Session 10: Building resilience in indigenous communities through engagement

biosecurity built on science

Project 4041-Building resilience in Indigenous communities through engagement

Alby Marsh - Plant and Food ResearchLinda Ford – Charles Darwin University

Plant Biosecurity Cooperative Research Centre


Banana freckle diseaseMimosa PigraWatermelon Green Mottle Mosaic VirusPsaQueensland Fruit FlyKauri dieback, Phytophthora infestantsTomato Potato PsyllidMyrtle rust

Why do we need engagement?


To enhance the ability of indigenous communities and relevant regulatory authorities and industries to better manage social, cultural, environmental and economic impacts of biosecurity threats, and to participate in biosecurity strategies by describing and evaluating bicultural engagement models that build empowerment and ownership in indigenous communities and their response to those threats

Project aim


Indigenous Engagement Models


Aboriginal Indigenous Engagement Model



Finding the right palm, bearing the

ripe fruit

depends on the season.

The season may come early or late,

depending on the seasonal patterns.

Identify the right combination of

people with the right knowledge, at

the right time. Know that some

relationships may not be ready when

you expect, determine or think they

will. The variables affecting this are

different for each set of data you

seek, and the site on which it is

based. Identifying the kind of

relationship required in this first

critical step will determine the

success rates of your fieldwork and

data collection.



Peel off the shells and wrap in a bark

package. The shells need to be

removed to allow the soaking process

to soften the kernels. The cracked

kernels are then wrapped to contain

them for soaking

and softening.

Examine the knowledge for its inner nature. Engagement with

the community requires you to interact and nurture the

connections you have made. The sourcing of the nuts, as well

as the paperbark are in vastly different locations,

representing the time and effort required to follow due

processes and protocols.

Dissect and examine your expectations of the relationship,

and how the people and their knowledge appear in relation

to that. This also enables building of relationships and

evaluation of the process that all will follow. This step lets

you know if the research should progress as planned, or if it

needs more time to be refined, redirected or discarded.



Soak until the kernels are soft. The

leaching process is required for the

kernel to soften and enable the

cyanide to be released.

Allow time for the Indigenous community to

consider whether or not to support your project.

These considerations demonstrate culturally

appropriate behavior. As much as possible,

immerse yourself in language, culture, and the

settings of the research site to ensure your project

and data collection can include a collaborative

approach to the ways people live and manage the

sites. This is when your communication capacity

with Indigenous people could encounter a required

shift in order to work with the range of paradigms

that govern the data you are sourcing.



Crush with the right stones. Two

stones are used to crush the kernel

into a pulp, to enable more leaching

to occur in order to detox the kernel.

Once the expectations have been

softened, they require more ‘crushing’

to remove their rigid cultural

preconceptions. The testing of this

rigidity is done by a set of special

‘stones’ or methods with

complementary characteristics;

negotiation and debate of meaning and

representation, value of information

and knowledge that is being shared.

This enables more refining in the

following step.



Another rigorous detoxification

process is required in order to fully

remove toxins from the crushed

kernels. Soak again to further soften

and let more of the poison out, then

grind into meal.

More time is required to continue to

let out the toxicity of possible conflict

in paradigms. Now that the rigidity of

the expectations have been adapted

by the start of this process, this

ensures rigour and depth of

interrogation of approaches to data

collection.



Form into a cake for eating. The cake

needs to be the right size and shape

in order to cook properly.

Now the consolidated and

re-constituted knowledge, or

findings, can be developed into

dissemination-ready formats, so that

others can access the data and learn

from it.



Know when to leave in the coals,

when it needs more heat on certain

parts, and then when it is fully

cooked.

This requires more time and care, so

that the access to discussion of the

knowledge and findings is digestible;

not under-prepared, or over

analysed. Over-cooking, burning or

under-cooking can make you ill if

consumed. The likelihood of findings

in these states is that they will be

discarded and not accepted.



After this rigorous preparation, the

loaf is shared. Some is for sacred,

private ceremonial practices and

some for public consumption.

The cultural protocols involved in

Traditional Ecological Knowledge is that it

exists within a wider cosmological

context; one that involves significant and

sacred stories as scientific practice and

theories. Some of this knowledge is

meant for private use, due to complex

roles and responsibilities within each

community and clan group. Therefore,

open access to all knowledge associated

with data collections should never be

assumed or expected.


Yolŋu Explanation

To work together, have faith in each other

that we are being honest, and working with

integrity. You need to put your faith in people. We are

connected through our relationships with each other, as

well as the land and clans we are born or adopted into.

Each individual inherits a role and responsibility to their

gurrut-u, and through these relationships, there is order.

What it Means for Engagement

Whereas western science can rely only on proven findings, this principle calls on

those involved to have faith that people you work with will do the right thing and

act in honesty. Following cues for relationship terms and ways of communicating

and learning can help you understand how people relate to one another. A lot of

introductions take time and detail covering how people are related to each other,

to gain an understanding of one’s role within society. Children grow up learning

this, and

are more often referred to as their gurrut-u or skin name

(the group they belong to) rather than their

individual name. This is the significance

of gurrut-u and Märri-yulkthirr.


Korero mai mā – need to activate now! Connect to other research and researchers Industry Advisory Network (IAN) & Indigenous Reference Group (IRG) Series of workshops – build familiarity Champions Customisable model – adaptable Consistency in method for engagement Action can be initiated by government, industry or community

What next?


End user advocate response

“I am very impressed to see the research work on plant biosecurity in Australia as we harvest native species to produce jams and other products to sell on the Australian domestic and international market. It is about time that indigenous researchers took the lead to develop a culturally appropriate engagement model to help protect our native plants from incursions.”»Pat Torres, Mayi Harvests & Mamanyjun Cultural Services, Australia“MPI is investigating ways to improve how we engage with Māori to better understand the potential impact of new pests and diseases on Māori values. MPI supports the work that PFR is leading to develop new tools to ensure that our engagement with Māori is effective, which will lead to better biosecurity outcomes.”»Mike Taylor, Manager Biosecurity Response, Ministry for Primary Industries, New

Zealand


Mā te whakaatu, Ka mōhioMā te mōhio, ka māramaMā te mārama, ka mātauMa te mātau, ka ora


Thank-you and Kia ora,

For more information, please email [email protected]

[email protected]

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Session 10: Building resilience in indigenous communities through engagement

Science

Transcript of Session 10: Building resilience in indigenous communities through engagement