27
collaborative, the Karuk-University of California, Berkeley Collaborative,
88
and then its own
research program, which is now managed by the Karuk Department of Natural Resources’
Pikyav Field Institute. Through the Institute’s Practicing Pikyav Process for Collaborative
Research Projects,
89
the Tribe invites, solicits, considers, accepts, approves, directs, and
oversees the methods and conditions of the research that involves their Indigenous Knowledge,
beliefs, practices and other cultural properties and interests. Research topics have focused on
Tribal agroforestry, food security, wildland fire, Indigenous fire stewardship, and climate
adaptation as landscape restoration strategies across jurisdictions that cover Karuk Aboriginal
Territory and include both natural and social sciences as well as socio-ecological systems that
integrate the two. As these research collaborations have evolved, the Tribe is increasingly
identifying and conducting research based on its identified stewardship and co-management
needs and priorities and collaborating with the USDA Forest Service and other Federal and state
agencies, university, and non-governmental organization partners.
PSWRS developed an agreement in 2006 with the Karuk Tribe to support the development of the
Karuk Eco-Cultural Resources Management plan,
90
which lays out a long-term adaptive
management strategy for the lands, waters, and cultural/natural resources within and adjacent to
Karuk Aboriginal Territory, 95% of which is occupied by the Six Rivers and Klamath National
Forests. PSWRS conducts research with the Karuk Tribe and other partners to help fulfill the US
Forest Service’s trust responsibility towards Federally recognized Tribes. These research
products develop, synthesize, and document the Best Available Scientific Information—which
includes both Western and Indigenous sciences—for lands, water, and resources management
decisions.
In 2013, the Karuk Tribe and U.C. Berkeley, along with the Yurok and Klamath Tribes, scaled
up their collaboration, conducting research focused on food security and the ways in which the
Tribal community accesses food resources, including traditional foods derived off land
concurrent with Tribal and National Forest System jurisdictions.
91
A significant finding was that
the Tribal community faces substantial challenges in accessing, securing, and having conditions
in place to steward traditional foods.
92
To enhance their Tribal food security and sovereignty, the
Karuk and other Tribes conduct forestry and wildland fire management that foster opportunities
88
See generally, Karuk – UC Berkeley Collaborative, [Home Page] (2022), available at
https://nature.berkeley.edu/karuk-collaborative/
(including links to projects, news, publications and other resources).
89
Karuk Tribe and University of California at Berkeley, (Oct. 12, 2017). Practicing Pikyav: A Guiding Policy for
Collaborative Projects and Research Initiatives with the Karuk Tribe, Karuk-UC Berkeley Collaborative. Berkeley,
CA: University of California at Berkeley, https://nature.berkeley.edu/karuk-collaborative/?page_id=165
(noting that
as of 2021 the policy is under revision).
90
Karuk Tribe Department of Natural Resources, (June 15, 2010), Eco-Cultural Resources Management Plan, draft
web posting available at https://www.karuk.us/images/docs/dnr/ECRMP_6-15-10_doc.pdf
.
91
Sowerwine, J., Sarna-Wojcicki, D., Mucioki, M., Hillman, L., Lake, F. And Friedman, E. (2019). Enhancing Food
Sovereignty: A Five-Year Collaborative Tribal-University Research and Extension Project in California and
Oregon. Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development, 9(B), pp.167-190,
https://www.karuk.us/images/docs/hr-files/Tribal%20Constitution%207_19_2008.pdf
.
92
Karuk Tribe and University of California at Berkeley (2019). Klamath Basin Food System Assessment: Karuk
Tribe Data. Karuk-UC Berkeley Collaborative. Berkeley, CA: University of California at Berkeley.
Https://nature.berkeley.edu/karuk-collaborative/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Food-Security-Assessment-Web-
5.20.pdf