Traditional knowledge

About: Traditional knowledge is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 10825 publications have been published within this topic receiving 202790 citations. The topic is also known as: indigenous knowledge & indigenous knowledge system.

Ancient Maya terracing and modern conservation in the Peten rain forest of Guatemala

Abstract: To live sustainably from agriculture for generations in steep, tropical lands requires a complex understanding of both soil and soil conservation. A steady and increasing amount of ethnopedological research has shown the complexity of indigenous soil and soil conservation in many parts of the world (Bocco; Carter; Dunning 1992; Hecht; Williams and Oritz-Solomo; and Zimmerer). Dunning (1992), for example, showed that the indigenous Yucatec Maya of the Puuc area of the Yucatan have a four-level soil taxonomy, at least nine distinct soil types, and a sophisticated knowledge of appropriate land use. Bocco showed nearly as complex a knowledge of soil conservation among peasant farmers in central Mexico. At the same time, much research has supported the idea that “grass roots” development and conservation projects that include local people and their indigenous knowledge have higher chances of long-term success (Bocco; Hudson; Pawluk; Posey). Another source of soil knowledge applicable to “conser-vation-with-development” projects (Stocking and Perkin) is archaeological information from ancient cultures that experienced similarly intense land pressures to those of today. A fitting ancient analog to modern land pressure was the ancient Maya in the Lowlands of Central America …

Listening and learning from traditional knowledge and western science: A dialogue on contemporary challenges of forest health and wildfire

Abstract: Native Americans relied on fire to maintain a cultural landscape that sustained their lifeways for thousands of years. Within the past 100 years, however, policies of fire exclusion have disrupted ecological processes, elevating risk of wildfire, insects, and disease, affecting the health and availability of resources on which the tribes depend. On Indian Reservations, tribal forest plans include prescribed fire to restore and maintain the lands. Public land managers are now considering ways to restore the fire-based ecosystem, but tribal knowledge about the use and effects of fire has largely been left out of the discussion. For 2 days in June 2010, 7 tribal elders joined with 20 native and nonnative scientists, resource managers, and academics to explore ways to integrate Native American stewardship practices, traditional knowledge, and philosophies with western science to address contemporary forest health and wildfire challenges. The workshop, convened on the Flathead Indian Reservation of the Confederated Salish Kootenai Tribes located in western Montana, provided a forum for candid dialogue and knowledge sharing. This article, coauthored by all 27 participants, offers a summary background followed by candid highlights of dialogue along with recommendations for progress based on lessons learned. The central conclusion is that integration and application of traditional knowledge with western science for improved stewardship of natural resources will require enduring commitments to knowledge sharing that extend beyond the usual boundaries of professional training and cultural orientation such that learning can proceed, legacy myths might be corrected, and the forests and the people will benefit.

From Sink to Source: The Honey Bee Network Documents Indigenous Knowledge and Innovations in India

Abstract: and soil conditions and its geographical features, including rain forests, arid lands, and mountains. Yet many of India’s most biologically rich regions are prone to drought and floods or distant from the amenities of urban life. Many in these regions live in poverty and relative isolation: their local products are unfamiliar in most of the world, their public infrastructures are weak, and their skills are unrecognized. Subsistence in these regions is a constant challenge. Local individuals and tribal communities have long met those challenges by drawing on their local environments, inventing effective agricultural techniques, and learning the medicinal and nutritional value of nearby plants. Harsh conditions have done as much to induce individual creativity and innovation as to limit them. Such local knowledge, in India as elsewhere, is in danger of disappearing, not just in high-risk environments but also in developed regions in rural and urban areas. Traditionally strong links between grandparents and grandchildren are weakening as mobility increases. Few mechanisms exist for documenting indigenous innovation. Those that do exist may be rightly viewed with suspicion: for decades whenever outsiders have “discovered” local knowledge, they have often commercialized or published it without attribution. Yet at the same time, traditional knowledge is increasingly valued in the global marketplace, as illustrated by the dramatic worldwide growth in demand for herbal remedies over the past two decades. Increasingly, the issue is not whether, but how, traditional knowledge and innovations should be documented and recognized. How can those who seek to document local inventions ensure reciprocity between the innovators and those who may later seek to use and perhaps even commercialize documented ideas?