土著knowledge is a form of science — don’t ignore it

是时候停止传统experti打折se and make use of this vast and valuable resource, argues Indian scientistSuman Sahai。

Science and technology have always been an important part of growth and development plans. But accepted 'scientific expertise' is Western, standardised and homogenous. From this viewpoint, the vast body of scientific expertise developed in diverse societies and cultures is discounted and ignored.

Referred to asindigenous or traditional knowledge, this is a knowledge system distilled from generations of scientific work anchored in rural and tribal communities. It is different to the Western system of empirical, lab-based science — but is equally valid and efficacious.

现在是时候认识到有不同种类的科学和科学专业知识，所有这些都应用于开发和解决问题。

进化的知识

土著knowledge has developed from understanding and documenting the processes in nature. An iteration of practices over time has led to products and processes that are based on sound scientific principles.

Take plant extracts for example. Observing that animals did not eat certain plants and assuming that this was because they were toxic, communities took extracts and tested them for a range of uses. Many were, and still are, used as pesticides in agriculture, in bait to catch fish or to treat maggot infestations in livestock.

Because plants differ across ecological zones, each region has developed products and uses based on their regional flora. Indigenous science is diverse, and it is efficacious in the particular context in which it is used.

Similarly, inindigenous medicine, the plants used in traditional Chinese medicine will be different to those used in India, Indonesia or Myanmar — but all these healing systems will cure many diseases effectively. Even today, almost 80 per cent of the population of some Asian and African countries rely on indigenous systems for primary healthcare. [1]

土著知识不是灵丹妙药，而是与其他任何人一样有效的治疗途径。就像西方医学无法治愈普通感冒或许多chronic diseases, traditional medicines may not be as effective as antibiotics in rapidly controlling infections.

But it has some advantages. Antibiotics lead to side effects (which could range from allergies and rashes to more serious effects like toxicity) and bacteria can ultimately becomeresistantto them; traditional healing is more broad-based and holistic, designed as much to prevent disease as to cure it.

解决问题的实用方法

土著knowledge includes knowledge accumulated over thousands of years, making it particularly useful for problem-solving. Communities have vetted solutions and knowledge systems over time, retaining only the efficacious ones.

When the December 2004tsunamistruck the Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India, it was feared that local tribal communities would have perished. But this was not the case: they had correctly read the signs of an impending tsunami and retreated to high ground. [2]

在food production, the hallmarks of traditional science include knowledge of genetic diversity, the suitability of crop varieties to different land and soil types, and the use of agronomic practices to minimise risk of crop losses. There are various options available for growing food under almost any agro-ecological condition.

可惜的是，这种知识很少使用。取而代之的是，大多数研究机构都支持涉及资源密集型农业的主要粮食生产体系，该系统可能会在大型农场的富裕农民中起作用，但以巨大的生态成本产生。beplay下载官网西西软件

如果印度的农村和部落社区基于其特性的知识，或者在印度的农村和部落社区开发并保存了近100,000种大米，或者安第斯高地的社区已经开发了成千上万种马铃薯，或者在墨西哥的玉米品种数千种，那么它就会开发是因为这项努力有很强的经验基础。

政策断开连接

But governments and policymakers, even in developing countries that are home to indigenous scientific expertise, accept only Western-style science as the basis of evidence-based policymaking.

A colonial past has nurtured a 'look West' elite who take their Western inclinations into policy formulation. Theeducation, lifestyle and ignorance of these leaders, even their rejection of indigenous traditions, have a cost for countries that confine their ability to solve problems to Western science.

研究所有可用形式的科学知识和专业知识形式符合全球社区的利益。只有几种可用的方法仅依靠一种方法是近视的。

特别是发展中国家，通过忽略了自己的科学传统的解决和丰富的潜力，造成了极大的伤害，这些传统是本地有效且被接受的。

Despite India having a vast repertoire of indigenous medicine, its healthcare system is based on Western-style medicine, which is expensive and difficult to take into remote villages. The logical approach would be to rely largely on indigenous medicine and include the Western system where needed. After years of neglect for traditional medicine, this is finally beginning to happen, with efforts to include it inhealthcare systems。

China has charted a different course, with the government supporting the development of both Western and traditional medicine in its healthcare system through research on what is called 'integrative medicine'. [3]

Why should systems of science be standardised, and why should academics and policymakers demand this? A scientific system's validity lies not in its being credible everywhere, but in its being credible in the culture where it was developed and where it has provided solutions.

作为土著科学专业知识的存储库的国家应成为这一主流。将足够的资源投资于土著科学，并扩大传统知识系统中的教育和培训基础将有助于消除对它们的偏见，并帮助他们纳入官方政策。

人们和政府必须摆脱狭narrow的思想，即西方科学是唯一的科学。

Suman Sahaiis founder and chair of Gene Campaign, an organisation dedicated to the conservation of genetic resources and indigenous knowledge, and to working towards ensuring food, nutrition and livelihood security for rural and tribal communities. She can be contacted at[email protected]