26 March 2025 | 10:30 - 12:00 (MDT)
Open Session - HYBRID
Room: UMC Fourth Floor - 425
Organisers: Marina Tonkopeeva (International Centre for Reindeer Husbandry); Anders Oskal (International Centre for Reindeer Husbandry); Ravdna BME Sara (Sámi University of Applied Sciences)
Zoom link to the Session (password-protected)
The password needed to connect to the session will be distributed the day prior to the start of the sessions to all registered conference participants. Further guidelines on how to participate virtually in the ASSW 2025 can be found on the ASSW 2025 website.
Session Description:
This session explores the transformative potential of knowledge co-production, emphasizing Indigenous-led methodologies as a means to foster inclusive and impactful research. As contemporary challenges such as climate change, land degradation, and Arctic tipping points demand holistic solutions, integrating Indigenous knowledge systems with scientific approaches becomes increasingly crucial. This session aims to highlight the principles, practices, and benefits of co-producing knowledge by and with Indigenous communities, Indigenous academia, and Indigenous knowledge holders. Knowledge co-production in this sense ensures that their perspectives and expertise lead research processes in the Arctic which are ethically responsive to the Indigenous knowledge systems. The session is part of the global GEF-UNEP Reindeer Herding and Resilience project and is based on the EU-PolarNet II Workshop recommendations.
Instructions for Speakers: Oral presentations in this session should be at most 12-minutes in length, with an additional 2-3 minutes for questions (unless more detailed instructions are provided by session conveners). See more detailed presenter instructions here.
Oral Presentations:
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unfold_moreTell me what you see: Co-producing new knowledge on rapid Arctic change from shared insights — Marika Holland & Study of Environmental Arctic Change
Marika Holland 1; Study of Environmental Arctic Change SEARCH 2
1 National Center for Atmospheric Research; 2 SEARCHFormat: Oral in-person
Abstract:
Rapid Arctic environmental change is underway with significant impacts on local communities and the global environment. Co-production of knowledge is critical to understand these changes and their implications, and to devise strategies to effectively respond. The process of co-production weaves together insights from multiple knowledge systems to build a richer and more holistic understanding. To do this effectively requires iterative conversations, true partnerships, and open and respectful dialogue. Under the Study of Environmental Arctic Change (SEARCH) program, Indigenous knowledge holders, scientists, and decision makers have built a complex collaboration to share understanding of the drivers and consequences of Arctic change and to co-produce equitable and effective solutions. Here we demonstrate the process of co-production with a presentation that includes different perspectives on changing Arctic environmental conditions and their influence on Indigenous communities, including subsistence activities. The insights gained from co-production of the type demonstrated here should allow for more equitable and effective solutions.
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unfold_moreUnraveling Dominant Narratives: a critical analysis of Western game management in the Alaskan Arctic and the limits to this universal standard — Priscilla Frankson
Priscilla Frankson 1
1 Arizona State UniversityFormat: Oral in-person
Abstract:
“There are rules for a reason.”
I was sitting on my aunties porch with her one day, and she said this statement. But there was so much more emphasis on it than you might have read just now. The conversation was around our cultural hunting practices as Iñupiaq people. We have always had rules throughout the generations, because without them we could not survive in the Arctic.
In this presentation we critically examine the dominant narratives of game management through a historical and contemporary context. The study is focusing on the use of carrying capacity, wilderness, and the lack of Alaska Native epistemologies in enriching our understanding of the environments we inhabit.
Exploring the origins of carrying capacity, the study traces its evolution from tonnage measures for steamboats to its impact on range and game management. It highlights Western-centric perspectives embedded in the term, particularly its repercussions within Indigenous communities. Similarly, the analysis of the wilderness concept exposes the dichotomy between Western perceptions and Indigenous communities’ harmonious relationships with their surroundings, challenging the romanticization of untouched landscapes.
The implications of these narratives manifest in a lack of cultural awareness of subsistence practices, resulting in one-way communication from policy makers to communities. Notably, the paper addresses the imbalance of power between Alaska Native communities and Western-centric narratives dominating governments. Particularly addressing the disconnect in policies that do not align with the lived experiences of the people on the land.
