这个故事是 "GenOcean "活动的一部分--"GenOcean"活动是海洋十年的官方活动，它展示了十年行动、合作组织和海洋领袖，重点关注青年和公民科学机会，以帮助任何人、任何地方的人们改变海洋所需。
In an era where climate change, biodiversity loss and ecosystem decline are reshaping our planet, understanding marine life across global waters has never been more urgent. As a global aquatic research, data management and partnership organization headquartered at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, the Ocean Tracking Network (OTN) is making that understanding possible.
OTN’s tracking infrastructure and analytical tools are used by a global community of researchers to track the movements and survival of more than 450 keystone, commercially important and endangered aquatic species using 3000+ receivers that make ocean data accessible to the communities most committed to protecting its resources.
As an endorsed Ocean Decade Action, Ocean Tracking Network addresses three Decade Challenges:
2 – Protect and Restore Ecosystems and Biodiversity
7 – Expand the Global Ocean Observing System
9 – Skills, Knowledge, Technology and Participation for all
OTN’s mission is to generate the science and data that inform ocean policy, conservation and sustainable resource management. With infrastructure in every ocean basin and key freshwater locations — and partnerships that bridge disciplines and cultures — OTN is a powerful force. It’s not just about tracking aquatic life, it’s about building relationships between people, ecosystems and knowledge systems.
A Spotlight on Apoqnmatulti’k
A standout OTN partnership that exemplifies this approach is Apoqnmatulti’k, a collaborative project, whose name means “we help each other” in Mi’kmaw.
This project was developed by the Unama’ki Institute of Natural Resources, Confederacy of Mainland Mi’kmaq, Marine Institute of Natural and Academic Science, Ocean Tracking Network, Acadia University, Dalhousie University, and Fisheries and Oceans Canada. It brings together Mi’kmaw organizations, scientists, academia, government, fishers and students to co-lead research on culturally and ecologically significant species, such as Ji’kaw (Striped Bass), Katew (American Eel) and Kaspelaw (Gaspereau).
Apoqnmatulti’k embodies Etuaptmumk (Two-Eyed Seeing), a Mi’kmaw guiding principle which enables seeing from one eye with the strengths of Indigenous knowledge and from the other with the strengths of western scientific knowledge. It’s not about choosing one over the other. It’s about weaving both together to make research stronger and more inclusive.
“There are two sides of knowledge. Different perspectives are not just about what you know but how you relate to it,” says Levi Denny, Indigenous Partnership and Research Project Coordinator at the Unama’ki Institute of Natural Resources and a master’s student at Dalhousie University. “The relationships between data points can make the data stronger. It’s like sweet grass: when it’s by itself, it’s straight and weak, but when weaved together, it becomes quite strong.”
Community members have supported Apoqnmatulti’k researchers — including master’s students at Dalhousie University and Acadia University — in the field when tagging aquatic animals and collecting environmental data. Tagging workshops, advisory group meetings with local community members and knowledge holders, and community outreach events are also helping to ensure that science is not only informed by local values but carried forward by the next generation of ocean stewards.
“Apoqnmatulti’k is an excellent example of how different knowledge systems can come together and be woven into success,” shares Shae Denny, Aquatics Program Manager at the Unama’ki Institute of Natural Resources. “It is truly reflective of its title, meaning we all help each other. We are always learning something new from both knowledge systems; we grow together and that is what means the most to me.”
“Working on this project has been such an honour. I am so grateful to build relationships and learn from diverse knowledge holders who have opened their hearts to share with me,” says Caitlin Bate, a master’s student at Dalhousie University. “Etuaptmumk is a way of doing things, an action and a process. This approach is helping to teach me about Ji’kaw (Striped Bass) but I’m also learning a better way of doing science.”
Projects like Apoqnmatulti’k are vital proof of what is possible when research is guided by Indigenous values and done in partnership with the communities it aims to serve.
Canada and Beyond: OTN’s Global Projects Abound
From local to global, OTN also owns and maintains the Halifax Line, a 200-kilometer array of acoustic receivers off the coast of Nova Scotia monitoring marine species along the continental shelf and providing valuable data for species and ecosystem management. In British Columbia, OTN has an integrated series of regional gates from Vancouver Island to the mainland that track coastal movements and spawning migrations of acoustically tagged juvenile and adult salmon, as well as other coastal species. These arrays span habitats that are ecologically, commercially and culturally significant within the Pacific Northwest, and have supported transboundary fisheries collaborations. Internationally, OTN enables numerous projects, including tracking seasonal whale migrations in Madagascar, angel sharks in the Canary Islands, and bluefish in the Turkish Straits.
From tracking marine megafauna for improved public safety to supporting community-led efforts that monitor important cultural and commercial species, OTN promotes global collaboration with local relevance and focus. Knowledge generated through these partnerships informs decisions at provincial, national and international levels to guide the sustainable management and conservation of aquatic species and resources.
参与其中
The OTN has many avenues to get involved in their work. Early Career Researchers are encouraged to join OTN’s virtual study halls to get support for research questions about acoustic telemetry, fellow scientists working on marine animal tracking projects are encouraged to register their project in the OTN database to make this knowledge accessible and policy-makers, stakeholders and ocean advocates are encouraged to use the OTN open-access data to make informed decisions.
By engaging experts and non-experts alike, OTN ensures that ocean science is not only advanced by cutting-edge research, but strengthened by shared knowledge, informed decision-making and collective action toward a healthier, more resilient ocean for all.
Learn more about OTN’s projects and global mission by visiting their website.
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