Archaeological investigations and ecological modelling into pre-contact (1792 CE) Tsleil-Waututh stewardship of Burrard Inlet, BC, Canada

Speaker: Dr. Meaghan Efford, Postdoctoral Fellow, Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries

Modelling past ecosystem baselines and ecosystem change over time can demonstrate the cumulative effects of anthropogenic impacts to ecosystems over seasons to millennia. This project established a new method for modelling in Ecopath with Ecosim (EwE), drawing on Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK), archaeology, historical ecology, and historical/archival records, through a collaborative project with Tsleil-Waututh Nation. We modelled the pre-European contact ecosystem state of səl̓ilwət (Tsleil-Wat, Burrard Inlet) in 1790 CE in what is now known as British Columbia, Canada. We then modelled change over 230 years, from 1790-1980 CE, to explore the cumulative ecological and human impacts of colonization on the ecosystem. This transdisciplinary and collaborative project was conducted under the leadership and sovereignty of Tsleil-Waututh Nation in service of their Cumulative Effects Monitoring Initiative.