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Reviews
| Native Americans and the Environment: Perspectives on the Ecological Indian. Edited by Michael E. Harkin and David Rich Lewis. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2007. xxxiv + 367 pp. Maps, tables, bibliography, and index. $24.95 (paper).
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Native Americans and the Environment: Perspectives on the Ecological Indian is a reaction to Shepard Krech's The Ecological Indian: Myth and History (New York, 1999). The publication of Krech's book provoked lengthy discourse—both positive and negative—about the extent to which Native Americans act as ecologists, conservationists, and protectors of natural resources. A portion of that discourse is represented in this book. |
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This edited volume contains twelve chapters on topics ranging from Late Pleistocene animal extinctions to nuclear waste on the Skull Valley Goshute reservation. Most of the chapters address the historic use of animal and fish resources, primarily buffalo, beaver, caribou, and salmon. Two chapters near the end deal with contemporary resource management issues. |
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Native Americans and the Environment provides a modern understanding of the relationships between Native Americans and environmental resources and the cultural identities that emerge from interacting with those resources. Additionally, this book provides a balanced perspective on the history of resource use and the social and political pressures that affected resource use in the past and continue to affect use in the present. |
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Concerns with Krech's 1999 book emerged when scholars attempted to determine to what degree Native Americans "fit" the image as environmental stewards. The majority of authors pointed out flaws in The Ecological Indian and provided counterarguments addressing ideological differences between Native Americans and Anglos and the contemporary issue of who is the "best" caretaker of the environment today. The authors rightfully ask whether it is appropriate to hold Native Americans responsible for environmental management as conceptualized by Anglos. Various authors pose another key question: how have Anglo stereotypes propagated an image of the "proper" Native American lifestyle—one that includes not wasting resources and environmental caretaking? These stereotypes are damaging to Native Americans who have been criticized for not living a lifestyle that is consistent with Anglo beliefs. |
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Several authors acknowledge that cultural constructs such as magic, ritual, ceremony, and taboos were indeed forms of environmental management (even if they are an unplanned outcome)—a management form not recognized by Anglos—and perhaps not fully recognized by modern environmentalists and government agencies. These cultural constructs act not only to manage environmental resources, but—more importantly—also to teach people about identity and their place within the larger social structure. Cultural revitalization often results from Native American control of environmental resources. Resources provide the necessary means for people to maintain identity and build self-preservation. |
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Why does all of this matter? Because many people in our modern society have used The Ecological Indian to support the idea that Native Americans were not capable of environmental stewardship in the past and therefore are not capable of managing their resources today. Natural resource management—and who controls it—has become a charged topic in recent times as people engage in debates over fishing and hunting rights and management of radioactive waste. These debates call into question the sovereignty of Native American rights. |
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Native Americans and the Environment addresses the above concerns in an articulate and thoughtful manner to provide insight into and support for Native American cultural resource management decisions. My brief criticism of this book is twofold: first, it contains a heavy focus on the historic period, which subsequently minimizes prehistoric perspectives; and second, it disregards the complex relationship between people and plant resources—a necessary component of human existence.
Susan C. Ryan
Crow Canyon Archaeological Center
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