Indigenous Ecology—Conclusion

Through a focus on the environment, this exhibit has presented three principles we believe are central to the narrative of Indigenous pasts and presence today. These principles are: (a) Validating the renewal of Indigenous knowledges of the past, (b) the use of community-based participatory approaches in sustainable agriculture , and (c) recognizing Indigenous agency of the environment as a form of self-determination of the present.

Indigenous voices of the present have legitimised their agency on the knowledges and techniques of the past, determining their right to the land and its resources. As the conversation on Indigenous ecology evolves over time, in a highly polarized environment framed by a catastrophic climate crisis, we will be forced to acknowledge the dependent relationship of the past and the future to solve our issues.