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1 – 10 of over 10000Thirawut Phichonsatcha, Nathasit Gerdsri, Duanghathai Pentrakoon and Akkharawit Kanjana-Opas
Indigenous knowledge is an essential element for unveiling the evolutionary journey of socio-culture phenomena. One of the key challenges in foresight exercises is to incorporate…
Abstract
Purpose
Indigenous knowledge is an essential element for unveiling the evolutionary journey of socio-culture phenomena. One of the key challenges in foresight exercises is to incorporate social-culture issues such as culture, lifestyle and behavior (referred as indigenous knowledge) into the study. However, the statistical trends of those factors tend to be either not available or limited unlike the population or economic related factors. The purpose of this study is to present the use of valuable data from indigenous knowledge to enhance the foresight exercise through the better understanding of social dynamics and changes.
Design/methodology/approach
The fragmented form of indigenous knowledge is analyzed and converted into a structured data format and then interpreted to unveil the evolutionary journey of socio-cultural phenomena. This study applies a scenario development method to visualize the results of foresight by comparing before and after the integration of indigenous knowledge. Finally, an assessment was conducted to reflect the value enhancement resulting from the integration of indigenous knowledge into the foresight process.
Findings
With the proposed approach, the foresight study on the future development of Thai food was demonstrated. The findings of this study show that the use of indigenous knowledge on eating behavior, cooking style and food flavor helps improve the alternative scenarios for the future development of Thai foods.
Practical implications
Indigenous knowledge can be applied to develop plausible scenarios and future images in foresight exercises. However, by nature, indigenous knowledge is not well-structured and, therefore, needs to be analyzed and turned into structured data so that it can be interpreted before integrating into the foresight process.
Originality/value
This study is one of few studies addressing the opportunities for integrating indigenous knowledge into foresight process. Indigenous knowledge can unveil the evolution of socio-cultural changes to improve the results of foresight study, especially the cases where statistical data and trends may not be sufficient to foresee future development.
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This study aims to explore the similarities and differences between the three concepts that are commonly used to describe the knowledge of traditional and indigenous communities…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to explore the similarities and differences between the three concepts that are commonly used to describe the knowledge of traditional and indigenous communities, namely, indigenous knowledge, traditional knowledge and local knowledge, with a view to contributing to the discourse on conceptualizing indigenous knowledge.
Design/methodology/approach
Data was extracted from the Scopus database using the main terms that are used for indigenous knowledge, namely, “indigenous knowledge” (IK), “traditional knowledge” (TK) and “local knowledge” (LK). Data were analyzed according to the themes drawn from the objectives of the study, using the VOSviewer software and the analytical tool embedded in the Scopus database.
Findings
The findings indicate that whereas IK and LK are older concepts than TK, TK has become more visible in the literature than the former; there is minimal overlap in the use of the labels in the literature; the three labels’ literature is largely domiciled in the social sciences; and that there were variations in representation of the labels according to countries and geographic regions.
Practical implications
The author avers that the scatter of literature on the knowledge of traditional and indigenous peoples under the three main labels has huge implications on the accessibility and use the literature by stakeholders including researchers, students, information and knowledge managers and information service providers.
Originality/value
This study demonstrates the application of informetrics beyond is traditional use to assess trends, nature and types of research patterns and mathematical modeling of information patterns to encompass the definition of the scope of concepts as covered in the literature.
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– This paper aims to highlight the role of mindfulness in the development of indigenous knowledge (IK), indigenous innovations and entrepreneurship or new entry.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to highlight the role of mindfulness in the development of indigenous knowledge (IK), indigenous innovations and entrepreneurship or new entry.
Design/methodology/approach
Through an extensive analysis of extant mindfulness and indigenous entrepreneurship literatures, the paper argues for the facilitating role of individual mindfulness in IK, indigenous innovations and entrepreneurship and generates several propositions as a result.
Findings
The paper argues that mindfulness encourages the appreciation of other forms of knowledge and practices distinct from the more prevalent Western forms, and by so doing, promotes indigenous innovation and indigenous entrepreneurship (or indigenous new entry or new business venture).
