Proposing Dimensions of an Agroecological Fishery: The Case of a Small-Scale Indigenous-Led Fishery Within Northwest Territories, Canada

As fisheries face intersecting ecological and economic crises, small-scale fishers and Indigenous fishing communities have been organising globally to protect their rights. Yet governance of commercial small-scale fisheries in Canada has been dominated by colonial state actors in the interests of both conservation and economic growth. Meanwhile, agroecology has been considered an appropriate framework for reenvisaging and reshaping food systems in Canada’s North. We propose four dimensions of agroecological fishing: governance, knowledge, economies, and socio-cultural values. We apply these to the Ka’a’gee Tu First Nation fishery in the Northwest Territories. We suggest that these agroecological fisheries dimensions, underpinned by Indigenous values and practices of stewardship, offer an alternative paradigm for the conservation of fish, waters, and fishing communities.