Oral History as a Tool to Reveal Local Ecological Knowledge in Gullah Geechee Communities

Local ecological knowledge (LEK) is an implied cultural asset of place-based cultures. As we observe global changes in natural resources, individuals who have observed environmental changes in their communities help us see climate change through a cultural lens. We advance the idea that oral histories are important sources of information that geoscience professionals can use to understand climate change and community resilience. Additionally, these stories can share historical ecological knowledge that is typically retained within families or other smaller social groups and does not get incorporated into dominant narratives. Consequently, they may not be accessible to academic or management communities and may inaccurately convey a lack of ecological knowledge or interest in conservation. Coastal communities like the Gullah Geechee in the southeastern U.S. have traditional practices in harvesting wild plants, fishing, farming, and hunting that present evidence of multigenerational environmental literacy. The Gullah Geechee are Black Americans descended from West and Central Africans enslaved on southeast U.S. sea islands who developed a creolized language and distinct, nature-based culture. In oral histories collected from Gullah Geechee families in Georgia, we obtained snapshots of natural resource history that evidenced a broader knowledge of natural resources on which the community relied, degrees of place attachment, and the sea/landscape values associated with Sea Island communities. Examination of long-held sustainability practices that have been transmitted across generations can evidence community resilience and be compared to knowledge obtained through formal study. In ongoing work, we are continuing to document evidence of Gullah Geechee LEK and, in doing so, expand the body of LEK literature to include this coastal African American stakeholder group.