Interconnectedness

Elder Larry Grant told the class that Indigenous food sources are becoming scarce. He said that First Nations’ diets were replaced with European food items.  Elder Grant specifically spoke about Camas Lilies and how important they were to Northwest Indigenous Nations.  He also mentioned that scientists have discovered that Camas Lily is a complex carbohydrate, and it takes a lot of energy for the body to convert the lily into sugar.  Complex carbohydrates are essential in the prevention of diabetes. Ingesting Camas Lily was replaced with the European potato.  The potato is not considered high in nutrients or a complex carbohydrate food.  The Camas Lily and other indigenous plant and animal species are being invaded by foreign flora and fauna. As a society, we need more concerted conservation efforts to keep a balance in our ecosystem.

I know from my volunteer work with Vancouver Parks that invasive species do put indigenous species at risk, both the flora and the fauna.  In fact, every year hundreds of volunteers assist park staff in identifying and removing invasive plant species such as Scotch Broom and Policeman’s Helmet. I also volunteer with The Western Painted Turtle Recovery Project, also a program through Vancouver Parks. I volunteer for two reasons: 1.) I believe in ecological restoration, and 2.) I am a member of the Turtle Clan and it’s very important to me that turtles be conserved.  The biologists and park staff are always educating the public about the threat to our ecosystem.  The threat is very real, and many indigenous plants and animals are on an endangered species list.  The Western Painted Turtle is considered a Red-Listed species, which means that it is endangered, and if we do not put conservation efforts in place then that species of turtle will become extinct.  The location I work at is Burnaby Lake Regional Park.  Burnaby Lake has about twenty-seven Western Painted Turtles living there.  It is one of the largest populations of Western Painted Turtles in British Columbia.  The Ministry of the Environment is considering breeding some of the turtles, hatching and nurturing the hatchlings so that they can help replenish some of the turtle populations around the province.   

Once indigenous flora and fauna become extinct we cannot get them back.  Once one species goes extinct then other species will follow because the ecosystem is interconnected, and one species relies on other species for survival.  When I lived in Ontario, I met an Ojibwa Healer knicknamed Sugar Bear, he told me that, “Bears and Turtles walk together.  If ever one ceases to exist then the other will cease to exist soon after.” Science has gained the understanding of the interconnectedness of our environment and species; First Nations communities have always understood interconnectedness to be true.