The Native American tribes of the Mid-Atlantic have an ancestral relationship with the ocean extending back thousands of years. As the region moves forward with an ocean planning process, these tribes play an important role both in sharing their traditional knowledge and advocating for their respective cultural and economic needs in the context of an Ocean Action Plan (OAP).
To advance opportunities for the engagement of tribes in the regional ocean planning process, MARCO convened two listening sessions (August 19- New York and August 25, 2015- Virginia) for tribal leaders in the Mid-Atlantic to learn about the planning process, share information and explore interest in participation from tribes. Participants included members of federally-recognized tribes, state-recognized tribes and tribes with a relationship with a state government in the Mid-Atlantic region.
Insights and information gained through this engagement will (1) improve MARCO’s understanding of the issues and needs of tribes located in the region and (2) inform the Mid-Atlantic ocean planning process, as coordinated by the Mid-Atlantic Regional Planning Body (MidA RPB).
Specifically, these MARCO-sponsored tribal engagement efforts are intended to provide a broader tribal perspective to the ocean planning process by:
- Informing tribal representatives about the MidA RPB, MARCO and the OAP, and providing opportunities to become involved in the process.
- Reviewing tribal ocean uses and introducing MARCO’s Mid-Atlantic Ocean Data Portal as a tool to communicate tribal coastal knowledge and uses.
MARCO is in the process of following up with those tribal leaders who want to share coastal spatial data and other information with the MidA RPB. A full summary of the tribal listening sessions will be made available on the MARCO website in the near future.
PHOTO at top: MARCO and tribal representatives during the Tribal Listening Session held in Richmond, Virginia.