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Human-Wildlife Interactions Research Group

Research Area(s)

  • Social-ecological connectivity
  • Indigenous knowledge in conservation
  • Stakeholder engagement
  • Climate change adaptation
  • Natural resource management
  • Human-environment systems
  • Environmental management, habitat restoration and conservation
  • Species at risk

Research Description

Title: Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit of polar bears: a review of the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board public hearings.

Research Description:
The Nunavut Wildlife Management Board (NWMB) has held a series of public hearings over the 2007-2018 period regarding polar bear management. The knowledge Nunavummiut (residents of Nunavut) share in these public hearings is critical to successful and inclusive polar bear management decisions. Nunavut Inuit have accumulated in-depth knowledge about polar bears through extensive observation of their environment and subsistence harvesting activities. Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit (IQ) that has been shared and documented during in-person public hearings can provide important insights and contribute to management decisions when analyzed systematically. IQ consists of Inuit knowledge and experience that has been passed down through generations, as well as Inuit beliefs about how the world works, and the values necessary to live in an ethical manner in human interactions with animals and the environment.

Recent literature indicates that there is disconnect between the availability and analysis of IQ and its use in decision-making. Systematic analysis and thematic coding were conducted through use of NVivo qualitative data analysis software. Importantly, through this work we developed an IQ database for polar bear public hearings conducted by the NMWB, which will ensure greater access to polar bear IQ in polar bear management and benefit Nunavummiut. Results from this study will be shared locally, nationally, and internationally with wildlife co-management bodies, Inuit organizations in Nunavut and territorial/provincial/federal governments as input to decision-making related to polar bear harvest management and conservation. This project is expected to provide critical information for the co-management of polar bears in Nunavut and beyond.

Publications and Awards

Publications: 

Reiter, D. Stewards of the Grasslands: Canadian Ranchers in their Own Words. Springer Nature, New York City, New York, USA (2023).

Reiter, D., Pittman, J., Ayambire, R. A., Brown, H. C. P., Colla, S. R., Loewen, T. M., McCune, J. L., Olive, A., & Parrott, L. (2022). Lessons learnt from multiple private land conservation programs in Canada to inform species at risk conservation. The Canadian Geographer / Le Géographe Canadien, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1111/cag.12770

Reiter, D., Parrott, L., & Pittman, J. (2021). Species at risk habitat conservation on private land: the perspective of cattle ranchers. Biodiversity and Conservation, 0123456789. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-021-02199-3

Reiter, D., Pittman, J. & Parrott, L. 2020. Evaluating the Species at Risk Partnerships on Agricultural Lands program in southwest Saskatchewan: The perspective of producers. Prepared for the Saskatchewan Stock Growers Association and the South of the Divide Conservation Action Program Inc. http://complexity-ok.sites.olt.ubc.ca/files/2020/04/SARPAL-Report_SODCAP-Inc_2020.pdf

Reiter, D., Meyer, W., & Parrott, L. (2019). Stakeholder engagement with environmental decision support systems: the perspective of end users. Canadian Geographer. doi.org/10.1111/cag.12555

Reiter, D., Meyer, W., & Parrott, L. (2017). Why do NRM regional planning processes and tools have limited effect? Presenting the perspective of the end user. Climate Risk Management. doi: 10.1016/j.crm.2017.09.001

Reiter, D., Meyer, W., Parrott, L., Baker, D. & Grace, P. (2017). Increasing the effectiveness of environmental decision support systems: lessons from climate change adaptation projects in Canada and Australia. Regional Environmental Change. doi:10.1007/s10113-017-1255-9

Conference Presentations:

Reiter, D., Parrott, L. & Pittman, J. (2020). Species at risk habitat conservation on private land: the perspective of cattle ranchers. North American Congress for Conservation Biology, Crossing Boundaries: Innovative Approaches to Conservation virtual conference.

Reiter, D., Meyer, W., & Parrott, L. (2017). Why do NRM regional planning processes and tools have limited effect? Presenting the perspective of the end user. 2017 Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences, Ryerson University, Toronto, Canada.

Reiter, D. (2016) poster presentation: Increasing the effectiveness of environmental decision support systems: lessons from climate change adaptation projects in Canada and Australia. National Symposium on Climate Change Adaptation. Toronto, Canada.

Awards:

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) AgriRisk Initiatives program (2021)

Liber Ero Postdoctoral Fellowship, University of British Columbia (2019)

MITACS Accelerate Postdoctoral Fellowship, University of British Columbia (2019)

Nominated for a University Doctoral Outstanding Thesis Award (2018)

International Indigenous Postgraduate Research Award, Brisbane, Australia (2015-2018)

Fellow, Governor General’s Canadian Leadership Conference (2012)

Australian Government Endeavour Executive Award, Melbourne, Australia (2011)

Practitioner Residency at the Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Centre, Bellagio, Italy (2009)

Fellow, Aboriginal Women in Leadership; the Banff Centre, Banff, Alberta (2009)

Fellow, International Leadership for Environment and Development program, Canada and Mexico (2008)

Fellow, Salzburg Global Seminar: Salzburg Young Leaders Summit: Global Scenarios and Strategies for 2030, Salzburg, Austria (2007)

Rotary International Ambassadorial Scholarship, Vermont, USA (2004)

SIT Intercultural Leadership Award, Vermont, USA (2004)

Fellow, Hollyhock Environmental Leadership Institute, Cortes Island, BC (2004)

Kellogg Foundation Fellowship, Junin de los Andes, Patagonia, Argentina (2003)

Fellow, Salzburg Seminar: Capitalizing on our Differences; Leadership across Cultural Boundaries and Geographic Borders in a Global Society, Salzburg, Austria (2003)

Fellow, United Nations University International Leadership Academy; Leadership for Climate Change and Human Security, Jordan and South Africa (2002)