Introduction
Maria E. Fernandez
Akke W. Tick
Introduction to the theme of this special issue "Women's
indigenous knowledge, and gender and indigenous knowledge".
Women's indigenous
knowledge of forest management in Orissa (India)
Smita Mishra
This article explores the indigenous knowledge of women in two
indigenous/tribal communities in
Orissa (India). Women make an important contribution to the
traditional economy (shifting cultivation,
minor forest produce economy, communal and homestead lands).
Their role in all these different farming
systems is well integrated. Women have to cope with the dual
problem of a declining resource base and the
power structures (gender relations) that prevent them from
participating in any kind of decision-making at
the community level. Women's indigenous knowledge system is
often considered inferior or regarded as
non-knowledge. This article shows that the knowledge systems
of Juang and Saora women--both practices
and perspectives--can be instrumental in putting forward
alternatives to conventional development
interventions.
Gender and
indigenous knowledge
Maria E. Fernandez
Indigenous knowledge systems have long been undervalued.
Fortunately, an increasing amount of
research on indigenous knowledge systems is now coming to the
fore. But unfortunately, in these studies the
role of gender is often neglected. It is argued in the present
article that indigenous knowledge and gender
are inextricably bound up with each other. It is also
maintained that if indigenous knowledge systems are
capable of forming a basis for sustainable development, their
capacity to innovate on the basis of gendered-
knowledge-generating processes must be recognized and
respected.
Gender and indigenous
knowledge in various organizations
Helen E. Appleton
Catherine L.M. Hill
For the most part, development efforts have focused on
incorporating 'modern' science approaches and technologies
into
development policies and programmes. While there are benefits
to
this approach, little attention has been given to the socio-
cultural contexts of technology transfer and existing
knowledge
systems. Men and women often have very different skills and
knowledge, which together create a knowledge system specific
to
local conditions, needs and priorities. A better understanding
of local knowledge systems, particularly the gendered nature
of
those systems, can help to make development efforts more
effective and sustainable, in terms of both the community and
the
environment on which it depends and about which it holds vast
knowledge.
Biodiversity,
indigenous knowledge, gender and intellectual property
rights
Consuelo Quiroz
Evidence of the accelerating depletion of natural resources
and other environmental and social
problems has resulted in a global consensus on the need to see
development in terms of long-term
sustainability. This interest in 'sustainable development' has
been accompanied by an interest in important
related issues, such as the conservation of natural resources
(e.g., biodiversity), indigenous knowledge
systems (cultural diversity), gender and intellectual property
rights (IPR). This article explores the
relationship between those issues and gives some
recommendations for further research and action.
Minnesota farm women
and sustainable agriculture
Marta Beatriz Chiappe
This article provides the results of research done among
Minnesota farm women between
September and December 1992. It reveals--among other
things--the role women play in instilling the values
and beliefs necessary to guarantee sustainable farming for the
generations to come.
Women's indigenous
knowledge of water management in Sri Lanka
Rohana Ulluwishewa
Water has long been a major constraint on human survival in
the dry zone of Sri Lanka. As
water providers and water managers, women have traditionally
developed a wide range of strategies to
obtain, purify and preserve water, and to use it frugally.
This article highlights the water management
strategies practised by women, and highlights their
contribution to ecological sustainability.
The role of women in
livestock production in the Mantaro Valley (Peru)
Edith Fernández-Baca
Until recently it has been assumed that all the small-scale
mixed farming systems in the Mantaro
Valley of Peru were managed by men, while the women were in
charge of reproductive activities. For this
reason, most livestock development projects, as well as
extension and training programmes, were directed
exclusively towards men. Now, however, the traditional
distribution of agricultural tasks according to
gender has been acknowledged.
Gender and the social
differentiation of local knowledge
Brent M. Simpson
In southwestern Mali rural producers possess heterogenous sets
of local knowledge which
differ from one another in terms of both quantity and quality.
A number of social factors contribute to
the differentiation in individual knowledge, by defining the
range of personal experiences, access to
resources, and opportunities for observation in the
acquisition of knowledge and the exchange of
information and materials. Of these social factors, which
include kinship, age, ethnicity, religious
affiliation, and wealth, gender is one of the most
influential.
Women in northeastern
Thailand: preservers of botanical diversity
Geraldine Moreno-Black
Prapimporn Somnasang
Sompong Thamthawan
The tradition of using and maintaining non-domesticated plants
in house gardens is an expression
of culture, and represents an intense interaction between
humans and plants. The preservation of botanical
diversity is directly related to local knowledge and
practices, and closely bound up with microeconomic and
social processes. Human beings play a role in maintaining
select species, providing botanical refuges and
serving as an active force in shaping the landscape. In
northeastern Thailand, women's gardening practices
have been instrumental in the preservation, selection,
consumption and exchange of non-domesticated
plants.