Keywords
Indigenous knowledge system · Gauteng Province · South Africa · Sustainable
agriculture
9.1
Introduction
The presence of indigenous knowledge systems (IKS) in communities that practise
such systems cannot be ignored as people of such communities have always gained
knowledge through experiences and practices they have engaged in for the longest of
time. The differentiating factor of these knowledge systems is that most of them are
not formally documented and their presence is more prevalent in storytelling and
practices. Human beings have been producing knowledge and strategies enabling
them to survive in a balanced relationship with their natural and social environment
over many centuries (de Guchteneire et al. 1999). Indigenous knowledge (IK) is
mainly tacit, unique, non-systematic, derived from local experiments, innovations,
creativity, skills, and experiences and embedded in the minds and activities of
communities with long histories of close interaction with the natural environment
across cultures and geographical spaces (Lwonga et al. 2011). These statements
briefly paint a picture of the characteristics of the type of knowledge system that is
present in communities; however, the majority of this type of knowledge system is
not documented formally, which influenced and encouraged the interest in the topic
and study.
The rapid development globally due to globalisation and urbanisation has created
serious challenges with regard to the usage and distribution of natural resources that
are currently at our disposal. These problems were identified in a United Nations
Development Programme (UNDP) report as cited by Gupta (2011): challenges of
global warming; rapid loss of biodiversity; crisis-prone financial markets; growing
international inequality; and the emergence of new drug-resistant disease strains and
genetic engineering. As a result of these challenges, communities frequently experience the need to go back to the knowledge repository, to access knowledge and
experiences that have been passed on from one generation to the next and to apply
these in their day-to-day practices and activities. Due to IKS being part of the way
communities engage and perform tasks, the usage and impact of it are not always
conscious and documented, for example, the knowledge of when to plant which crop
without referring to any documented material, natural ingredients to use for medicinal purposes, and techniques to preserve food using the sun, like dried “morogo”.
However, urbanisation and integration with other communities are increasing the
possibility of essential IKS being lost and not fully utilised.
The contributing factor to the reduction of the use of IK in communities can be
attributed to the shift from the extended family unit to nuclear families (smaller
family unit) and the latter engaging less with extended families. This results in the
weakening of links with the grandparent generation, who are the repository of much
knowledge and the second filial generation (the second and third generations in
9 Assessing the Impact of Indigenous Knowledge Systems on Sustainable. . .
185
Indigenous knowledge system · Gauteng Province · South Africa · Sustainable
agriculture
9.1
Introduction
The presence of indigenous knowledge systems (IKS) in communities that practise
such systems cannot be ignored as people of such communities have always gained
knowledge through experiences and practices they have engaged in for the longest of
time. The differentiating factor of these knowledge systems is that most of them are
not formally documented and their presence is more prevalent in storytelling and
practices. Human beings have been producing knowledge and strategies enabling
them to survive in a balanced relationship with their natural and social environment
over many centuries (de Guchteneire et al. 1999). Indigenous knowledge (IK) is
mainly tacit, unique, non-systematic, derived from local experiments, innovations,
creativity, skills, and experiences and embedded in the minds and activities of
communities with long histories of close interaction with the natural environment
across cultures and geographical spaces (Lwonga et al. 2011). These statements
briefly paint a picture of the characteristics of the type of knowledge system that is
present in communities; however, the majority of this type of knowledge system is
not documented formally, which influenced and encouraged the interest in the topic
and study.
The rapid development globally due to globalisation and urbanisation has created
serious challenges with regard to the usage and distribution of natural resources that
are currently at our disposal. These problems were identified in a United Nations
Development Programme (UNDP) report as cited by Gupta (2011): challenges of
global warming; rapid loss of biodiversity; crisis-prone financial markets; growing
international inequality; and the emergence of new drug-resistant disease strains and
genetic engineering. As a result of these challenges, communities frequently experience the need to go back to the knowledge repository, to access knowledge and
experiences that have been passed on from one generation to the next and to apply
these in their day-to-day practices and activities. Due to IKS being part of the way
communities engage and perform tasks, the usage and impact of it are not always
conscious and documented, for example, the knowledge of when to plant which crop
without referring to any documented material, natural ingredients to use for medicinal purposes, and techniques to preserve food using the sun, like dried “morogo”.
However, urbanisation and integration with other communities are increasing the
possibility of essential IKS being lost and not fully utilised.
The contributing factor to the reduction of the use of IK in communities can be
attributed to the shift from the extended family unit to nuclear families (smaller
family unit) and the latter engaging less with extended families. This results in the
weakening of links with the grandparent generation, who are the repository of much
knowledge and the second filial generation (the second and third generations in
9 Assessing the Impact of Indigenous Knowledge Systems on Sustainable. . .
185