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unfold_moreNorthern Indigenous peoples collaborate to co-create interactive web-based atlases and engaging processes for sharing stories, place names, history, and science — Joshua W. Brown
Joshua Brown 1
1 The Exchange for Local Observations and Knowledge of the Arctic (ELOKA) at the University of Colorado BoulderFormat: Oral in-person
Abstract:
Indigenous peoples gather to document and disseminate their place names, stories, history, and science. This session presents examples of documentation and sharing projects supported by the Exchange for Local Observations and Knowledge of the Arctic (ELOKA). Indigenous communities are remapping place names, and this presentation draws attention to multiyear co-creations of Indigenous communities' web-based atlas projects. Working with Alaska Native corporations, Indigenous non-profits, and researchers, ELOKA developed online tools and atlases over a decade to support multimodal knowledge sharing. They detail traditional and evolving Indigenous knowledge, social and ecological changes, and stories. These projects co-evolve and co-produce knowledge that Indigenous communities employ. The projects' production processes and outcomes facilitate gathering Indigenous community members and academics to produce distilled knowledge and housing it in cyberspace. They serve as a repository, education institution, and knowledge contribution hub, forming useful and usable space transcending disciplines, creating an expanding location and boundless occasions to engage in learning. These web-based atlases increase teacher and contributor involvement along with subjects and asynchronous learning opportunities, preparing learners to engage with the material. This digital atlas work also brings novice and knowledgeable community members together to share perspectives, insights, and collective knowledge, expanding learning while reinforcing what they offer. Projects continue advancing atlases to increase the connection of Indigenous youth with the knowledge, traditions, and language of their communities, climate science, and local changes. Overall, this paper highlights collaborative efforts documenting and sharing knowledge through video, audio, online platform technology, and interaction with land and knowledgeable cultural bearers.
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unfold_moreCultural Connections Process Model — Sean Asikłuk Topkok
Lynda McGilvary 1; Sean Asikłuk Topkok 1
1 University of Alaska FairbanksFormat: Oral in-person
Abstract:
Cultural Connections Process Model relies on a community engagement model to support creation of videos and classroom lessons for Alaskan high-school students. Four different geographic regions, Alaska Native cultures and language groups are involved in the co-production work to come together to collaborate. Lynda McGilvary has worked with Alaska communities for many years. Dr. Sean Asikłuk Topkok (Iñupiaq/Sámi) is a Co-Investigator on the project. Working with UAF education specialists, a team of local Native experts determines the subject matter and guides content in each region of the state. Then, annually, the four regional teams lead the project’s research to determine if the place-based products will engage Alaska Native students both within and outside of the communities in which the products are co-produced.
CCPM is a co-production project that seeks to engage with rural communities to identify and develop Alaska (place-based) themes as educational resources.
- Develops videos that accurately depict Alaska places, peoples, cultures.
- Develops associated high-school lessons that link videos to core science instruction.
- Incorporates and identifies within each lesson Alaska Native cultural values.
- Development aligns with Indigenous guidelines and protocols*.
- Develops and provides a 1-credit teacher professional development course.
- Builds partnerships among community members (Elders, longtime residents, linguists, historians) who serve as local, cultural and workforce mentors.
- Equips teachers to incorporate local knowledge, culture, Native language in teaching.
- Provides the school district with teaching toolboxes that include teachers manuals, student guides, and all the materials needed to teach the place-based lessons.
- Provides the school district with teaching toolboxes that include teachers manuals, student guides, and all the materials needed to teach the place-based lessons.
Poster Presentations (during Poster Exhibit and Session on Wednesday 26 March):
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unfold_morePermafrost Grown: Supporting Sustainable Permafrost-agroecosystems by Co-producing Knowledge with Alaskan farmers — Melissa Ward Jones
Melissa Ward Jones 1; Glenna Gannon 2; Tobias Schwoerer 3; Benjamin Jones 1; Mikhail Kanevskiy 1; Yuri Shur 1; Benjamin Gaglioti 1; Nicholas Parlato 3; Chien-Lu Ping 2; Daniel Stitch 2; Amber Agnew 2; Phillip Wilson 1
1 Institute of Northern Engineering, University of Alaska Fairbanks; 2 Institute of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Extension, University of Alaska Fairbanks; 3 International Arctic Research Center, University of Alaska FairbanksFormat: Poster in-person
Poster number: 226
Abstract:
A warming Arctic is benefitting the northern expansion of agriculture. Arable land area within the discontinuous permafrost zone is expected to increase with potential to grow globally important crops. A warming Arctic is also driving the rapid degradation of near-surface permafrost which impacts interconnected ecosystems, communities, economies, and industry sectors. The challenges introduced by degrading ice-rich permafrost can lead to shifts in cultivation practices and in some cases field abandonment. Understanding the interactions between permafrost and agriculture has received little attention to date. Permafrost Grown is co-producing knowledge between Alaskan farmers and a transdisciplinary research team from the University of Alaska Fairbanks to advance our understanding of the interactions and feedbacks between permafrost and agriculture.
This presentation will give an overview of recent project activities with a focus on co-production activities including a two-day workshop held in April 2024. The workshop included presentations by both farmer-collaborators and members of the research team and was centered around discussions and activities based on the principals of two-way-learning. One activity was a permafrost-degradation scenario game where farmers had to develop an imaginary farm and respond to permafrost degradation scenarios over six growing seasons. Another exercise looked into the decisions farmers make when considering the purchase of new farmland based on lot characteristics indicating uncertainty regarding the presence/absence of permafrost.
Together with researchers and farmer-collaborators, the project is developing management strategies and a best practice guide for farmers cultivating on permafrost-affected soils. The project results will contribute to sustainable agricultural development practices in high latitude areas.