Indigenous Knowledge and Development
Monitor, March 1999 Indigenous Knowledge and Development
Monitor, March 1999
Contents IK Monitor (7-1) | IKDM Homepage | Suggestions to: ikdm@nuffic.nl | (c) copyright Nuffic-CIRAN and contributors 1999.
The Organising Committee of the workshop on "Oral Tradition as Critical Resource for an interdisciplinary approach to Development" scheduled for September 24 and 25, 1999 regrets to announce postponement of the same due to the elections to Parliament and the State Assembly of Karnataka in the same period. As soon as a new date has been fixed you will be informed.
Operationalizing ICDPs: Lessons learned linking people, protected areas, and policies in Tropical America
Quito (Ecuador)
12-14 May 1999
This international conference is being
organized jointly by CARE-Ecuador (SUBIR), the SANREM-Andean Project of
the University of Georgia, and USAID-Ecuador. Integrated conservation
and development projects (ICDPs) aim to achieve the dual goals of
improving the management of natural resources while uplifting the
quality of life of local people. The conference will bring together
practitioners and theorists from around the world to discuss and debate
how the ICDP philosophy can be most effectively implemented. While the
focus is on Tropical America, the lessons learned are globally relevant.
Topics to be addressed:
- Building capacity for ICD
- Resolving conservation and development dilemmas
- Using advocacy to promote ICD
- Creating economic incentives for the conservation of biodiversity
- Creating cultural and social incentives for conservation and development
- Rethinking sustainable harvests of non-timber forest products
- Linking vertically and laterally in project execution
- Combining scientific and local research knowledge
The session 'Linking vertically and laterally in project execution' will
deal with how to create effective links between the various levels of
action and activity. Ideally, there should be congruence from the
international or national policy level down through implementing agencies to
local groups, and vice versa. No matter how well intended the activities
at the local level, if the policies are wrong at higher levels then
success is greatly compromised. In addition to this vertical linkage and
to typically top-down issues-- such as how well do policy-makers
understand local problems and act in response to them--the session will
deal with the issue of lateral linkage between native peoples,
governments, international agencies, etc.
The session 'Combining
scientific and local research knowledge' will depart from the recently
developed linkages between formal researchers and informal local
researchers. The papers in this session will draw upon the vast experience
gained through projects that have encouraged local stakeholders, usually
at the grassroots level, to participate actively in the design,
execution and evaluation of research, and thus to work directly with
formal researchers.
The conference title and scope allow us to
accept only manuscripts, presen-tations and posters that are focused
exclusively on Tropical America. For Latin American authors without any
institutional support, we have a small budget to help cover their
expenses.
For more information, please contact:
Dr Robert E.
Rhoades, Professor,
Department of Anthropology, University of Georgia,
Athens, GA 30602-1619 USA.
Tel.: +1-706-542 1042.
Fax: +1-706-542 3998.
Or: Jody Stallings, SUBIR, CARE-Ecuador, Elo y Alfaro 3334, 9 de
Octubre,
Quito, Ecuador / 7-21-1901.
E-mail: jsatllin@care.org.ec
Application of social science to resource management in the Asia-Pacific Region
Brisbane (Australia)
7-10 July 1999
The International Symposium on
Society & Resource Management (ISSRM) is an interdisciplinary forum
focused on the interactions between society and natural resources. It
enables researchers and practitioners to discuss research and management
strategies. The first ISSRM symposium was held in Oregon in 1986; since
then it has been held every two years in the USA, and elsewhere in alternate
years. In 1999 the ISSRM will be held in Brisbane, sponsored by the
University of Queensland and Griffith University.
ISSRM'99 will focus on
the social and cultural dimensions of natural-resource issues and the
importance of these dimensions to natural-resource decision-makers and
managers. The following topics are among those planned for Brisbane:
- Social and environmental assessment of development
- Community participation in resource management
- Rural and community extension
- Social and community forestry
- Rural and environmental development
- Human-wildlife interactions
- Integrated resource management and integrated catchment (watershed) management
- Landcare
- Marine resource management
- Environmental and ecological economics
- Environment and health
- Indigenous land and resource management
- Community co-management of natural resources
- Indigenous knowledge systems
Several papers on the provisional programme (of 10 February 1999) look
especially interesting for readers of the IK Monitor:
- Christine Harris, 'Integrating indigenous knowledge and local innovations into development projects';
- Madelinde Ostrander, 'Land ethics in the 'concrete jungle': the importance of urban indigenous knowledge to natural resource management';
- Nat Tuivavalgi, 'Indigenous land management in the Pacific Islands';
- Sarah Rickson, 'Sustainability, a difficult question for farm families: does it mean the farm, the family
or the soil?'
