Category: Indigenous knowledge systems

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Participatory mapping in Africa

An organization called Udongo — which is new to me, although that signifies nothing — reports on a massive mapping exercise in the Mukogodo forest in Kenya. Four different clans of the Yiaku people (some people call them Yaaku) will work with scientists and others to create “a three dimensional model of part of their ancestral lands, showing the Yiaku conception of natural systems of water, forestry, forest products and wildlife. The map helps to create an inventory of indigenous knowledge, natural resources and the intangible heritage of the region.” Then what? “The Yiakku will explore how the 3 D model will be integrated into the future planning processes of the Yiakku and Mukogodo community.”

If you’re listening, Udongo, let us know how it works out, OK?

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News from the front: Belize

As far as I know, it has more species of trees, shrubs, bushes, herbs, and grasses than any domestic garden on Earth: 318 species of flowering plants, 250 of which are native to Belize. That’s about 15 percent of the indigenous floristic diversity of the whole country, more species of native plants than live in the forest that surrounds it. Every plant is here for a purpose, used as medicine, food, thatch, fiber, because it attracts butterflies, birds, and mammals, or just because of its beauty.

The garden is Masewal, in western Belize, and the words are from an article in Orion magazine that describes this astonishing place. The vision of one man, who sought to reclaim some of his Mayan heritage and has been doing so for 31 years, using the garden as store-house, teaching aid and demonstration plot. Fascinating.

Belize was my first experience of a tropical forest and I remember the giddiness of it. I wrote something about it back then; I wonder whether I can dig it out.

via Metafilter.

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Farmers save seeds shock

A farm in Massachusetts, US, has launched its own seed bank. Red Gate Farm Seed Bank aims to:

  • provide community access to quality, local seeds.
  • preserve local, heritage and heirloom seed varieties.
  • promote seed saving.
  • develop and distribute seeds that are optimum for our unique New England soils and climate.
  • collect the social histories of our local seeds.

And very worthy that is too. You can do that sort of thing in nasty quasi-dictatorial America. In freedom-loving, liberal ol’ Yurp it would be illegal.

via Grist, which adds that “with a climate on the fritz, indigenous seeds will likely play an increasingly important role in sustaining local agriculture”. Except, of course, that it won’t be indigenous seeds that will support local agriculture. It’ll be agricultural biodiversity from far away, adapted to a different climate.