While it鈥檚 pretty difficult to forget about the ocean while on Dal鈥檚 campus just steps away from the Atlantic, the annual presents another opportunity to reflect on the critical role this natural resource plays in everyone鈥檚 lives.
This year, Dal鈥檚 Faculty of Science is hosting a panel to discuss the intersection between traditional knowledge and World Oceans Day.
Raven Stephens Elwell, an oceans biologist at Fisheries and Oceans Canada and a graduate student in Dal鈥檚 Marine Management program, is one of the six panelists participatingh in the online discussion later today (Wednesday) at 5pm. She works on coral and sponge conservation.
鈥淭here are many ways traditional knowledge can be incorporated into science,鈥� says Stephens Elwell, who is from Butterfly Clan of Millbrook First Nation. She hopes to share at the panel how scientific research and scientific decision-making can incorporate Mi鈥檏maq and other traditional knowledge.
Traditional knowledge refers to the knowledge of Indigenous communities, which has often been outright rejected by the colonial system. Panelists will explore how traditional knowledge can be incorporated into ocean sciences, government policy, and research.
The panel includes experts on both ocean sciences and Indigenous knowledge. In addition to Stephens Elwell, it includes:
鈥⒙犅� 聽Cathy Martin, Director of Indigenous Community Engagement, Dalhousie
鈥⒙犅� 聽Olivia Choi, Shipping and Marine Safety Project Manager, Council of Haida Nation
鈥⒙犅� 聽Lindsay Marshall, Advisor, Highland National Park
鈥⒙犅� 聽Lydia Ross, Science Writer, Parks Canada
鈥⒙犅� 聽Alanna Syliboy, Mi鈥檏maw Knowledge and Community Engagement Manager, Mi鈥檏maw Conservation Group
Revitalizing the ocean 鈥� together
This year鈥檚 World Oceans Day theme is 鈥淩evitalization: collective action for the ocean,鈥� a call from the United Nations to all of humanity to work together on restoring damaged ocean ecosystems and securing the future of oceans.
With the critical importance of oceans as a food supplier and to countless sectors across the economy, the engagement work helps create a more informed public and expose them to new perspectives, like traditional knowledge.
鈥淭he main significance of World Oceans Day is education and outreach,鈥� according to Stephens Elwell. 鈥淭here is so much people don鈥檛 know about the ocean.鈥�
For Stephens Elwell, this day provides an opportunity to educate the public on both the scientific work surrounding the ocean but also an opportunity for the public to form an informed viewpoint on the state of oceans.
World Oceans Day was first officially recognized by the United Nations through a resolution in 2008.
The event is accessible online .