Participatory mapping: an additional depositional layer of the Godthåbsfjord, Greenland

ABSTRACT

The knowledge held by people who have been closely and directly involved with their surrounding environments is valuable not only for capturing elements of an understanding of the past but also for obtaining an understanding of environmental variations. This study amplifies that combining traditional knowledge, historical and archaeological data is unique and can be integrated in archaeological survey methodology and interpretations of results; it can equally contribute to historical and cultural studies, studies of climate and environmental changes, and to identify knowledge gaps; and it can be a significant tool for natural science to validate date, prolong time series, strengthen monitoring and understand variations of the past, present and future. This study visualizes how these can be used as a scientific cartographic tool with multidisciplinary layers and perceptions. Furthermore, it demonstrates how participatory mapping can add new layers to depositional history by visualizing cultural and environmental changes and giving a broader and more contextual understanding of past land use and human–nature interactions as well as present and future cultural perceptions in the inner region of the Godthåbsfjord.

KEYWORDS:

• Participatory mapping
• environmental history
• natural scientific cartography
• multidisciplinary
• traditional knowledge
• cultural change

Acknowledgements

The author wishes to thank the ‘Inuit Pinngortitarlu’ – Nuuk Fjord Monitoring and Mapping Project for introducing the author to the uniqueness of traditional knowledge, which has shaped here ongoing research. She wishes to thank Mark Nuttall as well as Bjarne Grønnow for their comments and knowledge contribution. Furthermore, she wishes to thank the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Higher Education in Denmark, and Ivalo and Minik Fonden for supporting the work, as well as CNRS Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé for giving her working space to write this paper in beautiful surroundings.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.