Research limitations/implications
It is reasoned that indigenous communities around the world have rich experiences and accumulated knowledge that have enabled them develop explanations of their environments and economic development and sustainability, and by recognizing and valuing such knowledge and experiences, mindfulness facilitates innovations and entrepreneurship.
Social implications
The facilitating role of IK in developing indigenous innovations and indigenous entrepreneurship is clearly evident, at least in indigenous societies; however, researchers are yet to recognise and explore this dynamics as deserved. Mindfulness not only opens up the mindset of researchers to further explore this phenomenon but also helps society to recognise the contributions and value of IK.
Originality/value
This work is a pioneer in the effort to integrate mindfulness concept into the indigenous entrepreneurship research. By using mindfulness lens to view the relationship between IK, indigenous innovations and entrepreneurship, the study locates mindfulness as both antecedent to and moderator of these relationships.
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Gisele M. Arruda and Sebastian Krutkowski
This paper aims to place a discussion of traditional knowledge and the indigenous voice within the framework of Arctic governance.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to place a discussion of traditional knowledge and the indigenous voice within the framework of Arctic governance.
Design/methodology/approach
The study involves literature review spanning different disciplines and highlighting important case studies.
Findings
The advance of low-cost, portable technology has brought about tremendous opportunities for indigenous people. Knowledge and observation are no longer monopolised by scholars, filmmakers or politicians based in the West. Film has proved to be a powerful tool for cultural preservation while the internet (video sharing sites and social media platforms in particular) have empowered local communities and facilitated their involvement in political activism and local governance. New ways to represent themselves have been a crucial step forward, yet the new goal is to work towards greater recognition of the “indigenous voice” and ensure traditional knowledge is not treated as anecdotal and irrelevant in managing Arctic affairs..
Research limitations/implications
The conclusions reached in the discussion need to be further explored by extending the research into Inuit communities to survey how technology can facilitate and impact collaborative forms of governance in the Arctic.
Practical implications
This research provides an increased understanding of how technology transforms power relations. Policymakers can see that the indigenous community in the Arctic is not lodged in the past. Their increased use of new technology can serve as an effective oversight of political decisions and economic initiatives, particularly those relating to oil and gas exploration in the region.
Social implications
Indigenous views and knowledge are literally crossing borders through media. Initially perceived as a cultural threat, film, video and internet are now regarded as powerful technology tools for cultural preservation and empowerment of local communities. In other words, the modern communication patterns are a crucial mean of indigenous population take part of the current global debate, express their concerns, reinforce their values and traditions and have an active voice in the globalised world.
Originality/value
This paper illustrates how technology helps indigenous communities to address different economic, environmental, cultural, educational, research and other issues in the Arctic. Robust evidence is presented to support the call for traditional knowledge to become an integral part of decision-making processes across all institutions of governance in the Arctic.
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Dorothea Hilhorst, Judith Baart, Gemma van der Haar and Floor Maria Leeftink
The purpose of this paper is to contribute to debates on the value of indigenous knowledge for disaster risk reduction. Recent international policy papers advocate the importance…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to contribute to debates on the value of indigenous knowledge for disaster risk reduction. Recent international policy papers advocate the importance of indigenous knowledge and calls for its recognition. The paper aims to explore these issues in the everyday practices of disaster response by indigenous peoples and surrounding actors.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is based on a total of seven months ethnographic research in indigenous communities in Thailand and the Philippines. The Thai communities had experienced minor disasters, whereas the Philippine communities were recently hit by a major killer typhoon.
Findings
In both countries the authors found that indigenous knowledge is neither completely local, nor homogenous, nor shared. The findings caution against a view that indigenous knowledge is grounded in a long tradition of coping with disasters. Coping is embedded in social practice and responsive to change. Positive labelling of indigenous practices can help to render communities more resilient.
Research limitations/implications
The research was exploratory in nature and could be replicated and expanded in other indigenous peoples’ communities.
