Affiliation:
1. University of Guam, University of Guam Center for Island Sustainability and Sea Grant Mangilao Guam USA
2. Department of Biology and Wildlife, Herbarium (ALA) University of Alaska Fairbanks Fairbanks Alaska USA
Abstract
AbstractOn the island of Guåhan (Guam) native and endemic species are an integral part of the CHamoru language, rituals, and practices. They are interconnected with their culture and honored together with the ocean, the land, and their ancestors. Presently, this spiritual connection is being jeopardized as military expansion threatens the sacred lands of Tailalo’ and Litekyan. Phylogenetic and ethnographic research, connected to the principles of environmental justice, has brought attention to the social movement to protect the last håyun lågu tree (Serianthes nelsonii) at Tailalo’. This opinion piece is a rallying cry to safeguard the last håyun lågu and to confront the U.S. National Environmental Policy Act and the U.S. Endangered Species Act, as its regulations do not mirror the island's social and cultural system and fail to incorporate Indigenous and scientific perspectives to protect Indigenous biocultural heritage.
Subject
Nature and Landscape Conservation,Environmental Science (miscellaneous),Ecology,Global and Planetary Change
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