Abstract
The ecological crisis goes far beyond global warming: the decline in biodiversity also affects communities' wellbeing worldwide. Those impacts are particularly striking when it comes to cultural keystone species, i.e. species that shape the culture – and the social fabric – of a people. In British Columbia, salmon species are recognized as cultural keystone. However, salmon populations have plummeted over recent decades. While the psychosocial consequences of this decline have been explored in the literature, research is scarce as to how positive social-ecological change can stem from community responses to such disasters. Through in-depth, semi-structured interviews with relevant stakeholders (n = 11), this research demonstrates that the decline in salmon populations in British Columbia has proven to be a catalyst for responses promoting social-ecological change, and explores how some of the communities impacted found innovative ways to “leap” forward in front of such adversity. By bridging the gap between the concepts of cultural keystone species and the transformative dimension of social-ecological resilience, I present cultural keystone species as unique drivers of change which should be accounted for by social workers and policymakers. Indeed, the results demonstrate the far-reaching ramifications of such change, by focusing on instances where conservation, restoration and monitoring projects successfully contributed to addressing deeply entrenched issues such as colonialism, extractivism or capitalism. Therefore, this research shows that salmon-oriented initiatives, beyond their impact on the ecosystems, also have an impact on the social fabric of the communities involved — for the better.