Engaging local communities in restoration projects:reconsidering the role of traditional knowledge in Wadi Allaqi, Egypt

Although there may be large differences between scientific and traditional knowledge (TK) traditions, the possible role of TK for natural management and ecological restoration is increasingly recognized and implies the engagement of local people in conservation and restoration projects. This article explores several forms of community engagement: public participation, citizen science, and responsible research and innovation and argues for an integrated approach as they cover different aspects with regard to the engagement of local people in the context of TK. We illustrate our approach with examples from Wadi Allaqi, a remote area in Southern Egypt. It is concluded that both scientists and local people could profit from such an interaction in ecological restoration and conservation, but that effective policy and management strategies are needed to improve and develop mutually fruitful relationships between scientists and local people

Traditional knowledge and community resilience in Wadi Allaqi, Egypt

In this study, we investigate the impact of the formation of Lake Nasser in the mid-1960s and the establishment of a new village in the vicinity of the lake in the early 2000s on traditional knowledge of a Bedouin community. We focus particularly on items relating to rangeland and settlement. Questions, based in part on literature, were asked in interviews with Bedouin people living in non-permanent settlements along the shores of Lake Nasser and people living in the village. Our results reveal significant knowledge differences between groups of people older and younger than 50 years of age. We also found significant gender differences with regard to issues relating to rangeland, but not with regard to those relating to settlement. No differences could be attributed to whether people were living in non-permanent dwellings on the shores of Lake Nasser or in the village. The results further revealed that new agricultural knowledge has been developed with regard to the use of aquatic species for animal feed. The combination of preserving some knowledge domains and developing new ones fits to the concept of community resilience: the capacity of communities to withstand disturbances and adjust to changing circumstances by adapting their knowledge systems