Emerging Trends and Significance of Transmitting Knowledge and Diversity to Future Generations

Emerging Trends and Significance of Transmitting Knowledge and Diversity to Future Generations

Today, the biggest concern facing society is the loss of traditional knowledge. As a result, many societies highly value the transmission of this knowledge to the next generation, for the advancement of their cultures and knowledge to future generations. Traditional knowledge must be protected and supported, and much emphasis is placed in transmitting this knowledge to future generations. The transmission of this knowledge to the coming generations is also aimed at transmitting skills and techniques that serve as a useful model for solutions to contemporary issues. It is no coincidence that most of the world’s biodiversity is found in indigenous places. Knowledge, innovations and practices of indigenous communities are the base of most of the world’s present science and provide a noteworthy and valuable source of inputs. There is no doubt that the conservation of cultural diversity and the preservation of traditional knowledge are important for a world driven by globalization and cultural homogenization. Connecting the emerging body of popular global experience can encourage indigenous leadership and enterprise, offer valuable innovative ideas for education, training, and research, and advance more effective interventions. Unlocking the potential of traditional knowledge consequently helps modern societies in addressing various challenges such as climate change and sustainable agriculture to fresh ways for continuous development for guaranteeing the livelihoods of both indigenous and local communities. This paper addresses the emerging trends and significance of transmitting knowledge and diversity to future generations.

Indigenous people have been hugely involved in the preservation of biological diversity, protection of ecological integrity frameworks, and in the sustainable use of natural resources. Their rights to their lands and territories that contain these natural resources and their self-determined development reinforce the survival and advancement of traditional knowledge. Thanks to their knowledge and ecological practices, the lands and waters they persist to control and manage contain most of the earth’s biodiversity. In the last decades, various indigenous communities have responded to the challenges associated with the threats from extractive industries, mono-crop agriculture and cattle rearing, and large-scale infrastructure development. The indigenous movements have been seeking autonomy, and their influence on political processes have gained huge recognition at a national, regional, and global scale. These interventions have been aimed at curbing the loss of biodiversity and to revitalize the protection, transmission, and development of traditional knowledge for future generations. Indigenous communities additionally contribute to governments’ commitments to focus and address global climate change, and to meet global targets and to protect traditional knowledge. In 2018, the indigenous communities living in Peruvian Amazon established an autonomous territorial government called Wampis Nation that was aimed at defending their livelihood from the cumulative pressure from extractive industries.

Particularly, the importance of knowledge transfer to future generations is important in transferring the knowledge on how food is produced from one generation to the net one (Guerrero et al., 2009). The food provisioning skills and techniques have been passed down from earlier generation through cooking techniques, skills, and recipes. Knowledge of food can be discovered in different settings, such as from home learning and knowledge from community members. Additionally, during social festivals and occasions, ethnic communities exchange knowledge and experience related to food and culture by exposing each other to a variety of food habits and traditions. As Kwik (2008) contends, some food traditions and customs portray custom of ethnic culture. Preserving the food tradition for its improvement and utilization relies on food knowledge, especially the traditional ones. Communities and indigenous groups play a vital role in carrying on and applying the food knowledge to younger generations to ensure the cultural identity lasts throughout time. As a result, future generations can learn the food customs and continue to practice the food culture of their respective communities. In short, it helps preserve the food knowledge and culture of a community.

The transmission of knowledge further promotes the preservation of language in different communities and cultures. Indigenous children in many countries are not taught in their native language. This leads to the disconnection of children from their indigenous communities as they cannot properly or fluently speak their indigenous languages. According to Maria Fernanda, the General Assembly President of Ecuador, traditional knowledge occupies a crucial position in the range of activities and actions required to mitigate issues such as climate change. As a result, transmitting this information to the next generations is very important, also in harnessing the potential of women and the youth. Stressing on the significance of preserving languages, Fernanda points out that the accumulated knowledge over the years on meteorology, agriculture, medicine, and other vital areas, is at the verge of disappearing forever if the necessary actions are not taken in advancing and transmitting this knowledge to future generations. As a mitigation to such risks, in order to prepare for the problems ahead, efforts must include promoting a better understanding of traditional knowledge and finding more ways to reinforce the voices of indigenous people.

The ability of future generations to exercise their right of self-determination depends on their understanding of their rights as defined by their indigenous societies and the history behind their enactment. Various studies support the importance of indigenous knowledge in exercising self-determination. More to that, the right to self-determination empowers minimal indigenous control (Janke, 2005). There is, therefore, a great need for the knowledge holders of the indigenous communities in the future to give advice on matters concerning the rights and responsibilities of the indigenous communities. This can only be derived from the effective transmission of knowledge in educational and other informal settings. The knowledgeable members of the future communities will be helpful in guarding self-determination and also guard minimal indigenous manipulation by governmental and non-governmental influences. As a result, they prevent the development of destructive legislation which might act against the indigenous communities, depriving them of their independence, freedom of expression, and right for self-governance (Indigenous Corporate Training Inc., 2018). The inadequacy of such well-informed future generations will mean a minimal capacity to exercise self-determination thus more indigenous control and the likelihood of colonization.

The documentation of traditional knowledge is important in impeding further loss of traditional knowledge, supporting benefit-sharing, maintaining traditional knowledge, and protecting traditional knowledge from unsolicited uses. It also raises concerns over rights, consent, ownership, consent and legal protection that should be addressed before opening a wealth of traditional knowledge to other members outside the community. The recent technologies greatly help in documenting knowledge and empowering communities with important tools and information that enable people to protect their culture, lands, and techniques. This technology, with its ability to record and quickly and widely disseminate information, presents opportunities for indigenous people in preserving their knowledge and diversity and transmitting these to the future generations.

The long-term realization of securing sustainable environmental management and resource use pivots on a diverse and interdisciplinary course of action. Through partnerships between traditional knowledge holders and modern scientists, the co-production of knowledge can produce new knowledge that has the capability to potential to address the challenges experienced in recent years, such as climate change. A respectful collaboration can lead to the development of new and important perspectives to the solution of such problems. Likewise, when these solutions are passed to the next generations as knowledge, they can be further advanced and perfected to solve the problems more efficiently and intensively. This essay has shown the various trends in transmitting knowledge to future generations and the importance of transmitting this knowledge for the advancement of various communities and societies. It has shown that it is important for communities to transmit their knowledge for the importance of preserving their culture and the overall advancement of their future generations. Such knowledge will be highly useful to these future generations in preserving the natural environment, cultural advancement, innovation, and the overall betterment of future generations.

References

Guerrero, L., Guàrdia, M. D., Xicola, J., Verbeke, W., Vanhonacker, F., Zakowska-Biemans, S. . . . Hersleth, M. (2009). Consumer-driven definition of traditional food products and innovation in traditional foods. A qualitative cross-cultural study. [doi: DOI: 10.1016/j.appet.2008.11.008]. Appetite, 52(2), 345-354.

Janke, T. (2005). Managing indigenous knowledge and indigenous cultural and intellectual property. Australian Academic & research libraries, 36(2), 95-107.

Kwik, J. C. (2008). Traditional food knowledge: A case study of an Immigrant Canadian “foodscape”. Environments, 36(1), 59-74

Indigenous Corporate Training Inc. (2018). Why continuity of Indigenous cultural identity is critical. Retrieved 22 November 2019, from https://www.ictinc.ca/blog/why-is-indigenous-cultural-continuity-critical