Restoring Nature with Traditional Wisdom

On February 28th, we hosted this year’s first community webinar: an enlightening conversation spotlighting the rich traditional wisdom of indigenous peoples and local communities in nature stewardship. We had the privilege of hearing from Santiago Roa Duque of Jaguar Siembra and Leitoro Adrian of Nature and People as One (NaPO), who shared their profound connections and work with their communities.

Santiago Roa Duque: Harmony with Nature

Santiago, a Colombian Sierra Nevada-based creative director and researcher, discussed the four indigenous communities known as 'the elder brothers.' He highlighted their millennia-old coexistence with nature, emphasizing the interconnection between food production, a healthy body making healthy decisions, and ecological balance. Santiago also highlighted the cascading, negative effects of monocultures and advocated for organic, holistic approaches to agriculture that align with natural cycles. He also shared about the indigenous practice of science through deep observation and interaction with their environment. Last but not least, he shared about the power of storytelling and art to spread indigenous wisdom and practices with the world, as exemplified by the poignant video Yuli and the Cacao Food Forest: The story of trees and regeneration.

Leitoro Adrian: Community-Driven Conservation Leitoro Adrian, hailing from Kenya's Marsabit region, spoke about NaPO's collaborative efforts with the Rendille and Samburu communities for inclusive conservation and landscape restoration. He explained the importance of the Rendille term 'napo' and the Samburu word 'ramat,' which respectively reflect the community's governance practices and their care for livelihoods and the nature they depend on. Highlighting the challenges of dryland restoration, Leitoro emphasized the value of protecting wildlings and respecting local knowledge and norms in selecting species for conservation. He celebrated herders as custodians of biodiversity and community engagement in conservation efforts. For more on NaPO's impactful work, check out NaPO's projects.

Takeaways The speakers emphasized the importance of integrating local and traditional ecological knowledge for effective nature stewardship, demonstrating that community-driven approaches yield the most fruitful outcomes.

Missed the webinar? Catch up on the enriching perspectives shared in the webinar through our YouTube recording.

Imagery Courtesy of NaPO.