Traditional Knowledge Bulletin |
- This week in review … UN Expert on minority issues publishes study on languages
- Resource: UNESCO book on traditional Tokelau fishing
- Meeting review: FCPF reports on engagement of indigenous peoples
- This week in review … Internship position available at the PFII Secretariat
- This week in review … Academics criticize handling of cultural diversity, TK at international level
- This week in review … Participatory 3D modeling merges conventional spatial information systems with locals' TK
- This week in review … Article highlights value of indigenous knowledge for development
This week in review … UN Expert on minority issues publishes study on languages Posted: 13 Mar 2013 04:00 AM PDT Thousands of minority languages threatened by assimilation, conflict and forced displacement – UN expert GENEVA, SWITZERLAND: The UN Independent Expert on minority issues Rita Izsák warned that half of the world's estimated 6,000 plus languages will likely die out by the end of the century, and urged world governments to take significant and urgent efforts to protect both minority communities and their language heritage. "Some groups are vulnerable to factors beyond their control, such as policies of assimilation that promote dominant national or official languages, the impact of conflict, or forced displacement from their traditional lands," Ms. Izsák said during the presentation of her latest report to the UN Human Rights Council. "Some countries have aggressively promoted a single national language as a means of reinforcing sovereignty, national unity and territorial integrity." "Language is a central element and expression of identity and of key importance in the preservation of group identity," she underlined. "Language is particularly important to linguistic minority communities seeking to maintain their distinct group and cultural identity, sometimes under conditions of marginalization, exclusion and discrimination." In her view, protection of linguistic minority rights is a human rights obligation and an essential component of good governance, efforts to prevent tensions and conflict, and the construction of equal and politically and socially stable societies. |
Resource: UNESCO book on traditional Tokelau fishing Posted: 13 Mar 2013 03:58 AM PDT Echoes at Fishermen's Rock – Traditional Tokelau Fishing This book is a manual on the traditional techniques for the capture of crabs, bird and especially fish of the lagoon, the reef and the open ocean of Tokelau. As such, it introduces the various species and thus the rich biodiversity of the small Pacific island country. For each technique, the manual gives detailed information on the relevant traditional protocols, fish behaviours, the winds, currents and lunar cycles as well as seasonal variations indicated by the annual rising of named stars and constellations that affect traditional fishing in Tokelau. The original version was published in 2008 under the Tokelauan title "Hikuleo i te Papa o Tautai". Written entirely in Tokelauan, it was the result of regular meetings near Wellington, New Zealand by a group of emigrant Elders from the atoll of Atafu who initiated the project. It collected and recorded the traditional fishing methods of the Elders' homeland in order to preserve them for younger generations. To make the collection even more accessible for these younger people, whose knowledge of Tokelauan is limited or even non-existent, and to make the detailed traditional knowledge contained in the book available to a wider scientific and general readership, an English translation was conducted by Antony Hooper and Iuta Tinielu. Further information … Download the book [pdf] … |
Meeting review: FCPF reports on engagement of indigenous peoples Posted: 13 Mar 2013 03:55 AM PDT FCPF Reports on the Engagement of Indigenous Peoples WASHINGTON DC, US: The Carbon Fund of the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) held a workshop with representatives of indigenous peoples and civil society in mid-February 2013, in order to gather their views and opinions on the work of the FCPF. Topics discussed included REDD+ readiness and the development of a methodological framework for the FCPF. The workshop built on previous dialogues held in Panama, Peru, Qatar, Tanzania and Thailand. It also built on the adoption of the Action Plan, the objective of which is to ensure that FCPF activities meet the requirements set out in the Cancun agreement on REDD+ with regard to the full and effective participation of indigenous peoples and the provision of information on safeguards and monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV). The Action Plan also promotes capacity building and the allocation of adequate and dedicated resources for indigenous peoples. Over the course of the above dialogues, REDD+ discussions with indigenous peoples have evolved from concern over land rights to the full engagement of indigenous peoples in planning and decision-making within the FCPF. In support of further engagement of indigenous peoples, the World Bank, as trustee of the FCPF, has appointed a Senior Advisor for Indigenous Peoples and Ethnic Minorities, Luis Felipe Duchicela. It has also begun an indigenous peoples' consultation process on World Bank safeguard policies and is considering the development of an Indigenous Peoples Advisory Council. Read the article … Read the World Bank blog post … |
This week in review … Internship position available at the PFII Secretariat Posted: 13 Mar 2013 03:53 AM PDT Internship Position Available at SPFII UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK: An internship position (JO #27340) is available at the Secretariat of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues for the spring and summer sessions. Applications should be sent via the UN Internship Programme webpage by 19 March 2013. Read the announcement … |
