Planning: Measuring Wind Direction Change on St. Lawrence Island, Alaska, Using Traditional Ecological Knowledge

该规划奖为一个参与性项目奠定了基础，该项目旨在评估气候变化对白令海海岛盛行风向的影响。风向观测和解释是白令海峡地区传统生态知识的组成部分。对于土著圣劳伦斯岛民来说，风向与陆地寻路和海冰导航有关。虽然关于圣劳伦斯盛行风向的科学数据很少，但居民们掌握了风向知识，并在建造避难所时考虑到了盛行风。这项工作询问风向最近是否发生了变化，并将测试风向是否可以在没有仪器的情况下重建。该规划奖支持前往圣劳伦斯岛，与Savoonga居民建立合作关系，并对土著人关于风向的知识进行初步评估。 PI将评估对风向的兴趣和知识水平，同时对当地学生进行定性研究方法的培训。在当地协调员的协助下，将在村里举行两个焦点小组会议。这些重点小组将包括长者和猎人了解寻路和风况。如果规划活动被证明是成功的，PI计划制定一个标准的研究建议，以探索是否可以通过研究结构方向和草铺设方向，辅以土著知识重建风向。这个奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并已被认为是值得通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估的支持。

This planning award lays the foundation for a participatory project to assess climate change impacts on prevailing wind direction on a Bering Sea island. Observation and interpretation of wind direction are components of traditional ecological knowledge in the Bering Strait region. For Indigenous St. Lawrence Islanders, wind direction is relevant to terrestrial wayfinding and sea ice navigation. Although there is little scientific data on prevailing wind direction on St. Lawrence, residents possess knowledge of wind patterns and construct shelters with prevailing winds in mind. This work asks whether wind direction has changed recently and will test whether wind direction can be reconstructed in the absence of instrumentation. This planning award supports travel to St. Lawrence Island to develop collaborative relationships with Savoonga residents and to conduct initial assessment of Indigenous knowledge about wind direction. The PI will assess level of interest in and knowledge of wind direction while training a local student on qualitative research methods. Two focus groups will be held in the village, facilitated by a local coordinator. These focus groups will include elders and hunters knowledgeable about wayfinding and wind conditions. Should planning activities prove successful, the PI plans to develop a standard research proposal to explore whether wind direction can be reconstructed through study of structure orientation and grass lay direction complemented by Indigenous knowledge.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.