For further information, contact: Sally Brown, Conference
Connections, P.O. Box 108, Kenmore 4069, Brisbane, Queensland,
Australia.
Tel.: +61-7-3201 2808.
Fax: +61-7-3201 2809.
E-mail: sally.brown@mailbox.uq.edu.au
Or
visit the conference website at http://www.geosp.uq.edu.au/issrm99/
Collecting and safeguarding oral traditions
Khon Kaen (Thailand)
16-19 August 1999
A four-day international
conference on oral traditions will be held in Thailand as a satellite
meeting of the general conference of the International Federation of
Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA). Mahasarakham University will
be the local host. The conference is open to everyone with an interest
in the preservation of oral traditions.
Within the context of the UNESCO
Memory of the World Programme, the conference will deal with
various aspects of collecting and safeguarding oral heritage: the
socio-cultural context; collection methodologies and selection criteria;
issues of care, handling, storage and preservation; and technical matters.
The conference will include visits to the Research Institute of
Northeastern Arts and Culture, and the Sirindhorn Isan Information
Center of Mahasarakham University. This academic resource centre has
comprehensive information related to all aspects of northeastern Thai
cultures and traditions.
Participants attending this conference may
wish also to attend the 65 th IFLA Council and General Conference, which
will take place in Bangkok on 20-28 August 1999.
For more information
please contact: IFLA Headquarters, P.O. Box 95312, 2509 CH The
Hague, the Netherlands.
Tel.: +31-70-314 0884.
Fax: +31-70-383 4827.
E-mail: ifla@ifla.org or the chairperson of the Satellite Meeting
Planning Committee, Ralph W. Manning, National Library of Canada,
Ottawa K1A 0N4 Canada.
Tel.: +1-613-943 8570.
Fax: +1-613-947 2916.
E-mail: ralph.manning@nlc-bnc.ca
Or visit the IFLANET website at
http://www.ifla.org/IV/ifla65/sat-a.pdf
Participating in development: Approaches to indigenous knowledge
London (UK)
2-5 April 2000
In the year 2000, the Association of
Social Anthropologists (ASA) will hold an international symposium at the
School of Oriental and African Studies in London (UK). Anthropology's
enduring interest in indigenous knowledge systems has recently attracted
the attention of policy-makers and practitioners in the field of
development. The current focus on popular participation in development
projects, and planning-from-below, has opened up opportunities for
anthropologists to become practically engaged as never before. Anthropologists have some
adjusting to do to play a full part in these exciting events, however. The
new millennium could bring a revolution in anthropological methods and
theory. Communities could well be treated not as research subjects but
as participants.
The conference in April 2000 will explore these
opportunities and their implications, which touch upon many contemporary
issues, including some difficult political ones. When does indigenous
knowledge research court unacceptable social and political interference?
And when do the demands of development agencies run the risk of creating
unacceptable misunderstanding?
The conference will challenge the stark
'local' and 'global' polarity, and question knowledge-making processes that
separate technology from power and politics. It will also investigate
the content of the term 'indigenous knowledge' as used in contemporary
development discourse. Other topics to be addressed include IK and
intellectual property rights, and the demand for action research to
facilitate participation.
The conveners are asking that expressions
of interest be submitted by 1 July 1999, and abstracts by 1 September
1999 at the latest. Final papers will be sent to the printer on 1
December 1999 so that they can be distributed to conference participants
by 1 February 2000.
If you are interested in attending the
conference, please contact: Alan Bicker, Social Anthropology
Department, Eliot College, University of Kent, Canterbury, Kent, CT2
7NS, U.K.
Tel.: +44-1227-764 000.
Fax: +44-1227-827 289.
E-mail:
a.bicker@ukc.ac.uk
Or: Paul Sillitoe, Anthropology Department, 43
Old Elvet, Durham, DH1 3HN, U.K.
Tel.:+44-191-374 2856.
Fax:
+44-191-374 2870.
