Native Ways of Knowing and Western Science - Connecting, Learning, and Growing Together

By Kris Owens

Something I have heard about before, has been the idea of "native ways of knowing." I had not realized how vague the idea was for me, until reading and hearing more about this type of knowledge, and gaining a better understanding of the perspectives of some native Alaskans. Previously, my ideas centered on the belief that this type of science, resulted from the people and cultures native to a place, having their own, almost, homegrown science. This seemed to be based on years of experience in dealing with the environment of an area, the wildlife of an area, the climate and conditions of an area, and all of the connections in between. While this is true to a degree, the layers are much deeper than I had imagined, and the knowledge held much more closely than I had realized. The mission statement, of the Alaska Native Science Commission(<http://www.nativescience.org/about/concerns.htm>), empahsizes the importance of taking this perspective into account when scientific investigations are being carried out, in regions where a great deal of native-knowledge and culture exists. The importance of all members of the culture, being responsible for different aspects of this knowledge, was also a new one for me. For exmaple, that a native Alaskan woman, might have more information to offer in a particular area, than another member of their community, is an intriguing and an imporant idea.

An idea that grabbed my attention, was that the Innuit consider themselves the natural guardians of the world. One speaker brought to mind the idea of the canary in a coal mine. That it is able to warn in advance of trouble, is similar to the idea that the Innuit, having observed the environment for thousands of years, are also able to give early warning of changes in their environment. The Innuit peoples' belief of Inua or Sila, also brought forth a theme that seems to run through both traditional native knowledge, and to a greater degree as time goes by, western science. This idea, that everything is connected, seems to be a more internalized belief for native cultures, that has emerged over time, and through accuimlated observation and experience. In terms of western science, its seems to be a more recent development, as well as a more deliberate and constructed set of connections. The willingness to identify and understand those connections seems to be universal.

How recent, this idea that everything is connected is, in terms of western science, became evident last week, as my 3rd-6th graders viewed a viideo-clip from You-Tube. This clip, "25 Discoveries that Changed Our World" (<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGTijOPnxiw>) focuses on how the idea of an ecosystem emerged. We learned that the idea of ecosystems is a relatively new one, with previous study of the environment based mainly on observation of the environment being studied. After the dustbowl and other environmental disasters took place, the need for viewing the environment as an interconnected system, became more important.

The interconnectedness of scientific knowledge, across fields, across cultures, and across perspectives, became a new topic in my classroom, as I was introduced to these ideas last week. It is sure to become a much more common topic, from now on. Tying what my students are learning about in science, to where we live, as well as to native ways of knowing - the wealth of knowledge possessed and sometimes shared - will also become a greater empahasis in my classroom