Management is respect for the land and sea

Science Commentary 2

Respect for elders and their knowledge has kept the outer islands and many other communities strong. Traditional rules come from our ancestors’ experiences, and while some rules might be difficult to understand, when you put them all together they make a system of respect for the land and sea and for other people. If respect and traditions begin to fall apart, it can start to break down a community in many ways, including the environment which people depend on for food. Respect for the land and sea is what stewardship is. We learn from our elders what worked in the past, we think about what has changed today, and we develop practices to be able to use the plants and animals while also protecting them. These practices need to be followed and respected by everyone or they will not work well, and that will hurt the whole community. See the Foreword and Afterword for more wisdom on this topic.