The use of indigenous knowledge in development: problems and challenges

The use of indigenous knowledge has been seen by many as an alternative way of promoting development in poor rural communities in many parts of the world. By reviewing much of the recent work on indigenous knowledge, the paper suggests that a number of problems and tensions has resulted in indigenous knowledge not being as useful as hoped for or supposed. These include problems emanating from a focus on the (arte)factual; binary tensions between western science and indigenous knowledge systems; the problem of differentiation and power relations; the romanticization of indigenous knowledge; and the all too frequent decontextualization of indigenous knowledge

Operationalizing local ecological knowledge in climate change research : challenges and opportunities of citizen science

Current research on the local impacts of climate change is based on contrasting results from the simulation of historical trends in climatic variables produced with global models against climate data from independent observations. To date, these observations have mostly consisted of weather data from standardized meteorological stations. Given that the spatial distribution of weather stations is patchy, climate scientists have called for the exploration of new data sources. Knowledge developed by Indigenous Peoples and local communities with a long history of interaction with their environment has been proposed as a data source with untapped potential to contribute to our understanding of the local impacts of climate change. In this chapter, we discuss an approach that aims to bring insights from local knowledge systems to climate change research. First, we present a number of theoretical arguments that give support to the idea that local knowledge systems can contribute in original ways to the endeavors of climate change research. Then, we explore the potential of using information and communication technologies to gather and share local knowledge of climate change impacts. We do so through the examination of a citizen science initiative aiming to collect local indicators of climate change impacts: the LICCI project (www.licci.eu). Our findings illustrate that citizen science can inspire new approaches to articulate the inclusion of local knowledge systems in climate change research. However, this requires outlining careful approaches, with high ethical standards, toward knowledge validation and recognizing that there are aspects of local ecological knowledge that are incommensurable with scientific knowledge

Sources of data for settlement level analyses in sparsely populated areas

Research in areas such as demography, social sciences and population health normally utilise secondary population data sources to address key questions. Large and nationally representative datasets are usually the sources for such analyses. These datasets have allowed for broader generalisations to be drawn and in-depth analysis of  changes at settlements level, as well as for population sub-groups. Such datasets, which include national censuses and survey programmes, are administered by national statistical agencies (NSAs) covering topics like demographic characteristics, employment and health. While large and nationally representative datasets are considered the 'gold standard' for research, it is recognised they have limitations for understanding demographic change at small scales of geography and for population sub-groups, in particular for those residing in sparsely populated areas (SPAs) and Indigenous peoples (Axelsson, 2010; Taylor et al., 2011).</p

Bull shark Carcharhinus leucas recruitment into the St Lucia Estuary, South Africa, after prolonged mouth closure, and the first observation of a neonate bull shark preyed on by a Nile crocodile Crocodylus niloticus

Estuaries provide critical nursery habitat for juvenile bull sharks Carcharhinus leucas, as they have the ability to withstand a wide&nbsp; range of salinities. St Lucia is the largest estuarine lake in Africa and was once a key nursery for bull sharks until a prolonged and near-continuous period of mouth closure and drought between 2002 and 2021. The estuary mouth was opened for the first time in 13 years on 6 January 2021, and, within 10 days, bull shark pups recruited into the estuary. On 16 January, an adult Nile crocodile Crocodylus niloticus was observed preying on a live neonate bull shark which it swallowed whole. This observation provided the first photographic evidence in Africa and highlighted a unique interaction between these species, which are top predators in the&nbsp; freshwater and coastal environments, respectively. Estuaries remain important nursery habitats for bull sharks in the region and we assembled the known records of bull shark occurrence in all South African estuaries. In summary, the rapid recruitment of bull shark pups into St Lucia Estuary is notable for the management and conservation implications for this important estuarine system, as well as for regional bull shark populations

Bull shark Carcharhinus leucas recruitment into the St Lucia Estuary, South Africa, after prolonged mouth closure, and the first observation of a neonate bull shark preyed on by a Nile crocodile Crocodylus niloticus

Estuaries provide critical nursery habitat for juvenile bull sharks Carcharhinus leucas, as they have the ability to withstand a wide range of salinities. St Lucia is the largest estuarine lake in Africa and was once a key nursery for bull sharks until a prolonged and near-continuous period of mouth closure and drought between 2002 and 2021. The estuary mouth was opened for the first time in 13 years on 6 January 2021, and, within 10 days, bull shark pups recruited into the estuary. On 16 January, an adult Nile crocodile Crocodylus niloticus was observed preying on a live neonate bull shark which it swallowed whole. This observation provided the first photographic evidence in Africa and highlighted a unique interaction between these species, which are top predators in the freshwater and coastal environments, respectively. Estuaries remain important nursery habitats for bull sharks in the region and we assembled the known records of bull shark occurrence in all South African estuaries. In summary, the rapid recruitment of bull shark pups into St Lucia Estuary is notable for the management and conservation implications for this important estuarine system, as well as for regional bull shark populations