In a 2021 article called, “How Indigenous Knowledge Can Help Prevent Environmental Crisis”, a team studied the environmental effects of Indigenous People compared to the rest of the world (UN Environment Program). Granted by the title, it is no surprise that Indigenous Peoples have high moral beliefs in land stewardship. In the article, “The Historical Roots of Our Ecological Crisis” by Lynn White (1203-1207), we are informed about the upsetting results of human’s unnatural treatment of land. White does not directly refer to the Indigenous Peoples in his writing, but for the sake of his argument, the word Pagan and be exchanged for Indigenous. His argument is that Christianity is solely responsible for the ecological crisis and more specifically the invention of a new type of plow that was harsh on the land (White). My focus is not on whether or not the Christians are to be held responsible, but rather the differences in the beliefs that create stewards of the land.

To start, White points out how Indigenous people will apologize to their kill and use the animal in full. For others, apologizing to their kill seems absurd and much of the animal is wasted. As stated in class, we do not apologize to trees when we cut them down because we do not believe in such behaviour. Western society has become very individualized and has the mindset ‘every man for themselves’, whereas Indigenous Tribes are all linked, equal, and webbed. This is why they value the environment. They believe in environmental stewardship on a spiritual level, not merely as a simple act of good. In a 2019 report, it was recorded that biodiversity and ecosystems were moving at a declining pace, however this pace was much less severe in Indigenous communities (UN Environment Program). I believe White is on the right track in terms of how Indigenous people are not the root problem behind the ecological crisis. Rather, they are the greatest stewards of them all as seen in the research article. One does not have to be Indigenous in order to slow the pace of the ecological crisis, but they should or perhaps need to adopt the perspectives of Indigenous Peoples. All humans should have a reciprocal relationship with the environment. We can no longer view ourselves superior over the land that feeds, clothes, and shelters us.

Works Cited
UN Environment Program. “How Indigenous Knowledge Can Help Prevent Environmental Crisis.” 9 August, 2021. https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/how-indigenous-knowledge-can-help-prevent-environmental-crises
White, Lynn. “The Historical Roots of Our Ecologic Crisis.” Science, vol. 155, no. 3767, Mar. 1967, pp. 1203–7, https://doi.org/10.1126/science.155.3767.1203.