Project Profile: Two-Eyed Seeing - Integrate Indigenous Knowledge, Western Science & Climate Change Response in the Northeast

Saint Croix Island International Historic Site after powerful winter storms.

NPS / Brady Richards

Inflation Reduction Act
Resilience | FY24 $950,000

The National Park Service will protect coastal archaeological sites, collections, landscapes, and ethnographic resources vulnerable to climate change impacts, particularly sea level rise, flooding, and extreme weather events. Building on 15 years of consultation with Wabanaki Tribes, the project utilizes a 'Two-eyed Seeing' approach, merging Indigenous Knowledge with western science, giving the National Park Service and partners the ability to develop models for preservation and stewardship.

Why? Coastal areas within Acadia National Park, Saint Croix Island International Historic Site, and Roosevelt Campobello International Park are experiencing significant climatic threats – such as a rising sea level, flooding, and extreme weather events—all of which are endangering thousands of cultural sites affiliated with Tribal nations. Several coastal sites are actively eroding, with some facing the potential of total destruction within the next few decades. This project aims to mitigate these threats by engaging Tribal citizens in decision-making, developing adaptation strategies, and piloting citizen science programs to monitor vulnerable sites.

What Else? The project will create a decision framework and adaptation guidebook, implement a citizen science program for ongoing monitoring, and develop educational programs and lesson plans. It emphasizes collaboration with Wabanaki Tribes and partners such as the University of Maine and Parks Canada.