Introduction and Aboriginal Wetland Burning

To start out, I would like to say that I am very excited to start writing on a subject that I believe is very important to sustaining both biodiversity and cultural diversity. TEK (traditional ecological knowledge) is described by the US Department of Agriculture as being the "knowledge base acquired by indigenous and local peoples over hundreds of years through direct experience and contact with the environment”, and this plays a major role in the basis of indigenous peoples' culture. What I would like to focus on for this project is TEK, and how indigenous people around the world use it to create and protect a sustainable environment that in turn supports them. Practices that are being used today in hopes of creating a "greener" way of life often have already been around for hundreds of years being used by many first peoples. I believe that there is much to learn from these ways of life, and I hope that what I write here helps to convey that!

The first link that I would like to share is a video from youtube on Aboriginal wetland burning in Kakadu, Australia (a national park). This is a very interesting example of how traditional knowledge can be used to help supply more biodiversity in an area. Before European colonization, Aboriginal Australians used fire in order to help control a native grass called Mudja, which actually chokes out other wetland plant species and thus can have a negative affect on birds and other wetland animals. In the 1980's, feral Asian water buffalo were removed from the park leaving nothing to really keep the Mudja grass in check, this is when the opportunity to use Aboriginal TEK came into play. The burning starts in September, where the under layer of dead grass is burned and the living grass is killed to and left for a few days to dry before burned again. Smoldering fires could last for weeks, but are controlled through past land management (not a ton of debris from past seasons) and by Aboriginal stewards working with park management.  The website notes serious improvement as this processes is continued, "Results show that the re-application of traditional fire management dramatically enhances the diversity of both plants and animals, thus significantly improving the natural and cultural values of wetlands". As the grass is burnt back, other wetland species take its place and the ecosystem is restored.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1uYBgaqeT0

http://www.csiro.au/science/KakaduWetlandBurning.html

~Melissa

Traditional Knowledge and Modern Science

http://www.scidev.net/en/agriculture-and-environment/editorials/traditional-knowledge-and-modern-science.html

I think that as society has progressed with the vast development of technology, spectators and critics have also begun to assess the effectiveness of such new “conveniences”. With talks of global warming and failed modern systems, more people are now turning to traditional knowledge, lifestyles, and social practices that have sustained tribal people for centuries.

The above link on “Traditional Knowledge and Modern Science” describes how the International Council for Science (ICSU) is trying to form a middle ground between the incorporation and acceptance of traditional knowledge into modern science. This is especially difficult since traditional knowledge is often mistaken for “pseudo-science” which challenges the Darwinian point of view with unscientific claims.

Generally, there is a mutual interest in scientists and indigenous communities to maintain sustainable agriculture and ecological practice. “Such work is likely to increase in importance during this century, both because of the recognition that many environmental problems are local in nature and the need for the cooperation of traditional peoples in addressing global issues,” a report of the ICSU claims.

Perhaps modern society’s greatest challenge is overcoming the “instrumentalist” view that prioritizes scientific techniques to overcome problems. This “encourage(s) a narrow outlook on problems; for example, it can promote agricultural productivity without adequately addressing the disruptive impact of agricultural techniques on ecological cycles.” Since instrumentalist attitudes are so deeply engraved in modern thinking, holistic approaches, a trademark of traditional knowledge systems, are especially encouraged.

Ultimately, reconciliation between traditional and modern science is needed to promote a more sustainable environment and healthier ecological systems. As opposed to being forgotten as a “thing of the past”, more and more scientists are now taking a second look at traditional knowledge and learning from it.

-Sharmin Dingle

Traditional Environmental Knowledge Uses

I agree with Professor Pena that societies such as the indigenous tribe of the Amazon in our Cajete reading have systems in place that were misunderstood and frankly underappreciated until recently, but now that researchers are finding that their environmental knowledge is in fact useful and has stood the test of time, what are the possible changes in Western culture that might take place? Will we or have we already begun shifting to more natural medicines, ways of disposing of waste, or even preparing/growing our food, or has this knowledge simply been an interesting story and something to think about and then eventually forget?

-Rachel