Ensuring continuity and impact in Arctic monitoring: a solution-orientated model for community-based environmental research

Abstract

Community-Based Monitoring (CBM) is increasingly cited as a means of collecting valuable baseline data that can contribute to our understanding of environmental change whilst supporting Indigenous governance and self-determination in research. However, current environmental CBM models have specific limitations that impact program effectiveness and the progression of research stages beyond data collection. Here, we highlight key aspects that limit the progression of Arctic CBM programs which include funding constraints, organisational structures, and operational processes. Exemplars from collaborative environmental research conducted in the acutely climate change impacted Hamlet of Tuktoyaktuk, Inuvialuit Settlement Region, Canada, are used to identify co-developed solutions to address these challenges. These learnings from experience-based collaborations feed into a new solution-orientated model of environmental Community-Based Research (CBR) that emphasises continuity between and community ownership in all research stages to enable a more complete research workflow. Clear recommendations are provided to develop a more coherent approach to achieving this model, which can be adapted to guide the development of successful environmental CBR programs in different research and place-based contexts.

Perspectives on funding structures, cross-cultural collaboration and institutional support needed to support the next generation of convergence climate scientists

“…Many solutions can be drawn from Indigenous traditions [7]. Long-term relationship development between researchers and Indigenous communities is essential for the establishment of research projects that address community research priorities and facilitate two-way knowledge transfer [8]. This requires time spent in communities ( international convergence collaboration is the provision of funding mechanisms that support the mobility of researchers, particularly ECRs, enabling them to extend their stays at partner institutions or within communities where they work [9].…”