Increasing access and availability of the culturally-significant sweetgrass for Mi'kmaq communities

增加 Mikmaq 社区对具有文化意义的甜草的获取和供应

• 批准号: 560939-2021
• 负责人: Joseph, Alain
• 金额: $ 8.74万
• 依托单位: Nova Scotia Community College
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: College & Community Social Innovation Fund
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2021-01-01 至 2022-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=723955
• 关键词: Increasing; access; availability; culturally; significant

Sweetgrass (welimaqewel in Mi'kmaw) is a sacred perennial plant that has cultural, social, and economic importance to the First Nations, Inuit, and Métis Peoples. Due to Mi'kmaq cultural practices and traditions being dependent on this plant, this grass is considered a cultural keystone species. According to popular discourse and survey evidence, wild sweetgrass habitat is being lost from successional replacement, habitat degradation, overharvesting, and climate change. As a result, to acquire a source of this sacred grass, Mi'kmaq groups can no longer obtain a sustainable source from wild populations. Thus, determining a sustainable way to increase access and availability of this culturally important grass is needed. The Confederacy of Mainland Mi'kmaq (CMM), Unama'ki Institute of Natural Resources (UINR), and Nova Scotia Community College (NSCC) are conducting a collaborative research project to improve sweetgrass access and availability to Mi'kmaq communities. The goal is to create better understanding, access, and availability of sweetgrass to Mi'kmaq communities, by extending Mi'kmaq knowledge to enable growth of this culturally important species within their communities through agricultural practices. As part of the project, NSCC in collaboration with CMM and UINR will facilitate educational workshops to ensure information about how to propagate, transplant, and grow sweetgrass inland is distributed broadly across communities. Through this process, community members will be given the ability to strengthen their cultural relationship with this sacred plant. This three-year project will offer environmental, economic, and social benefits to Mi'kmaq communities. Specifically, determining best practices for growing sweetgrass inland will lower overharvesting pressure of wild sweetgrass populations, as well as allow oil and basketing making practices to continue. Furthermore, many ceremonies and teachings require sweetgrass, and continued availability will allow for these practices to be passed on. This collaboration will examine the cultural and practical implications of inland sweetgrass production to sustain a cultural keystone species for the Mi'kmaq people.

香草是一种神圣的多年生植物，对原住民、因纽特人和梅蒂斯人具有重要的文化、社会和经济意义。由于Mi‘kmaq的文化习俗和传统依赖于这种植物，这种草被认为是文化的关键物种。根据流行的论述和调查证据，由于演替、生境退化、过度捕捞和气候变化，野生香茅的栖息地正在丧失。因此，为了获得这种圣草的来源，Mi‘kmaq群体不能再从野生种群中获得可持续的来源。因此，需要确定一种可持续的方式来增加这种具有文化重要性的草的获取和可获得性。大陆Mi‘kmaq联盟(CMM)、Unama’ki自然资源研究所(UINR)和新斯科舍社区学院(NSCC)正在进行一项合作研究项目，以改善Mi‘kmaq社区对香草的获取和供应。其目标是通过扩展Mi‘kmaq知识，使这种具有重要文化意义的物种能够通过农业实践在其社区内生长，从而为Mi’kmaq社区创造更好的理解、获取和可获得性。作为该项目的一部分，NSCC将与CMM和UINR合作举办教育研讨会，以确保有关如何在内陆繁殖、移植和种植香茅的信息在社区中广泛传播。通过这一过程，社区成员将有能力加强他们与这种神圣植物的文化联系。这个为期三年的项目将为Mi‘kmaq社区带来环境、经济和社会效益。具体地说，确定内陆种植香茅的最佳实践将降低野生香草种群的过度收获压力，并允许继续使用油料和制篮子的做法。此外，许多仪式和教义需要香草，而持续的供应将使这些做法得以传承。这项合作将研究内陆香草生产的文化和实际影响，以维持米克马克人的文化基石物种。