Ways of Knowing

Tribal Traditional Knowledge
Tribal traditional knowledge, sometimes referred to as native cosmology, is defined by the knowledge gained by people practicing indigenous lifestyles through their experience living and interacting with their environments. It is influenced by geography, academic experience, and the spiritual beliefs or native cosmology of communities and is typically passed on orally from generation to generation. Like analytically based or "Western" science, tribal traditional knowledge is about both a specific body of knowledge and the processes used to obtain and pass on that knowledge. Some examples include:

• Population of Food Animals in Alaska - Aleutian Island Natives who study changes in the populations of food animals they hunt and levels of contaminants in such foods, and who then log this information into a networked database shared with other Arctic villagers. The Alaska Native Science Commission's Arctic Contaminants program page provides additional information.

• Collecting Observational Knowledge on the impact of climate change in the arctic - The National Science Foundation is funding a research project under its Biocomplexity in the Environment funding initiative titled "An Integrated Investigation of Coupled Human and Sea-Ice Systems: A Comparison of Changing Environments and Their Uses in the North American Arctic" . Project researchers work with Native Alaskan communities to collect observational knowledge of the impact of climate change on the arctic environment and couple/compare this to the current "empirical" science.

• Tribal Research Tools & Instruments - Ancient knowledge about the natural world and the tools or other implements designed to study specific processes and make testable predictions about them -- including sites such as the "Sun Dagger" of Chaco Canyon. These kinds of data have primarily been studied in the Western science disciplines of archeoastronomy, and archeology in general. For many examples, see the book Encyclopedia of American Indian Contributions to the World: 15,000 Years of Inventions and Innovations. (Emory Dean Keoke and Kay Marie Porterfield, 2002).

Analytically Based ("Western") Science
The type of science used by federal agencies and non-tribal scientific organizations is analytical based or often termed "Western" science. It is based on a process that involves: formulating a hypothesis; collecting data to test the hypothesis; using standardized methodologies that undergo rigorous quality assurance steps; and verifying findings through a peer review process. Analytically based science usually involves using scientists with a particular expertise to analyze components of an environmental issue as opposed to taking a more holistic approach. To find out more about analytically based science, please refer to the following organization Websites:

• National Academy of Sciences
• American Chemical Society
• Ecological Society of America
• National Science Foundation

Integrated Scientific Approaches
People are gaining valuable insights by bringing together knowledge and expertise from various scientific approaches. Integrating tribal traditional knowledge and analytically based science is proving to be of great value in finding solutions to environmental and health problems. Information from historical and holistic types of data gathered by tribal indigenous people that is brought together with analytically based science has lead to implementable scientific solutions that are more appropriate for those they are designed to help. The number of examples of integrated scientific approaches is growing, but here are just a few:

• Discovering the Hanta Virus - "The power of oral history combined with biomedical investigative techniques was displayed during the 1993 Hanta virus epidemic in Navajo country. In June of 1993, 15 tribal healers met with IHS and CDC biomedical professionals to discuss possible causes of the "mystery illness". To the Navajo, any excess is a form of disharmony. Excess rain and snow had fallen that winter and brought an abundance of pinion nuts and new vegetation. Navajo oral tradition mentions three times that this has happened in recent history: 1918, 1933, and 1993. Many Navajos died of sudden and powerful diseases each time. Elders cited the abundant pinion crop and a high rodent population as the cause. This reference led investigators to find the answer to the "mystery illness" within a matter of days by testing rodent feces and urine samples. This is a clear argument for the holistic thinking that combines not only traditional medicine, but also tribal oral history, with Western medical practice for the wellness of an indigenous population." From the paper commissioned by Health Canada "The Health Status of Indigenous Women of the U.S.: American Indian, Alaska Native And Native Hawaiians" .

• Climate Change in the Arctic - Traditional oral knowledge that records reliable data about climate, animal and plant distributions, and astronomical events of the past are presently being diligently sought after and recorded by Western scientists working, for example, on climate change in the Arctic. That has led to political and social difficulties with indigenous persons who find themselves being "mined" (via interview) for data that are then used in studies that don't cite them as sources for the data and, at the same time, marginalize their expertise as non-scientific and therefore irrelevant to solving climate-based problems afflicting the area. See the Principles for Conducting Research in the Arctic page of NSF's Office of Polar Programs, and compare it to the Code of Research Ethics page of the Alaska Native Science Commission.

• The Ashkui project - a combined effort between Environment Canada and the Innu Nation, the objective of which is to use a variety of methods, from Innu knowledge to Western science, to gain a broad understanding of the ecology of the Ashkui areas and their significance to people who live there well in advance of any land development decisions. The Innu Nation has taken ownership of the Ashkui Project and all aspects of the work are supported by the community. For additional information on the Ashkui project can be found on Environment Canada's EnviroZine Website.

• Ahkwesahsne Science & Math Pilot Project - The Ahkwesahsne Science & Math Project launched a school curriculum that integrates Mohawk culture with Math and Science learning. The idea behind the project is to incorporate Western science and math into Mohawk/Iroquois ways of coming to know, using Mohawk teaching and learning techniques. As part of the project, instructors talk about the history of all things, of their traditional practices that revolve around mother earth. It is hoped that by incorporating these beliefs into the curriculum, the students will feel more comfortable going back to the western classroom.