- On this Earth Month episode of the Mongabay Newscast, we highlight the growing recognition of the role Indigenous peoples play as the world’s top conservationists.
- We speak with Michelle Nijhuis about her latest book, Beloved Beasts. Fighting For Life in an Age of Extremism. It is a history of conservation. We talk to her about the book and what it says about Indigenous communities and their traditional ecological knowledge, which are now being recognized as essential to conservation.
- We also spoke with Dr. Julie Thorstenson from the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and Director of the Native American Fish and Wildlife Society. She tells us about the 574 tribes that manage over 140 million acres of US land. Many of them are working to conserve or reintroduce declining wildlife, such as condors and bison, to salmon and ferrets.
Todays installment of the Mongabay Newscast is a special Earth Month episode in which we highlight the growing recognition of the role Indigenous peoples play as the world’s top conservationists.
Listen here:
Scientists, governments, UN, and the World Bank all agree that indigenous-led conservation is vital. A study by the World Bank found that even though indigenous peoples’ traditional lands make up less than 22%, they still account for more than half of the world’s land area. Protect 80% of the biodiversity in the world. This protection is not passive: Indigenous-led conservation projects are an integral part of the conservation movement around the world. Today, we will be discussing several American-led conservation projects.
A growing global movement is underway to secure Indigenous land rights. This is in recognition of the vitality of Indigenous-led conservation practices for protecting our planet. However, the conservation establishment hasn’t always given priority to indigenous peoples’ rights or recognized their contributions in conserving nature. Michelle Nijhuis, author of the latest book, is our guest today. Beloved beasts: Fighting for life in an Age of ExtinctionThis is a history and description of the modern conservation movement. She tells us more about the book, and what it has said about Indigenous communities’ traditional ecological knowledge.
We also talk to Dr. Julie Thorstenson. She is a member of Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, and the director for the Native American Fish and Wildlife Society. She tells us that 574 tribes in America manage over 140 million acres of land. Many have fish and wildlife management programs that work to conserve and reintroduce declining or endangered wildlife, such as condors, bison, salmon, and ferrets. Despite receiving no funding annually from the US federal government for these programs, legislation currently in Congress could change that.
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