Volume 15, Number 1, Spring 2025 Muiwatmnej Etuaptmumk: Two-Eyed Seeing From Vision to Action Guest-edited by Mary Beth Doucette

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A collaborative and holistic approach is essential to achieving a healthy and resilient aquatic ecosystem. Apoqnmatulti’k (Mi’kmaw for “we help each other”) is a partnership that involves the Unama’ki Institute of Natural Resources, the Confederacy of Mainland Mi’kmaq, commercial fisher Darren Porter, the Ocean Tracking Network, Acadia University, Dalhousie University, and Fisheries and Oceans Canada-Science. Apoqnmatulti’k is founded on the shared participation of Mi’kmaw, local, and Western scientific knowledge holders, aiming to better understand valued aquatic species in Pitu’pa’q (Bras d’Or Lake) and Pekwitapa’qek (Minas Basin). Guided by the principle of Etuaptmumk (Two-Eyed Seeing), Apoqnmatulti’k serves as a model for how the incorporation of diverse perspectives can enhance knowledge, ensure transparency and accessibility of information, and transform fisheries management and conservation. This paper focuses on the challenges, lessons learned, and achievements derived from collaboration and the development of a strong partnership.

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The Ka’a’gee Tu First Nation, in Kakisa, Northwest Territories, is cultivating food to strengthen their food systems against multifaceted threats posed by colonization, climate change, and socioeconomic disparities. Community efforts to grow food are new and stand as an adaptation response to their changing food system. Although establishing food-growing initiatives has been a gradual process, their success is now evident with substantial quantities of food being produced. This research addresses the need for a sustainable food distribution model in Kakisa to ensure food is accessible to the community. Using a participatory action research approach, community members shared their vision, leading to the exploration of an Indigenous-led economic model merging Western approaches with Indigenous values. Kakisa’s enterprise will support food distribution systems, including a store, and act as a space to host social gatherings, facilitate Traditional Knowledge workshops, and share food. The community’s vision of an Indigenous-led social enterprise embodies a holistic approach to economic development that emphasizes social bonding and community well-being over pure economic activities. Accomplishing this vision requires continuous efforts toward fostering collaboration, nurturing cultural resurgence, and empowering Indigenous leadership within economic development.

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Indigenous law and governance systems across British Columbia have experienced tremendous hardship and transformation since first contact. Colonial systems have stifled Indigenous cultural governance structures, compromising Indigenous communities’ centuries-old methods of sustainable land and resource management through stewardship. Despite the acknowledged importance of Indigenous stewardship in natural resource management initiatives, land-based decision making within British Columbia continues to design and implement processes and mechanisms that stifle Indigenous law and governance and misrepresent Indigenous values.

This article uses document analysis of 123 forestry-centric government-to-government Forest Consultation and Revenue Sharing Agreements within British Columbia to explore how Two-Eyed Seeing manifests through the opportunity to uphold Indigenous law and governance in these agreements. Focusing on the use of Indigenous language, cultural values, and hereditary leadership, nine of the agreements studied showed signs of Indigenous law and governance in their terms. These findings highlight the need for a path forward that is inclusive and empowers Indigenous law and governance in natural resource decision making to ensure enhanced stewardship opportunities for future generations.

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Indigenous peoples around the world share a history of colonization and poverty, including the loss of land, language, and the cultural foundations of their societies and communities. An increasing number of Indigenous peoples are actively rebuilding and revitalizing their cultures through economic endeavour. This paper presents case studies from Australia, Canada, and New Zealand, highlighting applicable models of collaborative co-governance employed by Indigenous finance entities, as well as the accountability frameworks that have emerged from this renaissance. We found evidence of commonalities based on the cultural values and traditional knowledge systems of Indigenous peoples in their respective countries. The literature informs our analyses, as it originates from our organizations and communities of interest. We discovered that, despite the social, cultural, and economic differences, the exciting and innovative strategies developed by Indigenous peoples in all three countries are not only similar and relevant to one another but also applicable to non-Indigenous financial and investment institutions and their accountability frameworks. The integration of Indigenous philosophies and values into the governance of Indigenous financial and investment entities has fostered a multi-dimensional approach that considers both Western and Indigenous practices. The necessity of meeting both Indigenous and non-Indigenous accountability requirements creates an interlocking circle of values and codes of conduct, providing Indigenous financial and investment entities with a double layer of protection.

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Indigenous voices and philosophies are conspicuously absent from the call to transform tourism planning through regenerative and culturally inclusive approaches. To address this, this work explores collaborative frameworks that can propel the tourism industry forward for all stakeholders in a more inclusive and sustainable way. Examining the role of Traditional Knowledge in Unama’ki Cape Breton Island provides an enhanced understanding of the barriers to and opportunities for Indigenous inclusion in tourism decision-making and can inform a broader world view. Additionally, the philosophy of Etuaptmumk/Two-Eyed Seeing allows for the consideration of two distinct perspectives and could be usefully applied to the tourism industry. Through the lens of reconciliation, Etuaptmumk/Two-Eyed Seeing provides a path for tourism decision-makers to contribute to a shared decision matrix and, ultimately, to contribute to a new framework for tourism development. Challenging established colonial research norms and exploring the complex dynamic between Indigenous and non-Indigenous decision-making will deliver both a theoretical contribution to existing literature as well as a practical contribution to building tourism on more equitable grounds.

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This study explores the use of Two-Eyed Seeing to guide the codevelopment of housing policies between First Nations and Canada, fostering meaningful collaboration and advancing self-determination. It examines historical contexts, challenges, and benefits, using interviews with Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg, Quebec, and Potlotek, Nova Scotia, as case studies. Key principles for effective policy codevelopment include meaningful engagement, respectful dialogue, shared decision-making, and the recognition of Indigenous rights and sovereignty. The paper contributes to ongoing discourse on Indigenous governance and equitable partnerships.

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This paper explores a land claim case initiated by the Saugeen Ojibway Nation (SON) concerning their traditional territory in Ontario, integrating the principles of the two-eyed seeing approach by bringing the Ecological Footprint and Biocapacity (EFB) methodology into the case as support alongside cultural and Indigenous views. EFB is an environmental indicator used to understand the amount of Earth’s resources an area can provide to support human activities. Using geomatics and EFB research, we quantify the regenerative capacity and environmental significance of SON’s territory. The analysis reveals that cropland, distinguished by Ontario’s high yield factor and fertile soil, possesses the highest Biocapacity within the region, indicating its potential to sustain Indigenous livelihoods. The calculated Biocapacity of SON’s traditional territory underscores its ability to support a population of 594,572 people, emphasizing the vast number of ecological resources available within the territory. We look at the juxtaposition of Indigenous knowledge with scientific analysis within this case and how it can help support Indigenous land claims cases. Through this interdisciplinary approach, the paper contributes to the broader discourse on Indigenous land rights and environmental stewardship, advocating for the recognition and preservation of the ecological heritage of Indigenous lands within the framework of the two-eyed seeing approach.