Land Access and its Impact on Traditional Ecological Knowledge: Modelling Knowledge and Harvest Sharing in Indigenous Communities

This paper investigates how reduced access to traditional land impacts the culture of community harvest and knowledge sharing and Traditional Ecological Knowledge of Indigenous groups. This is achieved through an analytical model based on community formation from facing risk and the associated incentive-compatibility conditions. Numerical simulations are used to highlight long term effects of losing land-based services. The model shows how a single reduction in land results in a breakdown of community structure and a loss in the stock of traditional knowledge. Furthermore, a single reduction in land past a threshold value of land base loss can catalyze a downward spiral resulting in the complete breakdown of the community. Special Thanks This paper was written as a visitor on the traditional territory of the WS'ANEC', Lkwungen, and Wyomilth peoples of the Coast Salish Nation. In Peter’s words, “A research project is a journey of discovery. As a new adventurer, one is best to follow a guide, to be sure there is a destination, and a manageable route to it. With experience, you develop the skills to set your own destination, and choose your own route, and that is the fun of it, even if you get hopelessly lost along the way.” I definitely had fun and got lost multiple times. Thank you Peter and Donna for helping me reach my destination, being patient while I learned new skills, and inspiring me. This project would not exist without you.