Presentation by Luu Bich Ngoc Ole Bruun

Local / Indigenous Knowledge as a resource for disaster risk reduction and climate change

adaptation in North-Central Vietnam

BackgroundSince the 1960s, many international scholars have emphasised the

value of local and indigenous knowledge for

* protecting the livelihoods of vulnerable people and communities* finding solutions to development problems based on local

experience* focussing on local conditions and local needs in development* enabling the participation of local people in development projects* adapting to weather and climate induced disasters

International development organisations have adopted 'best practices' of integrating indigenous knowledge whenever it is relevant

Indigenous Knowledge in Vietnam

For Vietnamese scholars, particularly environmental and climate change issues have at led to a reassessment of local knowledge, such as for,

* traditional highland agricultural methods* traditional forest management, protection and products* replanting mangrove forests* production of Green and alternative foodstuffs * local climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction

In recent years, participatory methods and local community development have also become objectives of state policy making

What is local or indigenous knowledge?

* it is mostly unique to a given culture or local society* it may contrasts with scientific knowledge and with

knowledge promoted through formal education. * it is cumulative, maintained and developed by local people

with extended histories of interaction with the natural environment

* it includes understandings, interpretations and meanings that draw on a broader cultural complex and worldview

* it is dynamic and subject to internal creativity as well as to ongoing exchange with external sources

* it may be used in agriculture, food preparation, natural resource management, health care and other activities in rural communities

Indigenous Knowledge is human capital

* any kind of valuable knowledge will contribute to human capital resources, understood as a broad collection of knowledge, abilities, skills, experiences, creativity etc.

* any local society comprises different strands of knowledge and rationality, representing coexisting avenues of thought and reflection (cognitive pluralism)

* local knowledge may contribute to the cognitive skills of rural people in the way of navigating between expert knowledge and external policy making on the one hand, and alternative ways of knowing and acting in a local context on the other

Agricultural knowledge* Since the East Asian type of irrigated agriculture has been the main

livelihood in these villages for generations, a profound knowledge exists on the biological processes of plant growth, cross-fertilization and exploitation of all organic materials

* It is put to use in growing rice and vegetables, raising pigs and chickens, and exploiting water resources in fields, canals and ditches for breeding ducks and fish or for collecting various sources of protein

* Interaction between local and state-promoted agricultural techniques is a basic characteristic of Vietnamese agriculture. Most households were still found to have a unique range of both general and particular knowledge, used to make the most of their resources and to ease stresses in farm life.

Animal husbandry* Traditional techniques and advise relate to the breeding and protection of

livestock under adverse conditions. Particularly during floods, when humans must often struggle to survive, saving livestock needs simple solutions.

* Simple techniques include the construction of elevated platforms to save the most valuable domestic animals, primarily oxen and cows, during severe floods, and floating platforms for smaller animals such as chicken.

* Another strand of knowledge aims at how to help domestic animals survive after flooding. Overflowing latrines and polluted water are a great challenge to people and animals; it is imperative to secure clean drinking water and avoid infections. The wise will keep chicken and small animals in cages to avoid their contact with polluted water, only letting them out after the flooding has retreated and the ground has been rinsed by new rainfall.

Weather and flood predictions* Hundreds of popular sayings and an abundance of traditional omens

and flood prediction methods are found. * They reveal a holistic approach to the natural world which has much

in common with traditional cosmology and medicine, evolving around the basic idea that qualities of the greater cosmos are embedded in every living thing.

* A ‘correlation’ or ‘resonance’ thinking induces people to look for analogies and signs in all kinds of things, such to look for changes in the appearance or behaviour in plants and animals or to look for signs in the sky.

* Many such make use of natural 'signifier' fruits, crops and wild herbs around the village, including bamboo, water banana trees, torpedo grass, bermuda grass, jackfruit tree and countless others. Similar correlations draw on signifiers among insects and animals, watching their behaviour as premonitions of floods and disasters

Disaster prevention* A large body local knowledge and techniques relates to the protection

of people, crops and assets from natural hazards like typhoons, extraordinary floods, droughts and pests. In particular, the potentially devastating impact of typhoons and floods in coastal areas has induced local people to prepare themselves and to mitigate damages throughout history.

* Traditional house-building techniques include the construction of lofts or elevated platforms under the roof, to which people can retreat during high floods. Simple wooden platforms are now mostly replaced by concrete-built lofts in modern-style houses

* The flooding season necessitates preparation of foodstuffs, water, fuel and medicine in advance, and traditional knowledge advices people to prepare in July when the land is rich. Good packaging and use of suitable containers are essential

Environmental sensitivity* Indigenous knowledge also provides people with a strong

awareness of environmental and climatic changes.* Some interesting comments were made on the continued relevance

of traditional flooding predictions, for instance: 'Old people know these things best, and basically they are right, but now the flooding comes much faster than before!'

* Flooding and typhoon patterns have changed significantly in most riverside villages, and local people are keen observers of changing patterns in natural hazards from typhoons, floodings and droughts. They present new challenges for local farmers.

* Many local residents are also acutely aware of the impact of retreating forest cover, hydropower and reservoir construction, extensive dyke construction, large-scale establishment of shrimp ponds needing brackish water, and at times adverse water management practices.

Relevance: at the practical level

* At the practical level, local knowledge may be shared to provide mutual inspiration among villagers to protect their livelihoods and try out new economic activities.

* As a consequence of economic reforms, both the provision of basic livelihoods and the responsibility for climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction are being pushed back onto individual households.

* Especially the most vulnerable population segments would benefit from the backing of non-state actors, which may mediate between local and central forms of knowledge and at the same time promote locally rooted development priorities. These may include social programs, simple techniques for typhoon resistant housing, protection of crops, tools and assets, and experimentation with both traditional and alternative livelihoods for the sake of finding appropriate solutions to complex problems

At the participatory level* Locally generated knowledge underlines local perspectives on development and

may bring them to bear on broader village and district issues. Presently, 'communities' are weak in rural Vietnam and 'social capital' relations are vertical rather than horizontal to the effect that local organising around goals of vulnerability reduction and livelihood protection is weak.

* There is an obvious need for external, non-state partners to assist in increasing social bonding and building new cooperative institutions, at the same time providing a suitable framework for recording, ordering, and disseminating local knowledge.

* External partners may further work with local media and adopt new digitalized technologies such as Participatory Information Systems (PIS) to provide coherence and leverage to local knowledge, and possibly integrate it with common disaster risk reduction education and livelihood training programs.

Thank You!