Climate Change and the Importance of Indigenous Knowledge

The International Dialogue Centre KAICIID and the IF20 Environmental Working Group chaired by IEF President Arthur Dahl were facilitating a dialogue demonstrating how Indigenous and faith approaches to spirituality and well-being can help in the pursuit of climate justice. A first webinar was held in October 2023 which opened new perspectives by examining climate change in the Pacific and giving examples of interfaith dialogue with Indigenous spiritualities promoting environmental justice (see REPORT HERE). It highlighted how Indigenous and Native knowledge and spiritualities can assist in critically informing national and global climate strategies and climate policies, most specifically looking into the radical approaches Indigenous communities could offer to the climate change meetings. At the end of 90 minutes of rich exchanges, it was agreed that the webinar had only touched the surface of important issues, and further dialogue was needed to explore in more depth how Indigenous knowledge can be preserved and drawn upon in the face of climate change and other development pressures.

The second webinar reported here was held on Monday, 27 May 2024 at the start of the 4th International Conference on Small Island Developing States, with their rich and diverse Indigenous cultures and islands that are uniquely and unfortunately positioned at the forefront of multiple global crises, notably climate change. It also provided input to the climate track at the upcoming G20 Interfaith Forum on 19-22 August 2024 in Brasilia, Brazil.

Indigenous and Native communities have for centuries created and applied approaches to climate change and developed their own climate sciences, which are often overlooked or treated as inferior to modern mainstream science. This lack of attention given to the critical contribution of Indigenous climate knowledge and spiritualities continues to promote a one-sided narrative.

This second discussion explored in more depth how Indigenous knowledge can be preserved and drawn upon in the face of climate change and other development pressures. It was scheduled on the first day of the 4th International Conference of Small Island Developing States (SIDS), in Antigua and Barbuda, (LINK TO CONFERENCE https://sdgs.un.org/conferences/sids2024) because of the SIDS great richness of Indigenous knowledge and their vulnerability to climate change, storm damage and sea level rise, which may drown some of them, destroying their national territory, making them stateless, and displacing their entire population. Three of the speakers came from islands, and moderator Arthur Dahl has supported islands for 55 years and originated the concept of these SIDS conferences in Agenda 21. The webinar also prepared for the discussion of climate change in the Manaus meeting on rainforests and Indigenous peoples in mid-June and at the G20 Interfaith Forum (IF20) 2024 in Brasilia, Brazil, 19-22 August 2024. It also raised indigenous dimensions to climate justice relevant to COP29 in Baku in November.

With moderation from the Chair of the IF20 Environmental Working Group, Arthur Dahl, and KAICIID Fellow, Amanah Nurish, each panellist made a short presentation, followed by a “fireside” conversation with all panellists and an audience invited from the webinar in October 2023.

PRESENTATIONS BY PANELISTS

Danya Carroll
Indigenous traditions include an understanding of Natural Law or First Laws of love and respect, such as for Mother Earth and Father Sky, which cannot be owned, but must be protected and preserved for future generations. There is respect and honour for the elders and medicine people who hold and share this wisdom. We must be stewards of many Indigenous applications for planetary health.

George Carter
George Carter participated from Antigua and Barbuda, where he was attending the 4th International Conference of Small Island Developing States. He opened by describing the importance of unity in the transformational contribution of Indigenous peoples. There is a need to teach Indigenous knowledge in new university curricula so that it becomes institutionalised. These should put the values of people, land and sea first. University ethics instruction should include Indigenous values such as humility and spirituality, and Pacific philosophy. Climate research should involve communities and governments concerning loss and damage, stress and resilience. There are efforts to decolonise academia, such as with bilingual instruction at the National University of Samoa, which offers a Bachelor of Pacific Studies.

Tafue Lusama
Tafue Lusama described the transition of the Pacific Theological College in Fiji where he teaches into the Pacific Communities University next year, with a curriculum founded on community needs, including the spiritual side of Indigenous theology. Students can write their papers in their mother tongue that can more clearly express their world-view. In contrast with the dominant theology that sees humans as the apex of creation, leading to current development models for profit above all, with the exploitation of the industrial revolution and Christian colonialism, the Indigenous approach is based on lived experience. It uses a mythical symbolic language that is not scientific. There are efforts to formulate their Christian faith out of Indigenous world views, in a new approach that is inclusive of Pacific spiritualities. These respect the world in a holistic approach to the land and a relational way of life that is interconnected with everything. We live as a member of the web of life. This leads to stewardship, not superiority, acknowledging that the world does not depend on us, but we depend on each other.

Elvira Rumkabu, who spoke at the first webinar, was ill and replaced at the last minute by Amanah Nurish, the co-moderator, also from Indonesia. She asked who is Indigenous, acknowledging that we all were sometime in the past, but capitalism has left behind Indigenous values and divided us. Responding to climate change touches on our belief systems, and is therefore a religious matter, with the same roots as Indigenous values. Indonesia has 40-70 million Indigenous peoples, who are struggling with industrialisation and forest reduction as global capitalism is grabbing resources.

There is a need for tangible actions on climate change among Indigenous peoples. (1) New livelihoods are needed as local conditions change; (2) there is a loss of Identity as people struggle and do not know what to do when they lose their land and do not know how to survive; (3) conflicts erupt with chaotic relationships between industry, customary and religious leaders and others. A dialogue is needed to protect nature, the land and livelihoods, with dematerialisation. Children are taught capitalism without Indigenous values. She asked what choices need to be made about technology, industry, and materialism.

