Academic research and knowledge repatriation at the intersection of epistemic and environmental justice in the Caribbean

Abstract

Researchers from institutions of higher education who conduct studies in the Caribbean often rely on local knowledge and support to produce scientific publications that could inform resource management. However, such research remains largely inaccessible to local communities because of the proprietary nature of the current knowledge ecosystem in academia. This commentary proposes knowledge repatriation as a means of advancing decolonial research efforts within higher education. First, we highlight the intersecting features of epistemic and environmental (in)justice with examples from the Caribbean context and discuss how knowledge repatriation efforts can counter extant environmental and epistemological exploitative practices. Second, we identify how academic institutions are specially positioned to challenge traditional research practices and advance knowledge repatriation. Third, we explore one example of how knowledge repatriation can unfold within a Caribbean context and some related challenges.

Cultivating biodiverse futures at the (postcolonial) botanical garden

“…Palestinians are affected by Israel's ecological damage while being dispossessed of their land, water and other natural resources. Building on geographical work that highlights the intersecting features of epistemic and environmental violence (Braun, 2000; Kirby‐Straker et al, 2023; Willems‐Braun, 1997), the discussion examines the nexus of scientific knowledge, territorial conquest and nature display that characterise settler colonial relations with indigenous people and the environment. These notions date back to the Enlightenment and the formation of modern nation‐states (Whitehead et al, 2007).…”

The contours of environmental justice in the Caribbean

“…While this has been changing slowly with Caribbean‐based scholars being presented with more just opportunities to bring their work to the forefront, there are still many barriers to recognising the knowledge they produce, and often partnerships with scholars in the ‘Global North’ are still needed (also see Robinson, 2020). In our special issue, Kirby‐Straker et al (2023) bring the coloniality of knowledge and knowledge production into focus by calling for epistemic justice to recognise local intellectual contributions and to increase the value placed on these contributions. The authors propose knowledge‐repatriation efforts to counter extant environmental and epistemological exploitative practices.…”

“…Moore and Koski‐Karell (2023) address agricultural intensification in Haiti. Kirby‐Straker et al (2023) and Perry (2023) use examples from Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, and St Vincent and the Grenadines, with Kirby‐Straker et al (2023) focusing on knowledge repatriation and Perry (2023) discussing debt and disasters. Pimentel Rivera (2023) and Robinson et al (2023) centre Puerto Rico, with the former studying passenger ferry governance and the latter Hurricane Maria's impact.…”