Over generations, Native Americans have developed a timely and reliable knowledge of the land, its processes, and its management needs. This knowledge has been referred to as Native science. Native science employs many concepts such as observation, background research, and experimentation familiar to non-Native researchers and recognizes the interconnectedness of science. Good rangeland management also requires recognition of interrelatedness. Many researchers are reluctant to consider the contributions of Native science because they do not understand the methodology behind it. However, Native science has at its foundation the very same scientific method that we, as researchers trained in the Western world, all hold so near and dear. For example, The Native scientific method begins with observation. Long-term observational data is nothing new to Indigenous peoples; we have been observing the world around us for millennia, gaining an understanding of its systems and processes. Native science is grounded in experimentation. If we are open to it, Native science can give us “new” ways of looking at the landscape and all that it has to offer in terms of chemical, physical, and ecological processes and communities.
Results/Conclusions
Research on any rangelands can and should be a collaborative, reciprocal process. In particular, when working on or around Indigenous lands, consideration should be made for the traditional knowledge of local peoples. In discussions with locals who have inhabited a particular area for hundreds or even thousands of years, we will find a deep understanding of our surroundings that can enhance our research in a variety of ways. It is obvious that, if we are open to it, Native science can give us “new” ways of looking at the landscape and all that it has to offer in terms of chemical, physical and ecological processes and communities.