Traditional Ecological Knowledge

• Main Authors: Casi, Corinna, Guttorm, Hanna, Virtanen, Pirjo Kristiina
• Other Authors: Krieg, C. Parker, Toivanen, Reetta, Doctoral Programme in Philosophy, Arts, and Society, Helsinki Institute of Sustainability Science (HELSUS), Faculty of Arts, Indigenous Studies, Department of World Cultures 2010-2017, Helsinki Inequality Initiative (INEQ), The Global Extractivisms and Alternatives Initiative
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: 2022
• Subjects: 6160 Other humanities; 1172 Environmental sciences; 5202 Economic and Social History; Arctic; Climate change; Global warming
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10138/338625

Traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) refers to a body of knowledge, practices, and ideas transmitted and (re)generated orally and non-verbally in diverse forms from generation to generation. It is constantly changing and being updated. TEK is rich among several communities, but we will situate our cases in the Amazonian and Arctic Indigenous contexts. We will also discuss the limits of TEK in sustainability science, which include its truth-value and legitimacy. As it originates from different traditions, experiences, and language structures, it is challenging to systematize. Recently, however, TEK has been recognized in a more inclusive way, and traditional knowledge holders have been taken as collaborators to scientific projects. Therefore, various local communities have been able to contribute to science with their views and knowledge of the social history and presence of specific places, which are rapidly changing due to climate change and global warming. This has also offered better-situated and multidimensional understandings of complex and dynamic ecosystems. The inclusion of TEK can thus bring better-informed results, improve our understanding of environmental situations, and eventually contribute to greater sustainability. Peer reviewed