Did you know? Thanks to their ancestral knowledge, indigenous peoples can reduce the impacts of climate change.

Questions to Nigel Thomas Crawhall, Chief of Section, Local and Indigenous Knowledge Systems, Natural Sciences Sector.

How can indigenous peoples address climate change?

Indigenous peoples are living with climate change on a daily basis, both the slow effects and the extreme effects. This has been going on for several decades already and the situation is becoming more serious all the time. As such, indigenous peoples are already engaged in numerous actions to cope with the effects of climate change, to improve their capacity to predict weather and climate changes, and to use nature to help protect them.

Some examples are that if people can predict what will happen, such as heavy rains, late rains, or long drought, they can make more informed decisions. Indigenous peoples are using traditional methods of forecasting, as well as now they are also working with meteorologists to combine their knowledge. UNESCO is working with African pastoralists on such efforts in East Africa and West Africa. Indigenous women are particularly important, as they must feed the family during crisis times, get wood for fires, water for drinking, collect wild foods and take care of some animals at home. Indigenous women have many good ideas about how to adapt to climate change. Pastoralists note that the roles of men and women are change because of the climate.

Some indigenous peoples are looking at nature based solutions. They are changing the crops that they grow, how the plant and work with the soil, how they do fishing. People are building houses with materials that can cope with hurricanes, and also supporting mangroves or forests that help protect them during storms. UNESCO ran a workshop in the Caribbean where indigenous peoples exchanged knowledge.

Global warming is also causing more wild fires. Indigenous peoples in many tropical and sub-tropical regions have used traditional fire management to do early season burns to prevent out of control fires. This was made illegal in many countries during the colonial period. Now, a number of countries are working with indigenous peoples to bring back traditional fire management to reduce risks, and protect the biodiversity of grasslands and dry forests. UNESCO is working with different indigenous peoples in Latin America and soon also in Africa on the traditional knowledge of fire management. Fire management helps store carbon in the grasslands and forests, as well as provides a boost for nature and biodiversity.

Can we draw inspiration from their methods in our highly consumerist societies?

It is important for people in urban areas to understand that how we use energy and resources is what is driving climate change. Indigenous peoples have a holistic vision of society and nature, often based on both rights and duties. Some societies believe that nature is alive, thinking and must be respected. If there is disorder in nature, many indigenous peoples believe that they are responsible to help nature find balance again. This sense of respecting nature, knowing how things should live and grow, and understanding that we have a duty to future generations and to other living beings, all of this is something that can be inspiring for people living in cities who do not see nature suffering from human actions. The way to help the planet is to understand each other, to feel as part of one human family, and to learn how to do things in a sustainable way.

Discover the Yawanawá Life Plan, one of the UNESCO GREEN CITIZENS projects: https://www.unescogreencitizens.org/projects/the-yawanawa-life-plan/

Tashka and Laura Yawanawá are the leaders of the Yawanawá people, who protect 200 hectares of Amazonian forest in the state of Acre, Brazil. They have created a Life Plan “The Yawanawá Life Plan” that explains how to protect their land, biodiversity, and their culture and traditions, which are under threat.?