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F. Gelves-Gómez and S. Brincat
as human-Nature relationships. Secondly, we analyse how such metaphysical ideas
are expressed within the most recent Fijian climate policy—both the Fiji National
Climate Change Policy (2018–2030) (hereafter The Policy) and the proposed Fiji’s
Climate Change Bill—showing how these are largely de-linked from the iTaukei
cosmological worldview. In our conclusion, we summarise key points in our discussion and speculate on how a more consistent appreciation of iTaukei metaphysics
articulated through the idea of vanua might be used to co-create adaption strategies
from within these belief-systems and therefore reach mana, ‘achieving its intended
purpose’ (Tomlinson 2009).
Metaphysics and the Cosmology of Nature in ITaukei Fiji
Metaphysics is the branch of philosophical enquiry into the fundamental nature of
reality—it grapples with ideas above/over (meta) the physical realm. All cosmologies
(or worldviews) have an ontology within them, an assumption of ‘what there is’,
containing metaphysical ideas as well. Whilst at a philosophical level, metaphysics
is focused on first-order principles (basic proposition or assumption that cannot
be deduced from any other proposition or assumption—see Aristotle 2018), at the
social level of the every-day, it is the common assumptions of one’s world—its
origins, types of being, and purposes—that give shape to forms of acting, being,
meaning, and thinking. What stems from this broad conception of metaphysics is
that traditional societies have a deep metaphysical basis for their worldview that is
no less complex merely because it may be expressed in myth and custom, cultural
practices, and ritual, rather than weighty tomes. Yet Western science, philosophy,
and policy are only beginning—and slowly—to engage with these metaphysical
traditions, let alone understand them. For instance, environmental policy is willing
to take from traditional ecological knowledge but largely unwilling to (re-)frame
itself from within this discourse and practice (Berkes 2018).
Metaphysical traditions must be understood in their own terms, inclusive of culture
and historical context. Yet, given the shared concern of metaphysics in determining
the nature of existence, different systems can dialogue with each other despite the
fact they also compete. Our chapter is not intended as deploying non-Western metaphysics to challenge Western metaphysics or vice versa, but to see how these relate
to the formation of climate adaptation policy within the particular cultural context of
the iTaukei of the present that, as we will see, is a hybrid system (as the vast majority
of metaphysical ideas are today). One of the key areas in which metaphysics meets
climate policy relates to the cosmological understandings of Nature itself: what there
is in the universe, what are its origins, and its development (and related questions as
to ‘why’ the universe is the way it is). Facets of these concerns are reflected in Fijian
F. Gelves-Gómez and S. Brincat
as human-Nature relationships. Secondly, we analyse how such metaphysical ideas
are expressed within the most recent Fijian climate policy—both the Fiji National
Climate Change Policy (2018–2030) (hereafter The Policy) and the proposed Fiji’s
Climate Change Bill—showing how these are largely de-linked from the iTaukei
cosmological worldview. In our conclusion, we summarise key points in our discussion and speculate on how a more consistent appreciation of iTaukei metaphysics
articulated through the idea of vanua might be used to co-create adaption strategies
from within these belief-systems and therefore reach mana, ‘achieving its intended
purpose’ (Tomlinson 2009).
Metaphysics and the Cosmology of Nature in ITaukei Fiji
Metaphysics is the branch of philosophical enquiry into the fundamental nature of
reality—it grapples with ideas above/over (meta) the physical realm. All cosmologies
(or worldviews) have an ontology within them, an assumption of ‘what there is’,
containing metaphysical ideas as well. Whilst at a philosophical level, metaphysics
is focused on first-order principles (basic proposition or assumption that cannot
be deduced from any other proposition or assumption—see Aristotle 2018), at the
social level of the every-day, it is the common assumptions of one’s world—its
origins, types of being, and purposes—that give shape to forms of acting, being,
meaning, and thinking. What stems from this broad conception of metaphysics is
that traditional societies have a deep metaphysical basis for their worldview that is
no less complex merely because it may be expressed in myth and custom, cultural
practices, and ritual, rather than weighty tomes. Yet Western science, philosophy,
and policy are only beginning—and slowly—to engage with these metaphysical
traditions, let alone understand them. For instance, environmental policy is willing
to take from traditional ecological knowledge but largely unwilling to (re-)frame
itself from within this discourse and practice (Berkes 2018).
Metaphysical traditions must be understood in their own terms, inclusive of culture
and historical context. Yet, given the shared concern of metaphysics in determining
the nature of existence, different systems can dialogue with each other despite the
fact they also compete. Our chapter is not intended as deploying non-Western metaphysics to challenge Western metaphysics or vice versa, but to see how these relate
to the formation of climate adaptation policy within the particular cultural context of
the iTaukei of the present that, as we will see, is a hybrid system (as the vast majority
of metaphysical ideas are today). One of the key areas in which metaphysics meets
climate policy relates to the cosmological understandings of Nature itself: what there
is in the universe, what are its origins, and its development (and related questions as
to ‘why’ the universe is the way it is). Facets of these concerns are reflected in Fijian