E-mail: a.bicker@ukc.ac.uk
Or visit the ASA
2000 homepage at
http://lucy.ukc.ac.uk/ASA/asa2000.html
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Ethnobiology: dialogue between cultures Forging meaningful partnerships
Whakatane (New Zealand)
23-28 November 1998
This was the sixth
International Congress of Ethnobiology (ICE). It was held in New Zealand
and hosted by the Maori people of Aotearoa: namely the Ngati Awa Tribal Trust Board, te Whare Wanaga o
Awanuirangi, and the Mataatua Declaration Association. ICE congresses
are held every two years under the auspices of the International Society
of Ethnobiology (ISE). Previous congresses were held in Brazil (1988),
China (1990), Mexico (1992), India (1994) and Kenya (1996). The USA will
host the congress in the year 2000.
As is the tradition, the congress was
preceded by pre-congress training workshops that were organized
specifically for the region, in this case the Pacific Islands region.
These workshops explore current issues at a deeper level. This time, the
workshops had the themes 'Applying local knowledge of forest plants in
the Pacific', 'Insects in the human diet and research protocols', and 'Codes
of ethics and standards of conduct for ethnobiologists'.
The
congress itself covered a broad range of topics pertaining to indigenous
knowledge, including resource rights, use of modern communication media
for the exchange of ethnobiological information, culture, traditional
health and farming systems, research protocols and a code of ethics,
general plant and animal uses and biodiversity, sacred sites, linguistic and
human rights, marine and aquatic resources, research methodologies, and
IK and sustainable development.
The congress participants enjoyed
interacting with members of the Maori community. A number of
participants chose to stay in Maori homes throughout the congress.
Especially exciting was the Maori community working session, when
participants went in groups on day-long tours to sample local Maori
culture and to witness their use of resources. One group visited sites
of sacred importance--lakes and conserved burial grounds--while other
groups received first-hand information about medicinal plants from
traditional medical practitioners. The local Maori community relies
heavily on seafood from the Bay of Plenty. Indigenous knowledge of
aquatic resources is therefore well developed, which is why a special
working session was devoted to marine and aquatic resources.
A major
event at the congress was the adoption of the 15-point code of ethics
for researchers, which provides a set of principles to govern the
conduct of ethnobiologists and members of the ISE as they engage in
ethnobiological research. Also discussed and ratified was the
Mataatua declaration on cultural and intellectual property rights of
indigenous peoples, which was the result of the 1993 international
conference convened in Whakatane by nine tribes of Mataatua for the
purpose of discussing cultural and intellectual property rights of
indigenous peoples. The declaration offers recommendations to indigenous
peoples, to states, and to the United Nations and other national and
international agencies. (Patrick Maundu, KENRIK, and member of ISE)
For more information, please contact:
Bioresources Development and Conservation Programme-ICE, 11303
Amherst Avenue, Suite 2, Silver Spring,
Maryland 20902 4600, USA.
Fax: +1-301-962 6205.
For information about the Code of Ethics,
contact: Maui Solomon, director, Global Coalition/Chair Ethics
Committee, P.O. Box 3458, Wellington, Aotearoa, New Zealand.
Tel.:
+4-472 6744.
Fax: +4-472 6743.
E-mail: moriori@xtra.co.nz
Or
visit our website: http://guallart.dac.uga.edu/ISE
Delivery of animal health services in Eastern Africa
Arusha (Tanzania)
14-18 December 1998
This was a most 'participatory'
workshop. There was a huge amount of feedback during and after the
sessions, and a great deal of networking went on among all the delegates
all week. Delegates came from various sectors (government, private, NGO
and academic) and countries (Tanzania, Zanzibar, Kenya, Uganda, Somalia,
Eritrea, Zambia, Ethiopia, South Sudan and the UK). There were also
members of our association--VSF Europa--and representatives of bilateral
funding agencies of the UK, Austria, the European Union, and the USA.
The workshop was funded by the Technical Centre for Agricultural and
Rural Cooperation (CTA), which manages EU money, and by Austrian
Development Cooperation (ADC).
The main topics covered in the
discussions were:
- The roles of veterinary associations
- Information networks and disease surveillance
- Strengthening the public sector
- Drug importation, handling, use and quality control
- Livestock sector guidelines and regulations
- Government vets doing private work
- Strengthening the private sector
- Streamlining and standardization of veterinary faculties in the region
- Matching veterinary graduate demands with outputs
- Paravets and community-based animal health workers.
