College of Agriculture & Natural Resources
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Item INDIGENOUS INVOLVEMENT IN ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION: AN ANALYSIS OF VIRGINIA’S SOVEREIGN NATIONS INVOLVEMENT IN THE CHESAPEAKE BAY PROGRAM(2023) Brooks, Nicole L; Shaffer, L. J.; Rose, Kenneth A.; Environmental Science and Technology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Indigenous involvement in conservation and restoration practices, specifically those funded by government entities (e.g., EPA, USGS, NOAA), is not well documented in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. Increased Indigenous involvement in conservation and restoration projects globally, raises questions regarding this apparent environmental practice gap in the Eastern United States (McAlvay, 2021; Poto, 2021; Turner, 2010). Currently, government-led restoration projects in the Chesapeake Bay, led by the Chesapeake Bay Program, lack a strong Indigenous presence or contribution despite 7 federally-recognized Sovereign Nations in the surrounding watershed. To understand this gap, a literature review was first conducted to provide an initial context for viewing the contemporary Indigenous involvement in Chesapeake Bay restoration. The review was the basis for a detailed analysis of Virginia’s Sovereign Nation involvement in the Chesapeake Bay Program that used a series of interviews, participant observations, and a social network analysis. Interview participants were classified into one of three representative categories: Sovereign Nation, government organization, and non-government organization. Questions about working relationships between organizations were assessed to understand the political-ecological dynamics driving the interactions in the Chesapeake Bay restoration social network, specifically among the representative categories. Results showed a lack of a consistent and intentional relationship between the Sovereign Nations of Virginia and the Chesapeake Bay Program. According to the federal trust relationship, this infers that the lack of a strong Sovereign Nation involvement in the Chesapeake Bay Program may be contributing to a continued state of Environmental Injustice. To begin to address this low-level of involvement, the Chesapeake Bay Program should devote significant effort to building intentional relationships with the Sovereign Nations, including a more formal and official representation within the Chesapeake Bay Program.