A member of the indigenous Yanomami

While native folk have been delegitimized historically as unscientific and irrational, today’s movers-and-shakers welcome hearing indigenous voices.

One compelling reason is that the Yup’ik and Navajo of North America, the Ogiek and the Mun of Africa, the Wichi and the Yanomami of South America, and the Sami of Finland have witnessed environmental change first-hand.

For indigenous people, environmental effects are personal.

And scientists, mathematicians, geologists, technologists, engineers, physicians and physicists want to know more.

Starting December 22, the international group called the IEEE—the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers—is dedicating its online scientific journal to the topic of Indigenous Perspectives on Environmental Change.

The journal will devote four months to a stream of news items, personal narratives, feature stories and original research highlighting views of Indigenous peoples and stories about environmental change and native peoples.

I’ve been asked to be guest editor for the journal and invite you to send me your ideas and pass along the invitation to your friends and colleagues who are engaged in this arena.

The publication is called Earthzine.org

Take a look, drop me an email and let me know if you’d like to see the Call for Papers.

The publication reaches a world-wide audience.

Blog #20 for Native American Heritage Month

Photograph of a Yanomami tribal member, courtesy of the Australian government http://50years.aiatsis.gov.au/