visually representing data from multiple sources. We recommend areas where RISK21 (and other next-generation HHRA approaches) might be improved for Indigenous community contexts, including increasing the community relevance of communication tools and incorporating holistic and non-conventional information.
  • OPEN ACCESS
    A harm reduction approach to improving peer review by acknowledging its imperfections
    FACETS • Vol. 9 • pp. 1 - 14
    This candid perspective written by scholars from diverse disciplinary backgrounds is intended to advance conversations about the realities of peer review and its inherent limitations. Trust in a process or institution is built slowly and can be destroyed quickly. Trust in the peer review process for scholarly outputs (i.e., journal articles) is being eroded by high-profile scandals, exaggerated news stories, exposés, corrections, retractions, and anecdotes about poor practices. Diminished trust in the peer review process has real-world consequences and threatens the uptake of critical scientific advances. The literature on “crises of trust” tells us that rebuilding diminished trust takes time and requires frank admission and discussion of problems, creative thinking that addresses rather than dismisses criticisms, and planning and enacting short- and long-term reforms to address the root causes of problems. This article takes steps in this direction by presenting eight peer review reality checks and summarizing efforts to address their weaknesses using a harm reduction approach, though we recognize that reforms take time and some problems may never be fully rectified. While some forms of harm reduction will require structural and procedural changes, we emphasize the vital role that training editors, reviewers, and authors has in harm reduction. Additionally, consumers of science need training about how the peer review process works and how to critically evaluate research findings. No amount of self-policing, transparency, or reform to peer review will eliminate all bad actors, unscrupulous publishers, perverse incentives that reward cutting corners, intentional deception, or bias. However, the scientific community can act to minimize the harms from these activities, while simultaneously (re)building the peer review process. A peer review system is needed, even if it is imperfect.
  • OPEN ACCESS
    Inuit uses of weather, water, ice, and climate indicators to assess travel safety in Arctic Canada, Alaska, and Greenland: a scoping review
    FACETS • Vol. 10 • pp. 1 - 25
    Environmental indicators are naturally occurring variables, conditions, and events that are used to assess and monitor environmental conditions and change. Inuit throughout Inuit Nunaat (Inuit circumpolar homelands) observe and experience environmental indicators as they travel year-round for harvesting and other cultural practices. Inuit draw on their observations of current conditions and their knowledge of weather, water, ice, and climate (WWIC) indicators, when seeking to predict and understand conditions that impact safe travel. This scoping review documents the types and diversity of WWIC indicators articulated in peer-reviewed and grey literature as being used by Inuit in Canada, Alaska, and Greenland to assess travel safety. Two reviewers independently screened 512 studies using pre-determined eligibility criteria and 123 studies were included for review. A total of 163 unique WWIC indicators were used across 85 communities in Canada, Alaska, and Greenland. Indicators reflect a broad range of ways that Inuit experience their environment, through sight, feel, and sound. Indicators can be considered as causal, conditional, or predictive (or a combination thereof), where knowledge of the interactions among various indicators is especially important to support safe travel. Identified gaps and future research directions included assessing key indicators to better target development of locally relevant research and information services.
  • OPEN ACCESS
    Tools for transformation: a teaching toolkit and research pocket guide for advancing equity, diversity, and inclusion in science and engineering
    FACETS • Vol. 10 • pp. 1 - 10
    Advancing equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) in scientific fields is an outstanding challenge. While there is growing awareness of barriers and challenges to EDI across science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), individuals may lack the knowledge and/or skills to effect change. This Perspective article describes two resources we developed: (1) a Teaching Toolkit, entitled “Science is for everyone: Integrating equity, diversity, and inclusion in teaching science and engineering—a toolkit for instructors”, and (2) a Research Pocket Guide, entitled “Striving for inclusive excellence in science and engineering research: a pocket guide”. The Teaching Toolkit offers actions, activities, and tools specifically designed for instructors to implement in STEM courses. The Research Pocket Guide offers a dynamic reference tool that is useful to a broad range of researchers. Both resources are distributed under creative commons license and may be adapted for different institutions and contexts. The Teaching Toolkit and Research Pocket Guide are unique with their combination of colourful graphics and novel collections of actionable steps to engage with EDI concepts both in classrooms and research teams. It is our hope that these resources will catalyze change towards advancing EDI in STEM.
  • OPEN ACCESS
    What are Canadians willing to pay for bird habitat conservation? A contingent valuation approach
    FACETS • Vol. 10 • pp. 1 - 15
    The North American Waterfowl Management Plan (NAWMP) is an international agreement between the Governments of Canada, the United States, and Mexico to coordinate the conservation and restoration of wetlands, associated uplands, and other key habitats for waterfowl and other bird species. To understand public support of NAWMP goals, we conducted a survey of Canadians (n = 2324) and asked about their willingness to make a one-time donation to NAWMP using the contingent valuation method (CVM). Results demonstrate that almost one-third were willing to donate to NAWMP to protect and conserve bird habitats. Parametric analysis of CVM responses provides a mean one-time donation estimate of roughly $33.00 per person. We found that participation in birdwatching is associated with higher willingness to donate to NAWMP, and that this association is stronger among people who participate in multiple outdoor recreation activities. Financial support is more likely to be captured by a variety of donation mechanisms. Fundraising communications that promote purchase of conservation lands, or conservation on public lands, science, and education/outreach programs are more likely to attract donors than conservation on private lands. These findings provide important insights that can assist conservation groups in Canada and beyond in formulating public engagement strategies to enhance revenues from voluntary donations.