Traditional Knowledge Transect: Engaging Communities in Discussions of Environmental Change through a Dog Sled Expedition Across Northeastern Alaska

在阿拉斯加，气候和环境变化的现有和潜在影响是许多社区的首要关切。阿拉斯加的许多村庄正在寻找应对这些影响的方法，从由于天气和冰川条件的变化而日益不安全的狩猎条件，到由于严重的海岸侵蚀而搬迁家园。社区和社区成员的个人观察、声音和需求往往得不到倾听，因为他们陷入了对北极变化的概括和对北极地区可能经历的广泛预测中。近年来，北极社区的呼声越来越强。北极土著人民经常通过与北方研究人员的合作，畅所欲言地表达他们的观察和关切。该项目以这项工作为基础，侧重于理解北方最近环境变化的人的层面的两个重要主题。1)环境的传统知识和当地对变化的反应是理解变化的性质以及适应变化的可能性和需要的关键。2)寻找创造性的方式让北极土著人民参与研究，以了解他们的知识和关切。研究人员将访问阿拉斯加的六个社区-Circle、育空堡、威尼斯、北极村、卡克托维克和普拉德霍湾/死马-沿着从州中心到北海岸的样带，使用快速农村评估(RRA)方法的变体，从社区收集基线信息。该项目将加入北上！狗拉雪橇探险计划于2005年2月开始。利用狗和陆路旅行作为我们讨论和活动的切入点，我们希望与社区建立一种不同于通过标准研究方法发展的关系。该项目将解决气候变化、其影响以及阿拉斯加农村社区潜在的应对和适应等关键主题。穿过北上！通过在线教育，我们将与学生们互动，分享我们的研究、我们的发现和我们的经验，就像在2004年S在西北地区和努纳武特成功完成的旅程一样。核心研究问题：1)在RRA/样带方法允许的水平上(即更多的社区，相对较短的时间)，在气候和环境变化的局部影响方面，样带沿线社区之间的主要区别和相似之处，以及社区对气候变化的感知和讨论的方式？2)社区对样带方法(通过狗拉雪橇探险)有什么反应，与其他让北方社区参与气候和环境变化研究的方法和方法相比，这种方法有何比较和贡献？

In Alaska, present and potential impacts of climate and environmental changes are of primary concern for many communities. Many Alaska villages are looking for ways to cope with these impacts, from increasingly unsafe hunting conditions due to changing weather and ice conditions, to the relocation of their homes due to severe coastal erosion. It often happens that individual observations, voices and needs of communities and community members, are not heard because they get caught in generalizations of Arctic change and broad projections of what Arctic regions are likely to experience. In recent years, the voices of Arctic communities have been getting stronger. Arctic indigenous peoples have been speaking out about their observations and concerns, often through collaborative work with northern researchers. This project builds on this work and focuses on two important themes in understanding human dimensions of recent environmental change in the North. 1) Traditional knowledge of the environment and local responses to change are key to understanding both the nature of changes, and the possibilities and needs for adapting to change. 2) Finding creative ways for engaging Arctic indigenous peoples in research to understand their knowledge and concerns.Researchers will visit six communities in Alaska-Circle, Fort Yukon, Venetie, Arctic Village, Kaktovik and Prudhoe Bay/Deadhorse-along a transect from the center of the state to the north coast, using a variation of the Rapid Rural Appraisal (RRA) approach to gather baseline information from communities. The project will join the Go North! dogsled expedition set to begin in February, 2005. Using the dogs and land travel as our point of entry for discussions and activities, we hope to forge a different relationship with communities than would be developed through standard research approaches. The project will address crucial topics of climate change, its impacts, and potential responses and adaptations in rural Alaska communities. Through the Go North! online educational effort, we will interact with schoolchildren about our research, our findings, and our experiences, as was done successfully on Go North!'s 2004 journey in theNorthwest Territories and Nunavut.Core research questions: 1) At the level allowed by the RRA/transect approach (i.e. larger number of communities, relatively short amount of time), what are the key differences and similarities between communities along the transect in terms of local impacts of climate and environmental change, and the ways climate change is perceived and discussed in the communities? 2) How do communities react to the transect approach (via the dogsled expedition), and how does this approach compare and contribute to other methods and methodologies for engaging northern communities in climate and environmental change research?