Practical implications
Rather than understanding indigenous peoples as simultaneously vulnerable and resilient, it calls for a more comprehensive approach to indigenous knowledge and practices around disaster.
Social implications
The limitations are shown of uncritically ascribing indigenous communities a close relation to nature. It may be unfounded and de-politicises indigenous struggles.
Originality/value
This paper approaches indigenous knowledge issues from the point of view of indigenous communities themselves.
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Wayne Buente, Chad Kālepa Baybayan, Lala Hajibayova, Mallory McCorkhill and Roman Panchyshyn
The purpose of this paper is to provide a critical analysis from an ethical perspective of how the concept of indigenous wayfinding and voyaging is mapped in knowledge…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to provide a critical analysis from an ethical perspective of how the concept of indigenous wayfinding and voyaging is mapped in knowledge representation, organization and discovery systems.
Design/methodology/approach
In this study, the Dewey Decimal Classification, the Library of Congress Subject Headings, the Library of Congress Classifications systems and the Web of Science citation database were methodically examined to determine how these systems represent and facilitate the discovery of indigenous knowledge of wayfinding and voyaging.
Findings
The analysis revealed that there was no dedicated representation of the indigenous practices of wayfinding and voyaging in the major knowledge representation, organization and discovery systems. By scattering indigenous practice across various, often very broad and unrelated classes, coherence in the record is disrupted, resulting in misrepresentation of these indigenous concepts.
Originality/value
This study contributes to a relatively limited research literature on representation and organization of indigenous knowledge of wayfinding and voyaging. This study calls to foster a better understanding and appreciation for the rich knowledge that indigenous cultures provide for an enlightened society.
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Marcellus Forh Mbah, Sandra Ajaps, Ane Turner Johnson and Sidat Yaffa
While the possibility of a university fostering sustainable development is present in the extant literature and policy documents, the idea still warrants further consideration…
Abstract
Purpose
While the possibility of a university fostering sustainable development is present in the extant literature and policy documents, the idea still warrants further consideration. Therefore, this paper aims to identify the nature and outcomes of the university’s engagement with Indigenous communities and perceptions of Indigenous knowledge systems in both academic and non-academic activities, and what might be required to foster the university’s contributions towards sustainable development.
Design/methodology/approach
A qualitative case study of the only public university in The Gambia was conducted, including non-university actors. Interviews and focus group discussion methods were used, and these enabled close collaboration between researchers and participants, and the latter were empowered to describe their perceptions of reality.
Findings
Three major sets of findings emerged from the analysis of the transcripts from interviews and focus group discussions with the university and community members. These are the limited nature of and outcomes from university–community engagement, the sustainable outcomes of Indigenous practices and ideas for Indigenising university engagement for sustainable development.
Practical implications
Particular implications of the study that underpins this paper can be underscored; these include: a contribution to the literature on ways of connecting Indigenous communities with universities, and to a conceptualisation of the Indigenised university; a provision of insights into the connectivity between university community engagement, Indigenous knowledge systems and sustainable development; the creation of a context for subsequent studies on practical steps that universities might take in the direction of epistemic justice and sustainable development for all; and heightening the intractability of theoretical and philosophical issues of epistemology, knowledge ecology and epistemological justice, as they reveal themselves in practice, in complex situations.
Originality/value
Matters of the university reaching out to Indigenous peoples have yet to find their way into conceptualisations of the university for sustainable development. This paper addresses this gap in the existing literature by advancing possibilities for the Indigenised university for sustainable development to emerge.
