Of the 31 voting members of COSEWIC, the co-chairs of the Aboriginal Traditional Knowledge Subcommittee (ATK SC) provide expertise on Aboriginal Traditional Knowledge. The subcommittee is in its formative stages, and will be responsible for ensuring that Aboriginal Traditional Knowledge is incorporated into COSEWIC's assessment process.

Aboriginal Traditional Knowledge (ATK):

• Includes, but is not limited to, the knowledge Aboriginal Peoples have accumulated about wildlife species and their environment.
• Other words commonly used to describe this knowledge include: Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK), Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit (IQ), Indigenous Knowledge (IK) and Naturalized Knowledge Systems.
• Is a complex process incorporating aspects of culture, spirituality and history. Therefore, peoples with different backgrounds (Indian, Inuit and Métis) may define ATK in different ways.

Incorporating Aboriginal Traditional Knowledge into COSEWIC's assessment of species at risk improves the process, and therefore the quality of designations made by COSEWIC, by bringing information and perspectives on wildlife species that are not available in published scientific literature.

COSEWIC will work closely with Aboriginal Peoples to decide how ATK will be incorporated into the process of assessing species at risk through the Aboriginal Traditional Knowledge Subcommittee (ATK SC).