The workshop's relevance to indigenous knowledge lay mainly in the
extensive discussion of ethnoveterinary knowledge and its relevance to
animal healthcare delivery. It was decided that ethnoveterinary
knowledge (EVK) should be incorporated into the veterinary school
curricula and that more research was needed in this field. Validation of
EVK practices was thought especially important. As regards sustainable
development, some mention was made of the importance of EVK to the
veterinary services being developed in rural areas where veterinary
drugs are scarce.
The workshop proceedings will be published in Arusha (Tanzania) towards May of 1999. Copies can be obtained from VETAID Tanzania, P.O. Box 1648,
Arusha, Tanzania.
Follow-up: Delegates are acting on the
recommendations and forming working groups in their own countries which
will report back to the workshop that follows in 18 months. VETAID is also
planning to run a similar workshop this year covering Southern Africa,
which will be held in Maputo (Mozambique). CTA and ADC are encouraging
VETAID to apply for funding. (Marina Martin, VETAID, UK)
Maker and meaning: Craft and society
Chennai (Madras), India
23-25 January 1999
This international seminar
was organized by the Madras Craft Foundation and the Canadian Museum of
Civilization, and sponsored by the Japan Foundation. The seminar brought
together academics, museum workers and other persons active in the field
of craft development. They came from Australia, Canada, Denmark,
Germany, India, Japan, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Singapore, Thailand,
the USA, and Vietnam.
The seminar, which was hosted by the Madras
Craft Foundation, had five parts:
- Traditional craftspersons within their community
- Roles, correlations and gender in the realm of craft
- Apprenticeship, training and tradition
- The role of organizations in craft development
- Product design and development.
Dr Jan Brouwer, director of the Centre for Advanced Research on
Indigenous Knowledge Systems (CARIKS), in Mysore (India), presented one
of four papers in Part 1. It dealt with South Indian craftsmen. Dr
Brouwer maintained that the cultural ideology of the Visvakarma
craftsmen includes concepts on which their behaviour is based. Analysis
of small enterprises revealed two core concepts underlying many of the
artisans' practices and decisions: the indigenous concept of money and
the Indian concept of completeness. Comparison of indigenous and modern
concepts led to recommendations for giving a new direction to the
organization and management of craft production in India.
Nine papers
were presented under 'Apprenticeship, training and tradition'. Those of
Dr Helle Bundgaard (University of Copenhagen) and Dr Katherine Hacker
(University of British Columbia) were original interpretations involving
the transfer of skills. Dr Bundgaard compared indigenous and modern
methods for training painters in Orissa (India). While the indigenous
training method is 'contextualized'--embedded in the other concerns and
interests of local painters-- the instruction offered at the Government Training Centre is conveniently
'decontextualized'. She observed, however, that it is 'recontextualized'
under the influence of art advisers. Dr Bundgaard concluded that the
training centre in fact makes it possible for an urban elite to
appropriate the indigenous crafts and art forms. Dr Hacker talked about
the coppersmiths of Bastar District in Madhya Pradesh (India) who use
lost-wax casting techniques. She argued that the term 'tribal' has been
rehabilitated and that a dynamic process is underway that could enable
the indigenous to co-exist with the modern.
Eight papers were presented
under 'Role of organization in craft develop-ment'. Those of Mr Regis
Chandra (DATA, Madurai) and Mr Panchaksharam (South India Producers
Association, Chennai) produced a lively discussion on how to bring the
indigenous craftspersons into step with the changing economic
circumstances. Mr Chandra argued in favour of a process approach based
on craftspersons' participation in all stages of project design and
implementation. By contrast, Mr Panchaksharam saw a change in the
organizational structure of craft production as the best way to help the
craftspersons.
Mrs Vivienne Wee and Mrs Amy Sim (Engender,
Singapore) presented a vivid report on their experiences at the Centre
for Environment, Gender and Development, where they have been
working to achieve sustainable livelihoods through craft development.
Mrs Mini Hari of the Madras Craft Foundation assessed her Foundation's
efforts to enable crafts-persons to profit from the emerging markets
through a participatory approach.
Whereas all participants agreed that
craftspersons need help if they are not to be marginalized under the
pressure of economic globalization, opinions differed as to which is the
best approach. Those for whom aesthetics are especially important tended
to favour a top-down approach, whereas those who are mainly concerned
with meeting the artisans' economic needs tended to favour a bottom-up
approach.
(Dr Jan Brouwer)
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