module 2

How is everything connected from the perspectives of indigenous peoples and Western scientists?

Sila or Inua is the Native belief that everything is connected. Time, energy, physical world: a unity of independent life forces. Knowledge is spiritual and worldly that can't be segmented. People are one with nature and their surroundings. A holistic approach is taken.
Subsistence practices an intimate connection with the world around The People. The Native peoples live close to nature while harvesting from the land and sea. Subsistence allows resources for shelter, clothing and handicrafts. The universe is respected as a complex system where everything is believed to be a precious gift. Nature is honored through rituals, ceremonies, and art.
I lived in Pilot Station, a Yup'ik Eskimo village on the Yukon river. Two seasons ago, my husband and I were given a hind quarter of moose. The elders who 'gave to us' wanted to know what we would do with the bones. At first, I thought they wanted the marrow (which we also eat ) but then realized they were concerned that we might not dispose of the bones properly. The younger people dump the bones at the village dump. Tradition says to either return the bones to water or bury them. I told Mary and George we would return the bones to the river. They smiled and knew we would keep our word. This was the September hunt and the river was still open for disposal of the bones. We used the hide as a sled blanket.
Tradition tells that one "catches" a moose. The spirit of the moose present itself to the hunter. If the hunter shows respect for the killed animal by wasting nothing, disposing of the remains properly and giving the recently killed animal a drink of water ( for their passage to the next world) then the spirit will present itself the next season. Do all of our current Native hunters still believe and practice this thought? I have asked and never been given a definitive answer.
As hunting seasons, quota, plus moratoriums on hunting areas are enforced on The People, how will this change traditional thinking and practices? The Alaska Department of Fish and Game has set restrictions on number of animals hunted with permits, in an attempt to control and regulate animal populations.
Western scientists work on the premise of a formalized objective (departmentalized ) understanding of our universe. The scientific method is used to 'prove' a concept or hypothesis to be true and thereby a fact. Students of science are taught biology, physics, chemistry, astronomy, separately from Language Arts and the Humanities. Each component was a discrete part.
Einstein's work with the String Theory showed how the fundamental "knowledge" of science can change when new hypothesis are proven right or wrong. It unifies our understanding of everything. We have a foundation of facts that guide our thinking. As the facts change or are disproved, then thinking has to change to accommodate new information.
There are several components in the Traditional native knowledge and Western science that overlap and in common for both ways of thinking: universe is unified, body of knowledge stable but subject to modification, open mindedness, perseverance, empirical observation in rural settings, pattern recognition, verification through repetition, inference and prediction, knowledge based on properties of objects and materials, cycles and changes in the earth and sky.
To conclude, Traditional native ways and reductionistic Western science have connections through observations, practices known 'truths'. Knowing both aspects of thinking concerning science, will greatly benefit the student of both schools. The 2 parts become a whole creating a well- rounded environment for both Traditional and Western peoples.