Molecular Decolonization: An Indigenous Microcosm Perspective of Planetary Health

Nicole Redvers, Michael Yellow Bird, Diana Quinn, Tyson Yunkaporta and Kerry Arabena
Additional contact information
Nicole Redvers: Department of Family & Community Medicine, University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences, Grand Forks, ND 58202, USA
Michael Yellow Bird: Faculty of Social Work, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2, Canada
Diana Quinn: Centre for Mindful Decolonization, University of Manitoba Faculty of Social Work, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2, Canada
Tyson Yunkaporta: National Indigenous Knowledge Research and Innovation (NIKERI) Institute, Deakin University, Waurn Ponds Campus, Waurn Ponds, VIC 3216, Australia
Kerry Arabena: First 1000 Days Australia, Riddells Creek, VIC 3431, Australia

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 12, 1-13

Abstract: Indigenous peoples are resilient peoples with deep traditional knowledge and scientific thought spanning millennia. Global discourse on climate change however has identified Indigenous populations as being a highly vulnerable group due to the habitation in regions undergoing rapid change, and the disproportionate burden of morbidity and mortality already faced by this population. Therefore, the need for Indigenous self-determination and the formal recognition of Indigenous knowledges, including micro-level molecular and microbial knowledges, as a critical foundation for planetary health is in urgent need. Through the process of Indigenous decolonization, even at the smallest molecular scale, we define a method back to our original selves and therefore to our planetary origin story. Our health and well-being is directly reflected at the planetary scale, and we suggest, can be rooted through the concept of molecular decolonization, which through the English language emerged from the ‘First 1000 Days Australia’ and otherwise collectively synthesized globally. It is through our evolving understanding of decolonization at a molecular level, which many of our Indigenous cultural and healing practices subtly embody, that we are better able to translate the intricacies within the current Indigenous scientific worldview through Western forms of discourse.

Keywords: planetary health; Indigenous health; climate change; environmental health; ecology; health equity; knowledge translation; environmental stewardship; microbiome (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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