Indigenous Mi'kmaq communities in Newfoundland rely on boreal heathlands for berry picking, hunting, food preservation, and cultural knowledge transmission — landscapes long dismissed as wasteland by non-Indigenous land managers. This study reveals that these open, shrubby ecosystems hold deep biocultural value that should reshape how we approach boreal conservation.
1
Heathlands in the Ktaqmkuk (Newfoundland) boreal region support a documented diversity of culturally significant plants used by Miawpukek First Nation members for food, hunting, and preservation — despite being historically classified as low-value land.
2
Community members possess detailed traditional ecological knowledge spanning plant biodiversity, ecosystem dynamics, environmental change, and land ethics (reciprocity and responsibility) specific to heathland landscapes.
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Heathland access is critical for sustaining intergenerational knowledge transmission, cultural identity, and customary food systems — making their loss a cultural and food-sovereignty issue, not merely an ecological one.
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