Adaptation to Climate Change: Does Traditional Ecological Knowledge Hold the Key?

Abstract

The traditional knowledge of indigenous people is often neglected despite its significance in combating climate change. This study uncovers the potential of traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) from the perspective of indigenous communities in Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo, and explores how TEK helps them to observe and respond to local climate change. Data were collected through interviews and field work observations and analysed using thematic analysis based on the TEK framework. The results indicated that these communities have observed a significant increase in temperature, with uncertain weather and seasons. Consequently, drought and wildfires have had a substantial impact on their livelihoods. However, they have responded to this by managing their customary land and resources to ensure food and resource security, which provides a respectable example of the sustainable management of terrestrial and inland ecosystems. The social networks and institutions of indigenous communities enable collective action which strengthens the reciprocal relationships that they rely on when calamity strikes. Accordingly, the communities maintain their TEK through cultural festivals and oral traditions passed from one generation to another. TEK is a practical tool that helps indigenous communities adapt to climate risks and promotes socio-ecological resilience, which upholds social empowerment and sustainable resource management.

A Systematic Review of the Deployment of Indigenous Knowledge Systems towards Climate Change Adaptation in Developing World Contexts: Implications for Climate Change Education

“…Controls strong winds [26] Education Among indigenous people, local knowledge of the environment, which includes climate change adaptation knowledge, is transmitted across generations through ceremonies and cultural festivals [14,36]. Listening to information about climate change was a prominent feature in Nzeadibe's [23] study, while training on behalf of the State to develop crops was reported by Cordoba Vargas [37].…”

“…During the planting season, farmers plant early with first rain especially for crops such as maize and cassava [23] and also plant some crops later than before [39] to adapt to a shorter rainfall period. Crop diversification, intercropping, or multiple cropping such as banana and vegetables in between rows of pineapples [5,14,22,23,35,36,38,[40][41][42][43] shifting cultivation in response to increasing temperatures at lower altitudes, for example, [10,14,24,36,44], and crop rotation [29,38,42,43] are also widely employed to help spread risk across space and time. Other activities engaged during the planting season are delayed fertilizer use [10], replanting with early maturing varieties and increasing plant density when replanting [10], concentrating on planting on more wetland fields and low-lying areas than upland areas [32,45], and regular weeding of cropped farmland [23].…”

Exemplary Ethical Communities. A New Concept for a Livable Anthropocene

“…I argue that the two types of communities analyzed here not only provide shareable lifestyle patterns, but also offer universal truths about a variety of social, cultural, medical, and other dimensions of life. There is much they can teach us-if only we were ready to listen [76,77].…”

Leuit and prohibition forest: Indigenous knowledge of an Urug community resilience

“…Others have identified many obstacles, including eco-catastrophe, pest, bird, and ecological disasters. It can even plunder someone from external threats such as rat attacks (Hosen, Nakamura, & Hamzah, 2020). Because the stock was previously provided, they were able to overcome this situation.…”