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The COVID-19 challenge and indigenous wisdom solutions
Local wisdom comes at the right time. Conventional thinking does not provide a way out of the COVID-19 conundrum. We are destined for permanent deadlock unless everybody comes together and finds a solution that is to everybody’s agreement.
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Warrior: Dayak tribesmen perform the ruang wunrung ngurung balai dance. (JP/Anggara Mahendra)
O
K, let us talk (yet again) about clean energy and indigenous peoples’ environment. Some people might say I am biased since I am a consultant working for the Batang Toru hydroelectric power plant in North Sumatra but the underlying logic is too clear to be ignored.
Clean energy infrastructure and environmental protection can and should coexist. It is baffling that some still believe the two are in conflict. Thus the topic warrants repeating.
The link between environmental damage and pandemics is quite close. This has been brought to public attention by indigenous peoples for decades because natural heritage is so important for their survival.
Through their local wisdom and their relationship to nature, the indigenous peoples have long known that environmental degradation is the source of disease.
In the context of the campaign against the COVID-19 pandemic, it is more important than ever to listen to indigenous peoples, and to respect their local wisdom. The indigenous lands are home to most of the world’s biodiversity.
Hence the indigenous peoples have a lot to say t about balancing our relationship with nature. This will reduce the risk of future pandemics.
Indigenous peoples are always looking for their own solutions to pandemics. They use local wisdom i.e. traditional knowledge and practices such as voluntary isolation and closure of their territories.
