Indigenous Knowledge for Environmental Sustainability: A case study of Quechua, Chácobo and Tsimane’ communities in Peru and Bolivia

• In Event: Poster Session Group 10
  In Poster Session: Indigenous Knowledge for Environmental Sustainability: A case study of Quechua, Chácobo and Tsimane’ communities in Peru and Bolivia

Proposal

Research Questions and Relevance

This poster presentation explores the following questions:

What can Indigenous Knowledge (IK) from the Quechua, Chácobo and Tsimane’ communities in Peru and Bolivia reveal about the relationship between humans and the environment?

How can IK from these communities inform our understanding of environmental conservation and preservation and climate adaptation and resilience throughout the world?

While modern industrial living has destroyed our natural environment, indigenous ways of engaging with nature have long preserved biodiversity. The World Wildlife Fund’s 1996 Statement of Principles on Indigenous Peoples and Conservation found that the areas of highest biological diversity across the world were inhabited by indigenous peoples. Since then, human activity in agricultural expansion, logging, and large-scale infrastructure development has continued to deplete ecosystems around the world (Lambin et al. 2003). To prevent further depletion and respond to the worsening climate crisis, we must collectively reimagine our relationship with the Earth. Given the success of indigenous communities in maintaining biodiversity in their environments, we propose to investigate indigenous knowledge (IK) as a basis for this reimagination.

Through a Conceptual Research framework, this presentation will explore research in English and Spanish on IK from communities in Bolivia and Peru. It will also examine traditional ecological knowledge (TEK), which is broadly defined as the “knowledge, innovations and practices of indigenous and local communities around the world” (UNESCO, 2007).


Preliminary Research Findings

Question 1: What can Indigenous Knowledge (IK) from the Quechua, Chácobo and Tsimane’ communities in Peru and Bolivia reveal about the relationship between humans and the environment?

Preliminary research on IK in these communities reveals two key elements about the relationship between humans and the environment.

Element 1: Conceptual/epistemological relationship
A main feature of IK in relation to the environment appears to be the way that indigenous communities conceive of the relationship between humans and the environment. Indigenous communities appear to see themselves as interdependent with the environment. Bolin (2006) describes the socialization of children into communities that emphasize “reciprocity between all things.” This interdependent understanding of the world appears to impact language about nature. For example, in Quechua, the suffix “mama” is appended to words such as “Earth” (Pachamama) and “corn” (saramama) to acknowledge the interdependent relationship with nature and denote a caretaking attitude towards natural entities (Sumida Huaman & Valdiviezo, 2014).

Element 2: Practical relationship
This conceptual relationship between human and nature informs the practical operation of humans within the natural environment. For example, in their farming activities, Quechua communities practice strong gratitude towards and affection for crops and their ability to provide (Huaman, 2011). Another example is the interconnectedness between the Tsimane’ in the Bolivian Amazon and the surrounding rainforest. This interconnectedness provides the foundation for traditional methods of utilizing plant materials for a variety of human needs, including medicine, food, and building materials (Paneque-Galvez et al. 2018; Reyes-García et al. 2014).

Further research will build on the epistemological and practical elements of the human-nature interaction and contrast it with the modern industrial (extractive) human relationship with nature.

Question 2: How can IK from these communities inform our understanding of environmental conservation and preservation and climate adaptation and resilience throughout the world?

Conversation and preservation

Indigenous communities in both Peru and Bolivia have long emphasized the importance of sustainable agricultural practices and land-based pedagogy (Vázquez Córdoba, 2019). A 2021 report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations found that Indigenous Peoples emit less carbon and are instrumental in safeguarding biodiversity (FAO, ​​Forest governance by indigenous and tribal peoples). This presentation will further explore how this critical knowledge can inform our approach to climate preservation.

Adaptation and resilience

The scale of the climate crisis demands a reimagining of our understanding of environmental conservation and climate resilience. According to a 2021 IIPC report, the dramatic ecological shifts caused by the climate crisis are already underway. Regardless of the scale of climate crisis mitigation in the coming years, its impacts on the global community are inevitable. Multiple longstanding practices within these indigenous communities offer guidance for climate adaptation and resilience, including approaches to food and water preservation that can withstand harsh environmental conditions (Jes Darlais, 2005; Dillenhay & Kolata, 2004).

Further research will explore avenues for preserving this knowledge and finding methods for its application in order to design a future for the generations who will be most impacted by the climate crisis.

Recommendations:
From the research findings of the literature review, this presentation will make a set of recommendations rooted in IK about how to preserve this indigenous knowledge and apply it to environmental sustainability research, practice, and education across the world.

If applied in context-specific ways, these recommendations will support an understanding of the environment that represents multiple ways of knowing, and can also enable us to protect our planet in the face of a human-induced climate change. While for indigenous groups, this knowledge is ancient, for the majority of the world, it is unfamiliar; appreciating its value and applying it will involve unlearning major paradigms in our modern society and re-learning a healthier, more sustainable way to interact with our natural environment.

Authors

• Anishka Arseculeratne, University of Pennsylvania

• Maggie  Sorby, University of Pennsylvania