Role of Indigenous Knowledge in Climate Change Adaptation

April 6, 2013

Adaptation consists of adjustment in natural or human systems in response to actual or expected climatic stimuli or their effects, which moderates harm or exploits beneficial opportunities (IPCC, 2007). The three types of adaptations IPCC describes are: (a) anticipatory or proactive adaptation that takes place before impacts of climate change are observed; (b) autonomous or spontaneous adaptation which does not constitute a conscious response to climatic stimuli but is triggered by ecological changes in natural systems and by market or welfare changes in human systems; and (c) planned adaptation that is the result of a deliberate policy decision, based on an awareness that conditions have changed or are about to change and that action is required to return to, maintain, or achieve a desired state. The most important but generally ignored is the second one. Very often indigenous people are considered as the vulnerable people to climate change. In most of the adaptation projects the indigenous knowledge and experiences are overlooked. Indigenous people have intimate relationship with their environment and have useful knowledge for adapting in changing climate. Each community has its unique knowledge about their environment gathered through generations of empirical experiences. In many cases, communities have developed their own coping strategies to overcome extreme variations of weather. Indigenous knowledge is not based on scientific facts but they are developed on the basis of past experiences and have been proven to be highly effective in climate change adaptation strategies. Indigenous knowledge and experience help in adaptation planning by Helping to understand the potential areas of risk, Finding the areas lacking adaptive capacity and Reducing the cost of adaptation by exploiting local practices. Data on local perception has always been a basic tool of studying impact of climate change. It helps to verify the data from meteorological stations. In Nepal, there are still data gaps on the local perception regarding climate change impacts since the data vary from location to location. In Nepal, local perception is the major tool for assessing impacts of climate change and vulnerability of the local communities; due to sharp variation in altitude in a very small geographic area and limited number of meteorological stations. Studies have demonstrated that rural communities respond autonomously to the challenges climactic extremities. Farmers in Nepal are aware of the changing climate and are actively planning response actions based on traditional knowledge and wisdom. I observed from my research in Sankhuwasabha district of Nepal that, the local people are aware of the changing climate and they develop their own adaptation tools based on their past experiences of dealing with environmental changes and natural disasters. Respondents were asked about the suitability of those adaptation measures in their locality. The respondents expressed that using new cultivars of crops, cultivation of cardamom and construction of local irrigation canals were useful adaptation measures in the study area. Findings from scientific studies are essential for understanding climate threats and changing climate patterns, but it is also important to study and document how the threats are perceived and handled by local people. Documentation of local knowledge & perception, indigenous technology & local responses may serve as very important inputs in assessing and prioritizing adaptation areas.

Prepared by: Subash Dahal