Collaborative Marine Park Monitoring and Management with Wadandi and Wudjari Traditional Owners: Integrating Western and Indigenous Ways of Knowing to Decolonise Conservation
There is urgent need for effective monitoring and management of marine environments to reduce the rates of decline of species and ecosystems on which we depend on for survival and wellbeing. This is often done with modern baselines of abundance (‘fish biomass was stable compared to our 2014 baseline’) and Western management practices (No-take areas etc.), which do not reflect historical abundances and may not reach conservation goals. My project explores alternative methods of monitoring and managing the marine environment, with a focus on Traditional knowledge, participation and practices. I am using a mix of methods, from population modelling to fish monitoring with Traditional Owners. The outcomes of this project will highlight the value of the place-based ecological knowledge of First-Nations and encourage Western scientists to collaborate with them for the better of nature.
About Me
I am French but grew up in Hong Kong and New York City. I then fleed big cities and studied Biological Sciences at the University of Exeter in the UK, before doing a Master’s in Marine Environmental Management at the same University. My Thesis looked at an experimental subsistence fishery in the Seychelles. After a year working on commercial trawlers and longliners as a Scientific Observer in the South Atlantic, I decided to pursue a PhD at UWA, exploring better ways to monitor and manage the marine environment. I work in close collaboration with Undalup Association and Esperance Tjaltjraak Native Title Aboriginal Corporation.
Supervisors
Dr. Tim Langlois, Dr. Matthew Navarro, Dr. Jordan Goetze & Dr. Jenn Lavers
Contact
Indian Ocean Marine Research Centre
School of Biological Sciences (M470)
35 Stirling Highway, Crawley WA 6009
lise.fourniercarnoy@research.uwa.edu.au