BLUE ECOLOGY IS A PATHWAY TO WATER RECONCILIATION: “Blue Ecology will help remove some of the fear on the part of local government. Then, together, we can move towards the hope spectrum more easily and creatively,” says Michael Blackstock, independent Indigenous scholar and creator of the Blue Ecology methodology
NOTE TO READER:
On an interactive online broadcast via YouTube, Richard Boase will moderate a free-flowing conversation between Michael Blackstock and Brian Carruthers. To register, click on this link: https://www.civicinfo.bc.ca/event/2023/Blue-Ecology-Seminar
Hope lies with local government and local knowledge
“I have been reflecting on the recent UN climate change conference in Egypt. It seems that the wind is coming out of the sails. It seems like climate adaptation is too big a hill for nation level governments to climb and solve,” observes Michael Blackstock. He is an independent Indigenous scholar, past member of a UNESCO Expert Panel, and creator of the Blue Ecology methodology. His work is the inspiration for the Blue Ecology Institute.
“My hope lies in local government because local people understand their local area. And at the local scale, we are able to self-organize better on specific execution of executable tasks. I have lived in many communities throughout BC and have learned that those towns each have their own culture. So, local knowledge is important, whether it is Indigenous or non-Indigenous. Local knowledge is really key.”
“With the Blue Ecology bridging seminar, my hope lies in Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities working together, with a foundation that was designed to be jointly respectful of each other’s way of thinking, rather than trying to adapt one to the other. It is a joint foundation. Then build the house based on local knowledge.”
“When non-Indigenous people do not engage or they back away, I have observed that it is usually due to FEAR. They are not used to working with Indigenous people; they are afraid of saying or doing the wrong thing. So, the easy thing to do is pull back and not do it.”
“What Blue Ecology offers is a foundation that has Indigenous buy-in and non-Indigenous buy-in that will remove some of the fear so they can move towards the hope spectrum. We can collaborate so that there is not that fear,” concludes Michael Blackstock.
To Learn More:
The January 24, 2023 edition of Waterbucket eNews featured a preview announcement about the Blue Ecology Virtual Seminar. Download a PDF copy of A Pathway to Water Reconciliation and Resilience at the Local Scale.
It is published as part of the Living Water Smart in British Columbia Series.
To Register:
The registration fee is nominal because it is based on cost recovery. The fee is $10 for First Nations, stewardship groups, and students; and $50 for those in local government. To register, click on this link:https://www.civicinfo.bc.ca/event/2023/Blue-Ecology-Seminar
DOWNLOAD A COPY: https://waterbucket.ca/wcp/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2023/01/PWSBC_Living-Water-Smart_Blue-Ecology-Seminar_2023.pdf