Chisasibi Eeyou Resource and Research Institute

Chisasibi Eeyou Resource & Research Institute

The Chisasibi Eeyou Resource and Research Institute (CERRI) is a community-based/community-driven research center based in Northern James Bay. We conduct research that reflects the concerns and interest of the community members of the Cree Nation of Chisasibi.

As of now, our research subjects include: traditional ecological knowledge and archaeology, coastal ecosystems, fish population monitoring and climate-change monitoring. All the research conducted through CERRI is done using a community-based approach and by incorporating indigenous methodologies. The training of local youth is integrated to every project to build capacity in the community and create the next generation of community researchers.

The Chisasibi Eeyou Resource and Research Institute was created in January 2016 as a recommendation from the Migratory Birds Habitat Task Force (Chisasibi, Eelgrass, and Waterfowl: A review of Cree traditional ecological knowledge and scientific knowledge 2016). The task force recommended the development of a community-based research centre to allow research to be conducted within the community without exterior oversight in order to protect and preserve knowledge critical to the pursuit of Cree traditional activities and land use. These recommendations suggest that Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) provided by

Cree hunters and trappers must be documented through a community-based approach that will allow for the valuable information it holds to be managed and controlled by the Cree: ‘’[…] information should be shared with the other coastal and inland Cree communities and researchers as required and requested’’ (Migratory Birds Habitat Task Force 2016:39).

CERRI’s community-based approach to research implies the involvement of members of the community at every step of the research and therefore the training of the younger generations of Chisasibi in the conduction of said research.