Observatoires pour lier les savoirs autochtones et scientifiques sur les changements environnementaux dans l’Arctique : Adaptation et vulnérabilités de l’environnement et des sociétés sibériennes II

BRISK’s OBS ENV II is the continuation and development of BRISK’s OBS ENV (2018-2021). Situated in Eastern Siberia, six transdisciplinary observatories among Evenki reindeer herders, villagers and townspeople running from 2013 constitute the project, along with one observatory that will be established among the Yakut farmers. The development, installation, data production and analysis were/will be jointly conceived and realised by scientists (social and natural) and indigenous peoples.

BRISK’s OBS ENV II will assess local environmental changes and related socio-economic impacts in the current context of the interplaying global environmental crisis, geopolitical interest in the Arctic’s resources and increasing Arctic pollution.
Based on the complementarity of indigenous and scientific knowledge, and in accordance with the recommendations of COP21, EU-PolarNet, IASSA and other Arctic research organisations, the project aims to build synergies between the indigenous knowledge and natural/social sciences, between the sciences, and between indigenous communities, scientists and policy-makers. This innovative methodology allows knowledge co-production that contributes to filling in gaps about current changes in the Arctic environment. Also, classical anthropological methods are used to study socio-economic impacts on the societies concerned and their adaptive strategies.
Through Indigenous and scientific indicators, the project will study changes in biodiversity (animal and vegetal species, indicator species). Second, it will investigate pollution by monitoring human sensory perceptions and reindeer health. Third, it will complete our cloud atlas, which is necessary for documenting and monitoring the Arctic cloud cover and air pollution. Fourth, it will study the impacts on indigenous societies of environmental changes, mining and the Covid-19 crisis. It will also complete and improve our long-term community-based survey of climate change over time through new monitoring approaches (weather, cryosphere, forest fires) and a new focus on landscape transformations (river basins, wetlands) and permafrost evolution.