The indigenous Alur communities of Lake M’vouta-N’zighé are using mapping as a tool to understand the ecological shifts occurring on their homeland, in their struggle for survival of their livelihood.
Beatrice, speaking for the Alur fisherwomen, reveals what is happening in the village of Dei, bordering Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
This is really amazing storytelling that highlights the cultural bio-diversity. Going share these with communities on this side of the planet.
This is such an amazing way to explain people about the troubles and that support is needed.
Thanks Arky. I’d just like to add a methodological remark since you mentioned cultural bio-diversity. Elements of indigenous science relating to biological resources, as well as cultural norms in fishing, are mentioned or described. There, the community and clan gave its consent to the dissemination (while some information were previously published without prior consent due to forms of academic extractivism and coloniality of knowledge). My advice is to check carefully that any information received in the listening and learning sessions is disclosable. Perhaps using the support of Local Context and its labels on traditional knowledge and biocultural heritage.
Thanks Valentina. I take advantage of your message to reinforce that one of the objectives of this publication is to call on various regional and international actors working in the area to rely on traditional and indigenous knowledge to reverse the dynamics of livelohoods loss. This “trust mechanism” still needs to be built. Government and international programs that are implemented within the classical framework of development studies continue to consider these solutions not viable. Until when will a Muzungu (foreigner, in the Bantu languages) take decisions in place of the Alur and any Indigenous peoples because of a claimed superiority of his/her knowledge system?