Among the proposals for Indigenous peoples are: creating green temples and places for eco-worship; using education as a powerful tool for change; not underestimating Indigenous knowledge; and ecofeminism and acknowledgement of Mother Earth. It is impossible to go back. Development projects too often reflect a dangerous anthropocentrism, which is wrong from a theological perspective. The religious aspect is important: (1) the philosophical dimension of who we are; (2) the theological dimension not supporting capitalism, and (3) the spiritual dimension providing religious coping mechanisms.

In a bridge to the coming events in Brazil, indigenous experts should insist that we go beyond conferences to more actions. Interfaith dialogues can be about protecting our earth, nature, people and the next generations. This can start with education, adopting laws, and a bridge to actions.

FIRESIDE CONVERSATION

Following the panel presentations, the webinar was opened to a fireside discussion including the participants in the previous webinar. The opening question was how indigenous knowledge and spiritualities can reinforce community resilience in the face of climate change impacts, and what can be done to preserve and transmit this knowledge in communities uprooted by climate change.

Indigenous participants shared their experience of the injustices they experienced, and what had been taken from them. Experiences in Africa reflected those in America and the Pacific. Children were forbidden to use their mother tongue in school. New grains were cultivated. There was no training in Indigenous knowledge. Development was imposed top-down. There is no representation of Indigenous knowledge in the Sustainable Development Goals even if the values are similar.

Interreligious dialogue helped to show that these issues are important, showing the significance of the creation and living in harmony with nature. Both the Bible and the Quran teach stewardship. It would be useful to have more webinars like this.

George Carter described work to bring Pacific perspectives into the climate change process. It was Pacific students who started the effort to take government responsibility for responding to climate change to the International Court of Justice, but litigation is expensive. Regional organisations are working with the climate change convention, but more climate finance is needed. Regional organisations can formulate a long-term vision, such as a sustainable development agenda for 2050. An important effort should come from local communities. Revival of Indigenous knowledge can include weather patterns and when a drought comes. There are indigenous names for winds and what they bring. Traditional seasonal calendars should be included in local school curricula, not just geospatial data. There were traditional foods reserved for use during droughts.

Danya Carroll asked how to integrate Indigenous knowledge into the climate change process. There is a gap in institutions approaching Indigenous communities. Traditional values and world-views are missing in governmental and institutional strategies for climate action. Climate change is causing a loss of land and languages, with growing displacement of populations. In closing Amanah Nurish recalled that these climate change losses could lead to conflicts, and education was needed. We are challenged by the dominant anthropocentrism of today’s society, but that could be the topic for a future webinar.

Participant Modest Pesha summarised his possible key take-aways from the discussion:
(1) Integration of indigenous knowledge into modern education for sustainable development;
(2) Theological Studies toward stewardship to care for God's creation to integrate indigenous knowledge besides Biblical and Quran (doctrinal) teachings; 
(3) Foster a supportive legal framework and policy review to integrate indigenous knowledge in climate action; and
(4) Localizing climate action terms and operational guidelines (manuals/education) using local language (vernacular).

PROFILES OF SPEAKERS

Arthur Dahl

Co-moderator Arthur Dahl is Chair of the IF20 Environmental Working Group and President of the International Environment Forum and has led a distinguished career as a senior official at the United Nations Environment Programme. With expertise in climate science and a focus on Indigenous Knowledge in the Pacific Islands, he played a pivotal role in launching the concept of Small Island Developing States. Arthur’s contributions extend to research and advocacy for sustainable development.

Amanah Nurish

Co-moderator and panelist Amanah Nurish, an Indonesian ethnographer and anthropologist, is a Fulbright visiting scholar at Stanford University's Department of Anthropology and a KAICIID Fellow. She also teaches at the School of Strategic and Global Studies, University of Indonesia. Previously, she consulted for UNDP in the Pacific Asia on violent extremism and corruption, and with USAID in Washington D.C., coordinating climate change and conflict projects in East Indonesia. Amanah's research focuses on religious anthropology, particularly minority religions, gender dynamics, and environmental issues in Southeast Asia. She's dedicated over a decade to studying Baha'i communities, influencing discussions on religious minorities' rights.

Danya Carroll

Nicole Redvers, panelist in the first webinar, was unable to join the second, and designated a post-doctoral associate of hers, Danya Carroll, to replace her.
Danya Carroll, a Diné (Navajo) and White Mountain Apache from the Southwestern United States, holds a PhD in Indigenous Health and is dedicated to improving Indigenous health outcomes. With expertise in culturally relevant public health interventions, she focuses on enhancing access to healthy and traditional foods in American Indian communities. Currently a Postdoctoral Associate at Western University, Canada, her research supports Indigenous communities in mobilizing and protecting traditional ecological knowledge amidst the climate crisis.

George Carter

Originally from Samoa, George Carter is Senior Research Fellow and Deputy Head at The Australian National University, specializing in the intersection of international politics and climate change. As Director of the Pacific Institute, he delves into diplomacy, security, finance, and indigenous knowledge, focusing on the influence of small island states. Teaching and advising on international relations, security, and Pacific studies, George contributes to sustainable development forums and directs RESI, a Small Islands Developing States network. With a background in the Pacific and diverse heritage, including Samoan, Tuvaluan, i-Kiribati, Chinese, and British, he brings a unique perspective shaped by his community service and cultural upbringing.

Tafue Lusama

Tafue Lusama Tafue is a Climate Change Project Officer at the Pacific Theological College in Suva, Fiji and leads the Institute for Climate Indigenous Knowledge ICIK. He is passionate about integrating indigenous climate knowledge into policies for climate justice. He holds a doctorate in which he redefined the theology of God from a Tuvaluan Indigenous perspective in the context of climate change. Formerly, he served as General Secretary of the Ekalesia Kelisiano Tuvalu and played a key role in establishing the Tuvalu Climate Action Network (TuCAN) while advocating for climate justice globally.