The effects of climate change are measurable, and being felt today. It’s not a theoretical or distant cataclysm that can be ignored — we have to act urgently. And we have to start listening to the Indigenous communities on the front lines protecting our natural world; we must help safeguard what should be sacred to us all.
Indigenous peoples around the world have long possessed a profoundly intricate understanding of nature; including how all life on Earth is interconnected through a relationship based on reciprocity. The principles of which focus on balance and returning the gift; cycles of giving and taking that support ecological systems — the complete opposite to the exploitative and extractive plundering of natural resources that’s currently hurtling us towards climate collapse.
It is a close relationship with the environment, and deeply spiritual, cultural, social, and economic connections with that environment, that makes Indigenous peoples uniquely positioned to anticipate, prepare for, and respond to the impacts of climate change. | Climate Home News
One such community facing the devastating ramifications of climate change is the Quileute Nation of La Push on the northwest Washington coast. Their community is situated in an area already prone to storms and flooding; which is being exacerbated by rising temperatures and sea levels. To protect their community, culture and way of life, they need to move their housing and other crucial amenities to higher ground; away from the risks of increased flooding and ocean encroachment that climate change is bringing to their territory.
The people of the Quileute Nation retain a rich and diverse, pre-colonial connection to the region they live in; we should support them as they protect their heritage and way of life — if you want to learn more or donate to their ‘Move To Higher Ground’ campaign, click here. It’s a fight we should all be paying attention to; an increase in ocean water temperature creates current shifts, loss of marine breeding grounds and deoxygenation in the water (which decreases biodiversity and reduces fishery resources). This isn’t just a threat to the Quileute Nation; it’s a warning to the rest of the world about what may come if nothing is done.
Relying on their treaty fishing rights to practice ceremonial, subsistence and commercial fishing that supports their community; the Quileute Nation will lose access to these vital cultural lifeways if climate change continues to impact sea waters unchecked. Not only is passing on essential cultural practices and traditional knowledge at risk, but access to a primary food source is endangered as well as economic revenue.
Many places around the United States (and the world) rely on the fishing industry to provide economic stability, job creation and food. It’s vital therefore, that what the Quileute Nation is facing gets recognised and tackled; the issue will spread beyond their shores if significant action from those in power remains hesitant.
Taking climate action alongside Indigenous communities has to include recognition and respect for their cultural practices and traditional knowledge of the natural world. We must support the work they’re doing but also ensure elected officials and policymakers bring them into the climate action decision-making process; their voices and rights must be upheld.
Right now, we are facing a man-made disaster of global scale. Our greatest threat in thousands of years. Climate Change. If we don’t take action, the collapse of our civilisations and the extinction of much of the natural world is on the horizon. | Excerpt from Sir David Attenborough’s speech at the 2018 UN Climate Change Summit
Modern science is finally catching up with what traditional Indigenous knowledge has known about the natural world for millennia; it’s imperative we do not allow improvements in our own understanding to further marginalize any Native groups. We must make certain that any climate change organization, network, conference or seminar has mandated Indigenous representation.
This is the way forward. Let’s make it so.
What steps are you taking to protect the climate?
Further Info:
Sea Level Rise Explained – National Geographic
Northwest Tribes: Meeting the Challenge of Climate Change – Northwest Indian Applied Research Institute
transatlantic | notes 
Great article. If only we listened more to the people who actually understand nature and always notice the great signs…
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Thank you! And, yes, I agree 100%, we need to listen more to the people who have a connection to the natural world like Indigenous communities around the world have long had.
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Great post. Very informative. Thanks for sharing!
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Thank you — and you’re welcome!
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Thank you so much for sharing! Climate change is affecting a lot of people around the world and I feel like we don’t hear much about it, here in the US. So I think your post is really important information everyone should know
Grislean |
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Exactly! it’s already having an impact and we need to listen to the communities who are on the front lines watching it happen. Thanks for stopping by!
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I like the tone of this post. We all need to do our bit. You can’t say it’s not my trash to clean. We’re all in the same freaking boat
COT |
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We definitely all need to do our bit, and we can’t allow those making the decisions about how our countries, etc are going to tackle climate change to ease off or not act. Thanks for reading!
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Climate justice is an integral part of climate action. It’s so awesome that you’re bringing light to the Quileute Nation. The climate crisis affects minorities and the underprivileged more than the rest. In fact, coal plants and pipelines are often built closer to the underprivileged simply because they don’t have the representation needed to oppose these decisions. So I agree with you! The indigenous people, or any minority group for that matter, need representation!
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Indigenous people are key to climate action and I just hope that more people in positions of power realize this and do something about what is going on. Thank you so much for reading and being someone so aware of all the challenges the natural world faces.
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Such an important blog post of yours. Thank you for taking the time to write this and enlighten us with some more information about this problem.
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Thank you so much for taking the time to read it!
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Washington is my home state, and this is a big issue! The tribes on the cost of Washington are really suffering with the disappearance of Salmon as well. Of course this is also a man-made problem. Thank you for writing about this important topic!
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I can only imagine how devastating this has already been — I just hope more people become aware and something is done. Thank you so much for stopping by!
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Thank you for bringing all of this information to light. I feel like most people turn a blind eye to the struggles of the indigenous people simply because it doesn’t impact them directly. However, it is ALL of our responsibility to stand up, spread the facts, and end injustice.
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I agree, I see it happening — people just turn away from it because it doesn’t impact them (yet) and they don’t care enough about Indigenous people to feel the urgency. We’re all in this together. Thanks for commenting!
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This is such an informative post, thank you for taking the time to share the message. I think the key thing to take away from this is that we all need to do a lot more listening to the people on the ground who can truly tell it as it is. It’s all of our responsibility to help, even if we’re not being directly impacted yet x
Sophie
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I agree 100%, it’s all our responsibility and I just hope that more people will begin to fully understand this. Thanks for reading!
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Very informative post. Thanks for sharing! This message needs to reach a much larger audience and we need to act NOW!
MagicandBliss
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Thank you! It really does need to be more widely known what is happening with the Quileute Nation. What happens there will impact us all so we should be invested in the action taken. Thanks for reading!
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