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Perspectives on integration: subsistence cultures to sustainable development
P.S. Ramakrishnan |
Many
traditional societies, largely restricted to mountain
regions, often referred to as indigenous or tribal
people, have accumulated much empirical knowledge on the
basis of their experience whilst dealing with nature and
natural resources. This traditional wisdom is based on
the intrinsic realization that man and nature form part
of an indivisible whole, and therefore should live in
partnership with each other. This ecocentric view of
traditional societies is widely reflected in their
attitudes towards plants, animals, rivers, and the
earth. This reverential attitude concretized itself in
iconography and imagery of the sculptural forms - a way
of transmitting the timeless truths of man-nature
ethics. Arising out of this viewpoint of the immediate
environment around them is the concept of ‘cultural
landscape’, which in recent times is gaining recognition
where unique landscapes of this category are being
recognized as ‘natural cultural world heritage sites’ by
UNESCO, or as part of unique agricultural systems of
developmental value to the present and future
generations of human society (what FAO refers to as
GIAHS -‘Globally Important Agricultural Heritage
Systems’).
In spite of all these developments in our understanding
of ecosystem dynamics, there is an increasing
realisation today than ever before that there is a
world-wide crisis in resource management. This partly
arises from an increasing realization that community
participation in sustainable management of natural
resources still remains a neglected area. Traditional
societies being an integral part of the cultural
landscape around them, it is increasingly realized now
that for effective management of natural resources
linked with their sustainable livelihood/development, a
socio-ecological system approach is critical. It is in
this context the whole issue of knowledge systems,
traditional and formal, and their role in ecosystem
management become significant. Whilst ‘formal knowledge’
in ecology has largely been a prerogative of natural
scientists who analyse natural phenomena through
hypothetico-deductive method, traditional knowledge is
locally evolved by different communities, through an
experiential approach, obviously with differences in the
way they create knowledge. Integration between these two
knowledge systems is becoming a critical issue in the
area of understanding socio-ecological ecosystem
dynamics in general, and sustainable natural resource
management in particular. |
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