Combining qualitative, quantitative and visual and audio information in both the way data is assimilated and presented is important for effective communication and learning about river health. Aboriginal Waterways Assessment tools A generic results table Individual assessments are collated and calculated to produce a results table. Place identifier Name of place Cultural significance Cultural uses River health W1 Elbow Bend — Smith River (Lone Mountain township) C 39% 32% W2 Weir — Black Tea Stream A1 62% 49% W3 Picnic Point — Smith River (Lone Mountain township) A1 54% 48% W4 Smith River — The Old Bridge A1 53% 37% W5 Shallow Crossing — Taragalo Creek A3 41% 37% The Aboriginal Waterways Assessment score matrix The scores from the results table are plotted on the score matrix. The Aboriginal Waterways Assessment regional map
and recognition of the possibilities of radically different epistemologies (p. 410) Use of Action Research in Aboriginal policy and research arenas Action Research enables the principles of ‘free, prior and informed consent’ to be attained in two-way learning which generates trust, respect and localised good practice Hunt, 2013 — Other studies of Participatory Action Research with Indigenous people indicate how free, prior and informed consent can be attained in a context of mutual learning, where researchers and Indigenous people bring their different world views and knowledge systems to the research endeavour, enabling effective engagement (Claudie et al. 2012; Cleary 2012) (p. 22) Providing capacity building to support local communities to make cultural assessments of rivers and wetlands through two-way and informal learning All team members and participants use formal and informal reflective processes of learning to build capacity across cultures to carry out the assessment Tipa, Panelli & the Moeraki Stream Team 2009 — The team started with a workshop session at the marae to discuss different conceptualisations of well-being. This was followed by a reflective session where the team discussed the practical organisation of the fieldwork component of our Cultural Health Index assessments (p. 101) Recognising the value of Aboriginal knowledge in water planning and management Traditional Owner participation in water management and planning is organised to enable participants’ contributions to ecological knowledge and complement non-Aboriginal sciences Somerville 2014 — Fifteen academics from different disciplines and locations around the world draw on the concept of the Anthropocene… They provide substantial evidence of the significance of local ecological knowledge expressed as stories, ceremonies, and discourses that potentially enable humans to live in balance with the environment without the need for catastrophic learning in the event of major resource depletion (p. 403) An assessment process and form that is able to be adapted to local conditions The Aboriginal Waterways Assessment is designed to adapt to local knowledge and capacity to participate. As long as the three elements of cultural value, biodiversity Maclean et al 2015 — Notably, the research shows that a boundary object [such as the AWA] can provoke new boundary work, facilitate new negotiations and knowledge