Connecting Indigenous Knowledge to Landscape Process Research, Arctic Coastal Plain of Alaska

University Of Cincinnati Main Campus, Cincinnati OH

Investigators

Abstract

Thaw lakes cover about 20% of the Arctic Coastal Plain of Alaska. Another 26% is scarred by basins that form when lakes drain, and these drained thaw lake basins are sites for preferential carbon accumulation as plant biomass. Anticipated regional warming would likely mobilize sequestered soil organic carbon, resulting in the emission of greenhouse gases. To date, our understanding of the processes leading to thaw lake formation, expansion, and drainage in Alaska is limited because models are specific to the flat, young Outer (seaward) Coastal Plain comprising 1/3 of the region. Further, spatial and temporal analysis of lake dynamics is largely restricted to the period since 1948, when aerial photographs first became available across large regions of the Coastal Plain. To fill in these gaps, we will interview Inupiaq elders and community members from the villages of Atqasuk and Barrow. The objective of these interviews is to obtain accounts of lake formation, expansion and drainage that have occurred within living or oral memory, and extend the record back several generations. This project represents a systematic effort to collect data on thaw lake dynamics in order to understand the basic geomorphic processes influencing landscape evolution on the Arctic Coastal Plain. We will use indigenous knowledge (IK) to identify the type and frequency of place-based processes and will include the identification of those lakes that have formed, enlarged or drained during the past several generations. We will then verify these accounts using a suite of analytical methods, and map the spatiotemporal patterns, thus enabling us to assess the viability of processes identified by IK holders to explain lake dynamics. In this way we hope to modify the standard thaw-lake cycle model to include local processes and expanded spatial extent. The study area includes the Outer and Inner Coastal Plains; surfaces of different age, surficial deposits, relief, ground ice content, and lake morphology. This project will broaden the participation of Inupiaq elders from Barrow and Atqasuk by incorporating traditional knowledge of landscape processes. By bringing indigenous knowledge to the forefront of this investigation, we can bridge the practical, cultural, and epistemological gaps between different methods of obtaining knowledge about the Arctic environment. By working with the community to survey, verify and catalog sites relevant to Inupiaq culture, we will preserve oral traditions and local histories of importance to the Inupiaq community. The development of the web-based GIS and linkages to the existent Barrow Area Information Database - Internet Map Server will strengthen communication between scientists and community members and provide a valuable tool for improving education and outreach opportunities for the communities of Barrow and Atqasuk.