Using Technology to Preserve and Protect Traditional Ecological Knowledge

Indigenous communities are rightfully concerned about protecting their traditional knowledge and curating the information they share with the outside world. An innovative research project involving three bands of Ojibwe and the National Park Service has created the first-ever digital video archive of Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) about the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. In July 2018, youth in the Bad River, Lac du Flambeau, and Red Cliff Ojibwe reservations began interviewing their elders using high-quality professional cameras. Excerpts will be uploaded as digital heritage artifacts to Mukurtu, a new indigenous archiving software that allows indigenous communities to publicly share some data and firewall other more culturally sensitive knowledge. So far, elders have provided a total of 78 digital video excerpts about hunting, fishing, and ceremonies. Tribal Historic Preservation Officers (THPOS) in the three communities determine what data to protect and what will be shared with NPS for use in technical reports, park management plans, and with the public. This research provides new scientific insights into how the Ojibwe used and continue to practice treaty-protected traditional activities in the Apostle Islands and describes how technology—particularly digital video and cutting-edge indigenous archiving software— can be used to preserve and protect TEK knowledge.