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Zenobia Ismail and Tashil Fakir
The commercial value of Africa's indigenous knowledge may potentially jumpstart development if the returns are shared with its African owners. The internationalisation of an…
Abstract
The commercial value of Africa's indigenous knowledge may potentially jumpstart development if the returns are shared with its African owners. The internationalisation of an intellectual property regime appears to be facilitating the appropriation of indigenous knowledge and products from developing countries by multinational corporations. Indigenous knowledge is removed from the communal domain and converted to foreign‐owned private property, effectively depriving developing countries of the commercialisation value of their heritage via exports and value‐added processing. The lopsided benefits of IPR protection are exemplified in the case of the US‐owned trademark on South Africa's indigenous Rooibos tea, which is becoming increasingly popular worldwide. Trademark protection may have devolved perversely into trade protectionism, thus undermining the Millennium Development Goals of market access and sustainable development. A revision of IPR's and TRIPS to incorporate recognition and protection of indigenous knowledge is necessary to foster development.
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The purpose of this paper is to explore the case studies of communities’ understandings of natural disasters in Aceh Province, Indonesia, where a number of cultures and traditions…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the case studies of communities’ understandings of natural disasters in Aceh Province, Indonesia, where a number of cultures and traditions which belong to the ancestral heritage continue to be used in a more modern context.
Design/methodology/approach
This research used a qualitative descriptive research paradigm in which the researcher attempted to describe or construct in-depth interview results for the research objects. The interviews were conducted in six disaster-prone areas in Aceh, i.e. Simeulue, Central Aceh, Aceh Tamiang, Pidie Jaya, North Aceh and dan Pidie. The interviewees were the informants in this research, which included traditional leaders, religious leaders, community leaders, headmen, youth figures and disaster victims. The technique for determining informants was through purposive sampling in which the sample is specified based on the need of the research.
Findings
Majority of the people in Aceh, especially those who live in earthquake- and tsunami-prone areas still practice this form of knowledge, as they have already realized that it makes a significant contribution to emergency management. They typically used their traditional knowledge to understand both the nature of local hazards and the risk reduction mechanism related to response mechanisms. In some events, they also used it as an alternative to recovery phase according to past information and experiences. This paper will discuss the contribution of traditional knowledge to emergency management by presenting some specific cases of indigenous stories in Aceh. The stories not only served as an early warning system but also can be used to develop more effective disaster risk reduction programmes to improve community awareness to deal with future threats.
Originality/value
On Simeulue Island, most of the indigenous people already possess the knowledge and value systems inherited through the generations, as a form of local wisdom “called smong” when encountering earthquakes and tsunamis. Beside smong, there is still considerable amount of other similar indigenous knowledge that originated amid traditional people, especially in rural areas, in Aceh. Thus, this paper attempts to identify the knowledge and its representation in the implementation of disaster mitigation efforts in Aceh.
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Milind Pimprikar, Myrna Cunningham, Shirish Ravan and Simon Lambert
Indigenous peoples represent one of the most vulnerable groups and need access as well as hands-on experience in the use of emerging Earth observations (EO)-based DRR solutions at…
Abstract
Purpose
Indigenous peoples represent one of the most vulnerable groups and need access as well as hands-on experience in the use of emerging Earth observations (EO)-based DRR solutions at the community level, while balancing this learning with traditional indigenous knowledge (IK). However, complicating any engagement between EO and IK is the reality that IKs are diverse and dynamic, with location-specific relevance and accuracy. Additionally, the COVID-19 pandemic caused complex risks and cascading effects for which the world was not prepared. Thus, there is a need to examine the lessons learned and motivate emerging EO-based innovations and demonstrations related to DRR and climate change adaptation.
Design/methodology/approach
Hence, this study aims to undertake an in-depth assessment of IK related to DRR covering relevant UN instruments and provides state-of-the-art of opportunities presented by EO-based tools and solutions.
Findings
The overall research strategy was designed to integrate key components of IK for DRR in a coherent and logical way, with those offered by the EO technology developers and providers. There are several EO tools accessible that are relevant to integrate IK and complement DRR. The study examined and identified challenges and barriers to implement workable and replicable EO solutions in pursuit of resilience.
Originality/value
The key findings of this study will help create a balanced approach by acknowledging the importance of IK for DRR with co-development, co-creation and use of culturally relevant EO data and tools for sustainable innovation, capacity building and youth empowerment. The technological inequalities appear to be growing, and it would be challenging to meet the Sendai Framework indicators.
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