Chapter 8 People’s Perceptions, Practices, and Traditional Knowledge on Climate Change in Meghalaya
Joram Beda, Albert Chiang, Vivek Lyngdoh, Marbakor Mary Lynrah, Amica L. Nongrang, Evenstone Wahlang, and Nivanaliza Wahlang
Abstract Climate change is a reality that is experienced globally. However, climate response planning requires an understanding of local and sector-specific vulnerabilities and the extent of their impacts. Recording people’s perceptions of climate change and their traditional knowledge of resources and resource utilisation for their day-to-day activities is important in understanding past climate experiences and finding ways to tackle their impacts at the local and sectoral levels. The tribal communities in Meghalaya, through long-term trial-and-error experiments, have developed an elaborate, functional, and generally democratic system of conservation and management of forests and associated natural ecosystems, now offering a rich source of Indigenous traditional knowledge. The indigenous tribes of Meghalaya can be classified into three main groups—Khasi, Pnar or Jaintia, and Garo. The Khasi and Jaintia are believed to be the descendants of the ProtoAustraloid Monkhmer race. In contrast, the Garo are descendants of the TibetoBurman race, who migrated from Tibet. Their cultural traits and ethnic origins remain distinctive due to their geographical isolation. The State of Meghalaya is governed under the Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution, which provides special provisions for administering tribal areas in the northeastern states, including Meghalaya. The Sixth Schedule empowers local governance and ensures that tribal interests are safeguarded. The functions included in the Sixth Schedule are forest conservation, land use regulation, water resources management, and biodiversity conservation to help maintain the region’s ecological integrity and ensure that natural resources are used sustainably. The present study adopts the bottom-up approach to understand the climate impacts, identify best practices for adaptation, and look into indigenous practices that have served as sustainable living techniques with the power to overcome challenges. The tribal communities in Meghalaya have preserved and used traditional knowledge for generations as an integral part of life. Sacred groves, living root bridges, bamboo drip irrigation, etc., are some of the unique practices that showcase the local forest-related knowledge and practices and associated social institutions developed over generations under changing environmental conditions by Indigenous communities. These indigenous practices represent an important source of adaptive capacity for local forest-dependent communities in the face of climate change impacts on the ecosystems.
Keywords Climate change · Traditional knowledge · Indigenous · Adaptation · Mitigation
