A Collaborative Investigation of Climate Change Adaptation for the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe

Abstract

This dissertation explores climate change impacts to the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe (PLPT) and considers how collaboration and community engagement with diverse stakeholder perspectives are critical for PLPT adaptation. The PLPT is a federally recognized tribe located at the Pyramid Lake Indian Reservation in the Truckee River Basin of what is now northern Nevada. The Pyramid Lake Paiute call themselves the Kooyooe Tukadu, or cui-ui eaters, reflecting their deep connection to the fish species of Pyramid Lake, which include the endangered cui-ui (Chasmistes cujus) and threatened Lahontan cutthroat trout (LCT, Oncorhynchus clarkii henshawi). The Kooyooe Tukadu are deeply connected – culturally, physically, and spiritually – to the Truckee River Basin, Pyramid Lake, the cui-ui, and the LCT, all of which are threatened by impacts of climate change. Designed and framed within an ongoing collaborative partnership between the PLPT Council and university researchers, this research has three key objectives: (1) develop community outreach strategies and tools for the PLPT that stimulate discussion of climate change issues; (2) engage PLPT departments and stakeholder groups to understand climate change impacts and vulnerability; and (3) explore how adaptation and Indigenous knowledge may enhance PLPT responses to climate change.Utilizing decolonizing and participatory action research methodologies, this study engaged community perspectives of climate change through a community centered workshop. Educational resources were developed to augment PLPT community members’ knowledge of how local climate affects the Pyramid Lake ecosystem. With PLPT oversight, interview questions were designed to identify climate change impacts and the role of planning and Indigenous knowledge in adaptation. This study engaged 31 PLPT department staff and stakeholders in interviews and focus groups. Their responses were organized into three main categories: climate change impacts and vulnerabilities; adaptation and planning; and Indigenous knowledge in climate change adaptation. Participants expressed concern about a wide range of climate change and environmental impacts. including water resource issues, cultural concerns, environmental change, management and operations, and impacts on individual livelihoods. Education, outreach, and community engagement were emphasized as potential solutions for adaptation planning. Planning emerged as an important category from the interviews and focus groups that encompassed seven themes: mismanagement, community engagement, funding issues, strategic plans, operations planning, ecosystem restoration, and PLPT governance. The role of Indigenous knowledge in PLPT adaptation was explored extensively through seven relevant themes: practices, knowledge & history, land, survival, colonization, intergenerational, and protection. The results of this study have direct relevance to PLPT efforts to understand and respond to climate change. This study may offer insight to tribal governments considering climate change research partnerships with university researchers. This study emphasizes accountability, PLPT autonomy over research design and data, empathy for participants, and respect for their contributions. This study’s careful approach to understanding how PLPT Indigenous knowledge might be included in adaptation efforts may provide guidance to other Indigenous communities. The conclusion offers a summary of the participants’ views on adaptation and Indigenous knowledge that the PLPT Council could consider for climate change action planning.