Cultural Conservation Priorities: A methodology for integrating Indigenous values into marine protected area network design

A network of marine protected areas for the north coast of British Columbia is being designed through a trilateral process co-governed by Canada, British Columbia, and 17 First Nations. The primary goal of the network is to... [ view full abstract ]

A network of marine protected areas for the north coast of British Columbia is being designed through a trilateral process co-governed by Canada, British Columbia, and 17 First Nations. The primary goal of the network is to conserve biodiversity, but other goals and objectives of the Network commit to protecting First Nations cultural use, food security, and rights.  The First Nations’ technical team developed a methodology to integrate the ecological knowledge and cultural values of the participating Nations into network design.  A rigorous community-based analysis of existing First Nations spatial data supported the identification of Cultural Conservation Priorities: areas that are important for food security, for the life stages of culturally significant species, and for culture and spirituality.  The CCPs were harmonized and provided as a spatial layer for Network design and analysis, in parallel with the identified Ecological Conservation Priorities. This approach was intended to maximize the protection of First Nations food security, cultural practice, and sacred sites while also meeting the ecological objectives of the Network.  In addition to the utility of CCPs as a data layer for the Marxan analysis, they provided Nations’ governments with a secure tool for presenting and working with sensitive data in multi-party settings.

This presentation provides an overview of the development of the CCP framework and criteria, and the methodology for community-based analysis and harmonization.  The CCP approach is discussed as a potential solution for respectfully and effectively including indigenous community values in co-governed marine spatial planning processes.