In our experience, you should start with a data collection method that has buy-in. If you are trying to influence the province, ensure they have reviewed your monitoring method and buy into it. The more data we collect, the more we become experts in terms of the moose on Gitanyow territory and on hunting and management issues. If things do go to court, we have all this background information that will be important in influencing the decision. They will do what they can to pick apart your data, so having a qualified professional sign off on the data and research helps.

It’s vital that the data collected through monitoring programs is accessible and meaningful to the community, so that people can participate in the understanding of what is going on out on the land, and how the data being collected informs decision making on natural resource management.