User:Erikpridgen/sandbox

Education
Education is considered to be the most important response to climate change, as it is the most immediate and an investment into the future. Education can be seen as a prerequisite to other responses, such that people who want to cause change in their environment must be educated in the events taking place. From increased education levels, the hope is that Native Americans would be more equipped to combat the symptoms of climate change, and adapt to them accordingly. Statistically, the US 2010 Census recorded that 13% of Native Americans have at least a bachelor's degree, which is 15% less than the national average in USA. To increase education levels, schemes have been put in place such as the American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC), and education in Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK).

The American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC) was a group established in 1973 that currently consists of 37 Universities and Colleges, with each being a private tribal institution. The focus on the group is the general education of Native Americans, in what they call the ‘Tribal College Movement’.

Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEKs) by contrast, is the concept that over thousands of years, Native American’s have developed their own knowledge of the land and how to survive. The idea suggests the will to live with nature and unionize with nature rather than to seek to control or change it in any real way. Doing as such, they seek to economize their usage of the land, and combat Climate Change in this way.

Technology
-         In Alaska, Ice caps are melting, and temperatures are heating. People are recognizing that the ice is no longer as safe as it was.

-         Crucial due to the Native Tribe’s usage of ice, such as housing, refrigeration.

-         Also crucial in terms of safety, where ice cracks may lead to a loss of resources, harm, or in the extreme case death.

Agriculture
In the Mid-Western America, Climate Change has caused increasingly arid/ infertile land, as well as an increased prevalence of sand dunes which in turn affects agricultural/ farming space, and even housing space. In response to this, there was been attempts to restore indigenous flora which are resistant to the harsh conditions of the American Midwest, and aren’t as susceptible to desertification. Further initiatives have been put in place with the same motive, such as reforestation.

In Hawaii, local tribes have had to respond to Climate Change’s effect on coral, and coral bleaching. This has been necessary as Native tribes in Hawaii find sustenance off the fish living amongst the coral, and yet the bleaching and subsequent death of local coral drives away their food reserves. A current method being utilized is the replanting of coral to areas not as effective, however this can be seen as only a short term solution.

In Alaska, Many of the Climate Change problems stem from the unstable condition imposed by warmer temperatures. This poses the problem of salmon reserves, where warmer water conditions cause the early migration of salmon, upsetting a natural food reserve. There is also increased potential for flooding due to melting of the ice caps, leading to the destruction of estuaries, which habitat Native Alaskan food reserves such as Salmon and assorted Shellfish.

Negotiations
Negotiations have been a major response to climate change, and in particular the Native American push for federal or even global negotiations to be inclusive of tribal leaders. This stems from the fact that they are a directly affected party, and thus feel that that should be part of negotiations that aim for some kind of change. This has led to the establishment of a multitude of groups such as The National Congress of American Indians, The Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the previously mentioned American Indian Higher Education Consortium.

There has also been a recent push for sovereign nation rights to be recognized for Native American tribes, which in turn would grant greater negotiating power, as well as increased access to financial resources to combat the symptoms of Climate Change on their land

Random References

Limitations on Adaptions
Despite the wide variety of responses, many problems still exists that prevent the potential of these responses from being realized, imposing limitations on their adaptive capacity.

Market Based Factors
In terms of market based factors, this is the concept that sociopolitical factors such as racism and poverty inherent in society has restricted the geographical movement of tribes, and thus restricted their capacity to adapt to Climate Change. Initially this was through the segregation of pre-Civil War America, which forced a location on Native Americans. However once these locations were established, the self-perpetuating theme of poverty can then applied to describe the reality of later generations which has in turn restricted the movement of Tribes. This is important when realizing the need for Tribes to move in order to adapt; such as how in Alaska, hazardous conditions might prompt the will to move inland, however this is constrained by the cost of doing so. This can then be seen in mid-western America, where increasingly arid and deforested conditions might prompt the will to move elsewhere, however the mid-west is also home to large coal and oil reserves which make up the majority of their income, such as the Navajo Generation Station.

State Based Factors
In terms of state based factors, this is the concept that Native Americans more often than not did not choose the location of their reservations. This can be seen firstly through the Indian Removal Act (1830), which legislated the concentration of Native Americans Mid-Western America, and then through following events such as the Louisiana Purchase and the subsequent Indian Wars which imposed conditions upon the local residents