Good Fire in Guyana with Kayla de Freitas and Nicolas Cyril-YourForest

41.54 - 42.04: “So much of that knowledge about fire and fire use and farming, hunting, is learned by doing and by living there and living that life.”

Takeaways

Fire since time immemorial (04.02)

Nicholas has worked for 10 years at SRDC as a part-time researcher, but the heavy rains have paused his work, which will resume after the rainy season, in September. He explains that fire in his territory has always been used and continues to be used for various reasons, including ceremonial purposes. Fire plays an important role in their daily lives. Their landscape is mostly bush islands and open savannah, but it becomes difficult to travel during the rains.

The changing face of fire (10.55)

Kayla grew up on a ranch in a savannah area with some forest around, 7 miles from Nicholas’ village. She moved around Guyana through her schooling and went abroad for university. She applied to do her PhD and has Jay Mistry as her supervisor, who had done fire research in South America. This began Kayla’s journey with fire, and her research focus is now the changing practices of Indigenous fire management and local fire governance.

Timeless wisdom, current realities (13.17)

Kayla describes the two sites she has worked on in Guyana and the Indigenous peoples of the land, who were interviewed for her research study and to help draft the fire management plan. The Indigenous communities are working to see how to opt into the GRIF program. She works with Elders, middle-aged and youth on the kind of perceptions they have on fire management in today’s reality.

Indigenous land rights (17.17)

Nicholas notes that Indigenous peoples are allowed to burn in the villages to reduce fire risk and to ward off wild animals. Kayla adds that Indigenous communities operate semi-autonomously, and can make their own rules concerning resource governance including fire. Though the governance of lands owned by other entities is different, Indigenous peoples are allowed to carry out customary practices there as long as it is sustainable.

Towards the creation of a fire policy (19.35)

Kayla points out that there is no national fire policy in Guyana, since there have been minimal fire issues. Wildfires do take place but usually due to drought conditions. The Indigenous community in South Rupununi is working to create a local fire policy appropriate to their landscape. In 2018, fire surpassed mining as the lead cause of deforestation, prompting the government to work towards creating a fire policy.

Burning season (23.46)

Kayla highlights the seasonal fire calendar that the district council uses and a collection of interview responses on putting fire on the landscape. However, climate change has made it harder to predict when to burn, and even escaped farm fires are difficult to suppress. She mentions the fear held by people of wildfires, but also observes that wildfires only break out where there is a lot of fuel buildup, usually away from people.

Beyond fire (25.53)

Kayla shares how enriching it has been to work with Indigenous communities alongside Nicholas, learning about the landscape, experiencing hospitality and developing connections. She is learning about how people burn on farms and the ceremonies associated with burning. Nicholas talks about the local meetings held to collectively discuss the logistics of burning. He shares how his community knows the ins and outs of the land, always having lived off it.

Bringing fire back (33.46)

Nicholas mentions how management of fire is changing in the communities to a direct style where the council makes decisions for the community. Kayla adds that in the past, fire management was a part of everyday life and direct management practices are helping bring the systematic benefits of those practices back, including the sharing of key knowledge by Elders, making it more of a community practice.

Valuing Indigenous knowledge (35.52)

Kayla explains how the community leaders would communicate with the people about the intention to burn and prepare them. One person was responsible for burning while the others would benefit, but this is changing now with more community involvement. Nicholas speaks about how people are moving away from the traditional way of life. Kayla comments on how Indigenous knowledge was erased by settlers, but is being reclaimed and recognized through Elders.

Following in the ancestor’s footsteps (41.40)

Kayla emphasizes the need to be connected to the traditional knowledge and lifestyle in order to understand it. Kayla and Nicholas discuss how burn plans change as seasons swing between dry and wet. Nicholas delineates the process of a burn, when traditional knowledge is relied upon. Kayla laments that the government pays lip service to Indigenous knowledge and practices, and slips into the mode of fighting fire instead of living with it, with a focus on industrial profit.

The sum of the parts (49.44)

Kayla narrates how fire management plans are being updated in consultation with Indigenous groups, and how opt-in arrangements work for their lands, in order to ensure the maximum benefit for their communities. The SRDC is revising policies to emulate traditional fire management and have each community create a plan based on their ecological reality to fed into a larger plan. Kayla’s research can support this initiative to sustain it into the future.

Looking ahead (54.25)

Kayla celebrates the fire management plan being created, which has helped farmers control fires during the dry season. Nicholas says the Indigenous communities are mindful of burning in the right seasons and work with nature’s cycles. He describes how burning assists animals in breeding and improving the health of the water. Kayla wants to continue researching on this after her PhD too, to learn more about wildlife, the people and fire.

Preventing brain drain (1.04.57)

Kayla mentions that the SRDC is creating opportunities for trained Guyanese people to stay in the country and serve the community. It is difficult to balance traditional practices and keep with the times, but it is important to do so to bring Indigenous practices back and secure Indigenous rights. Nicholas’ work with SRDC is inspired by the desire to keep Indigenous knowledge alive and affirm Indigenous land rights.

Send in your comments and feedback to the hosts of this podcast via email: amy.christianson@pc.gc.ca and yourforestpodcast@gmail.com.

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