This week in review … Academics criticize handling of cultural diversity, TK at international level Posted: 13 Mar 2013 03:52 AM PDT Academics Criticise Handling Of Cultural Diversity, Traditional Knowledge At International Level GENEVA, SWITZERLAND: At a recent conference jointly organised by the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies (IHEID, Geneva) and the Museum of Art and History of Geneva, academics tackled the question of the preservation of culture – in its natural and cultural dimension – against the risks of globalisation. Panellists offered criticisms of the evolution of the international system for the protection of cultural diversity, with regard to traditional knowledge and rights of indigenous people. Many panellists addressed strong criticisms toward the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization to the Convention on Biological Diversity. Riccardo Pavoni, a professor at the University of Sienna, Italy, described the Nagoya Protocol as a "masterpiece of erratic treaty drafting," containing what he called "contradictory and inconsistent drafting". Pavoni said Nagoya Protocol negotiators deliberately refrained from imposing a disclosure requirement for patentability. The requirement is therefore only optional for Parties to the Nagoya protocol, hence the continuing battle happening at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and at the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) to introduce a mandatory disclosure requirement. Many other academics, while acknowledging that the Nagoya Protocol is not perfect, see in it a step forward as this text creates a system that links the user and supplier countries. On TK, Genevièvre Koubi, professor at the University of Paris VIII, denounced what she called the "commercial drift" of the concept of protection of diversity of cultures. She said that no UN organisations protect culture in itself, but rather the forms that culture takes. Koubi said that in every UN agency dealing with traditional knowledge – including WIPO – it is the economical aspect of culture that prevails and diversity is only understood in the market context. Culture is therefore only understood as a strategy for development. Read the article … |
This week in review … Participatory 3D modeling merges conventional spatial information systems with locals' TK Posted: 13 Mar 2013 03:50 AM PDT Putting Local Climate Know-How on the Map KINGSTOWN, ST. VINCENT: A new weapon in the arsenal against climate change is tapping local knowledge to bridge the policy gap and let communities make their own informed decisions about how to manage livelihoods, natural resources, culture and heritage. "In the past, most climate change initiatives have been top-down, coming from the government level," says Martin Barriteau, executive director of the NGO Sustainable Grenadines. "[But] our communities, especially the ones on the coast, have been witnessing and adapting to the effects of climate changes over time," he says. To that regard, participatory three-dimensional modelling, which merges conventional spatial information systems with local people's own "mental maps," aims to produce scale relief models that can be used jointly with Global Positioning Systems (GPS) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Participatory 3D models are manufactured at the village level using paper and layered cardboard. Based on their personal knowledge of the area, informants depict land use and cover and other features on the model by the use of pencils, pushpins (points), yarns (lines) and/or paint (polygons). Once the model is completed, a scaled grid is applied to transpose spatial and georeferenced data into GIS. For example, the models can bring communities together around priority areas such as flood zones, drought concerns, fish populations and mangrove protection. The maps are also an educational tool for youth and children. Last week, SusGren, in collaboration with the Netherlands-based Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA) and The Nature Conservancy (TNC), brought together members of local communities and regional and international organisations on Union Island, one of the Grenadine Islands, for a one-week participatory three-dimensional mapping exercise. On completion of the workshop, participants are expected to be in a position to discuss the value of local spatial and traditional knowledge as well as describe how P3DM can be used to document, geo-reference and visualise local knowledge. The four- by eight-foot model will belong to the community. Read the article … |
This week in review … Article highlights value of indigenous knowledge for development Posted: 13 Mar 2013 03:48 AM PDT Indigenous knowledge must be harvested for development LONDON, UK: In this article, Goolam Mohamedbhai, former secretary general of the Association of African Universities and former vice-chancellor of the University of Mauritius, writes on the rich body of indigenous knowledge embodied in Africa's cultural and ecological diversities, on which African people have drawn for hundreds of years to solve specific developmental and environmental problems. He notes there are well-documented examples to show the positive impact of indigenous knowledge systems on Africa's development, while indigenous knowledge can also serve as an important tool to assist Africa in coping with climate change. Read the article … |
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