##  [Linking Co-monitoring to Co-management: Bringing Together Local, Traditional, and Scientific Knowledge in a Wildlife Status Assessment Framework](/resource/linking-co-monitoring-co-management-bringing-together-local-traditional-and-scientific) 

Organization

[University of Calgary (UofC)](/organization/university-calgary-uofc)

[Government of Northwest Territories (GNWT)](/organization/government-northwest-territories-gnwt)

[University of Guelph (UofG)](/organization/university-guelph-uofg)

[Olokhaktomiut Hunters and Trappers Committee](/organization/olokhaktomiut-hunters-and-trappers-committee)

 

 

Resource Type

[Peer reviewed article](/taxonomy/term/37)

 

 

Author(s)

Stephanie Peacock

Fabien Mavrot

Matilde Tomaselli

Andrea Hanke

Heather Fenton

Rosemin Nathoo

Oscar Alejandro Aleuy

Juliette Di Francesco

Xavier Fernandez Aguilar

Naima Jutha

Pratap Kafle

Jesper Mosbacher

Annie Goose

Ekaluktutiak Hunters and Trappers Organization

Kugluktuk Angoniatit Association

Olokhaktomiut Hunters and Trappers Committee

Susan Kutz

 

 

Original Authors

Stephanie Peacock

Fabien Mavrot

Matilde Tomaselli

Andrea Hanke

Heather Fenton

Rosemin Nathoo

Oscar Alejandro Aleuy

Juliette Di Francesco

Xavier Fernandez Aguilar

Naima Jutha

Pratap Kafle

Jesper Mosbacher

Annie Goose

Ekaluktutiak Hunters and Trappers Organization

Kugluktuk Angoniatit Association

Olokhaktomiut Hunters and Trappers Committee

Susan Kutz

 

 

Contacts

[Stephanie Peacock](/contact/stephanie-peacock)

 

 

Resource Date:

2020

 

 

Effective wildlife management requires accurate and timely information on conservation status and trends, and knowledge of the factors driving population change. Reliable monitoring of wildlife population health, including disease, body condition, and population trends and demographics, is central to achieving this, but conventional scientific monitoring alone is often not sufficient. Combining different approaches and knowledge types can provide a more holistic understanding than conventional science alone and can bridge gaps in scientific monitoring in remote and sparsely populated areas. Inclusion of traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) is core to the wildlife co-management mandate of the Canadian territories and is usually included through consultation and engagement processes. We propose a status assessment framework that provides a systematic and transparent approach to including TEK, as well as local ecological knowledge (LEK), in the design, implementation, and interpretation of wildlife conservation status assessments. Drawing on a community-based monitoring program for muskoxen and caribou in northern Canada, we describe how scientific knowledge and TEK/LEK, documented through conventional monitoring, hunter-based sampling, or qualitative methods, can be brought together to inform indicators of wildlife health within our proposed assessment framework.