On Saturday 9th November, we were honoured to host a full day pre-conference workshop at Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre as part of the 25th Biennial Conference on the Biology of Marine Mammals, in keeping with the conference theme “Culture and Conservation: Fishing for Change".
First Nations and Indigenous peoples are the first custodians of the lands and waters. They are also the first knowledge holders, accumulating vast amounts of information about the natural world through generations of lived experience. First Nations and Indigenous Intangible Cultural Ecological Knowledge often includes a deep understanding of patterns and processes of the natural world, observed and passed between generations since time immemorial. Marine mammals play an integral part in the lives of many First Nations and Indigenous peoples, who have a keen interest in the custodianship of marine mammal populations. However, First Nations and Indigenous peoples should not only be considered stakeholders of marine mammal research; the immense knowledge held by many cultures provides extraordinary opportunity to advance marine mammal science through genuine partnership and collaboration.
Experienced researchers, managers, rangers and community members that work in cross-cultural collaborations were invited to share their experience on forming genuine partnerships between western scientists and First Nations and Indigenous peoples. Participants who wished to learn how to better engage with culturally diverse partners to create better outcomes were encouraged to attend. Both Indigenous and non-Indigenous participants were welcomed into in a culturally safe environment to learn from one another on how we can work better, side-by-side.
We started outside in nature together with a Welcome to Country by Noongar community leader, Nick Abraham (Warrang-Bridil), paying our respects to Noongar ancestors and their ongoing connection to land, sea, and sky. Participants learned about and participated in a smoking ceremony, to invite positive energy and ensure cultural safety for all during the day ahead.
The organising team included Adrian Gleiss (Yagarrajalajalan Nagula Buru Project Co-Lead, Harry Butler Institute & Murdoch University) and Cortney Watt (Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Canada), who were assisted by Jenna Hounslow (Yagarrajalajalan Nagula Buru Project Manager & Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Harry Butler Institute & Murdoch University) and Daniella Hanf (O2 Marine & SMM2024 Conference Co-Chair) with additional support from Chevron Australia.
Expertly and respectfully facilitated by Will Bessen from Tuna Blue, the day featured a mixture of invited talks, a picture walk activity, round-table reflection sessions and breakout snapshot discussions. Participants were able to connect and build relationships, hear from groups working cross culturally in different parts of the world, reflect on their own and other ways of learning and working cross culturally, discuss the strengths and challenges of working in this way, and consider actions to take personally to work better in this space.
Thought provoking group discussions followed presentations by Kathy Snowball Aputiarjuk ᑳᓯ ᓯᓅᐹᓪ ᐊᐳᑎᐊᕐᔪᒃ & Jacob Seguin about Anguvigaq | Nunavik Inuit Wildlife and Harvesting Rights, and by Dean Mathews and Phoebe Martin at the Indigenous Saltwater Advisory Group (ISWAG) about a best-practice model for Indigenous-led sea country research. Yagarrajalajalan Nagula Buru’s very own Community Based Research Fellow, Lloyd Pigram (Nulungu Research Institute), and project co-lead Dean Mathews (Nyamba Buru Yawuru) co-presented with Jenna Hounslow on behalf of the entire project team, sharing some of the highlights and lessons learned during the project so far. Snapshot breakout presentations about caring for Sea Country and indigenous knowledge and collaborations in marine mammal science were delivered by Daniele Cagnazzi and Traditional Owner rangers from Far North Queensland, Vanessa Pirotta and Gamay Rangers Bryce Liddell & April Allende, as well as Professor Helene Marsh.
Will provided graphical illustrations of the presentations for participants to take home as a tangible record from the day, since we all learn and grow through story, simplicity and visuals. We received great feedback from participants. Powerful self-reflection at the end of the day revealed people felt thankful, inspired, connected, humbled, privileged, slightly daunted yet motivated, and overwhelmingly committed to advancing genuine partnerships into the future.