At this meeting, the Council received a report from the Bering Sea Fishery Ecosystem Plan (BS FEP) LK, TK, and Subsistence Taskforce. The Taskforce was formed at the October 2019 meeting to work on the FEP Action Module to develop protocols for using Local Knowledge (LK), Traditional Knowledge (TK), and Subsistence information in the Council process. The Taskforce, which met for the first time in January 2020, reported on goals, objectives, and deliverables for the Taskforce’s work. The Council adopted the following goals for the LK, TK, and Subsistence Taskforce:
- To create processes and protocols through which the Council can identify, analyze, and consistently incorporate TK and LK, and the social science of TK and LK, into Council decision making processes to support the use of best available scientific information in Ecosystem-based Fishery Management (EBFM).
- To create a protocol and develop recommendations through which the Council can define and incorporate subsistence information into analyses and decision making.
The Council requested staff to update Taskforce’s workplan to reflect discussions at this meeting, including the Council’s established purpose of the Taskforce, the Taskforce’s Objectives 1-5 as identified in the January 2020 report, and the Taskforce’s ground rules. The Council tasked the Taskforce with the following associated actions and products:
- Create a glossary of terms to be included in the Taskforce’s workplan.
- Identify potential “onramps,” or points of entry, within the Council process (e.g., public testimony or analyses) for the Taskforce’s work.
- Develop a protocol outlining the best practices for soliciting LK and TK, and a protocol for the Council to identify, analyze, and incorporate TK and LK into Council decision-making documents as appropriate.
- Develop guidelines or protocols for Council staff for soliciting/identifying, analyzing, and using subsistence data and information in analyses.
- Prepare a final report for the Council.
The Council intends the LK, TK, and Subsistence Taskforce to create a clear set of directions for the Council regarding best practices for solicitation and consideration of LK, TK, and subsistence information and how it can be understood and incorporated into analyses. The intent is not data collection but rather best practice protocols that can be applied to improve ongoing Council decision making.
Staff contact is Kate Haapala.
