2.2. Indigenous Knowledge and Cultural Insights

But it was also about the you know, the ways how it is communicated like he discussed about the hearing. And how the information is passed on, reading you know, so this whole networks how these NGOs and outsiders you know how, this social capital is social network of hearing is effectively used. So basically the NGOs, how the central persons of the NGOs and as well as you know, some community members how they are also linked with these networks.

This chunk discusses how information is communicated within communities, particularly through the efforts of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs). It highlights the role of social networks in sharing knowledge, emphasizing that both NGOs and community members play vital roles in these connections. Effective communication and social networks are crucial for disseminating important information, especially in times of crisis.

Imagine a sports team's strategy session. The coach (like the NGO) communicates strategies not just to the players (community members) but also involves team managers and support staff (other stakeholders). Everyone's insights create a stronger game plan, just like how effective communication in networks helps in managing risks better.

If a similar networks, if we have that during the tsunami, 2004 tsunami it took 3 others to reach, the Indian Ocean tsunami to reach the Tamil Nadu, if this similar networks would have implemented we would have saved many lives, we would have saved many losses.

This part reflects on the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami and suggests that if effective communication and social networks had been in place, many lives could have potentially been saved. It underscores the importance of preparedness and the implementation of existing networks to respond swiftly to disasters.

Consider a fire drill in a school. If students and teachers are not aware of escape routes or alarm sounds, their response will be slow, and this can lead to chaos. However, if everyone is trained and knows what to do, lives can be saved. This highlights the critical role of pre-established communication networks during emergencies.

We also discussed about the climate change adaptation so you know, the scale of climate change and what are the challenges between. Why we are unable to integrate, properly integrate the DRR and the climate change adaptation because there are scale mismatches. There are spatial scale challenges, there are knowledge mismatches and there also the temporary challenges and mismatches between norms.

Here, the discussion focuses on the difficulties in integrating Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) with climate change adaptation. It identifies various mismatches, such as scale (local vs. global), spatial factors (geographical differences), and knowledge gaps that hinder this integration. Understanding these challenges is crucial for creating effective strategies to address climate change impacts.

Think about a jigsaw puzzle where some pieces don’t fit together because they are from different puzzles. Similarly, integrating DRR and climate change efforts is like trying to piece together information from different sources that do not align perfectly, leading to difficulties in creating a complete picture.

And this is where we relate to the discussions of climate change and culture you know, in the Regina Lims work of Philippines so where, how the indigenous communities have the knowledge on their sea and their fishing grounds and the impact, what they are seeing and how the foreign fisherman, how they are able to not understand this indigenous knowledge and have not creating a lot of impact.

This chunk highlights the essential role that indigenous knowledge plays in understanding environmental changes, especially regarding climate and fishing practices. It points out that local communities have a profound understanding of their ecosystems, which is often overlooked by outsiders, including foreign fishermen. Respecting and utilizing indigenous knowledge can lead to better environmental stewardship and adaptation strategies.

Think of an old family recipe passed down through generations. The recipe might include specific local ingredients and cooking methods that an outsider wouldn’t understand or appreciate. Similarly, indigenous knowledge about the sea and fishing is deeply rooted in local experiences and practices that outsiders might miss, leading to less effective environmental management.

And this is where we discussed about the frameworks of adaptive built environment which my ongoing work about how to integrate different scales from a larger scale to a building scale and also different time phases, which is the pre-disaster to the future risk, the post-disaster and the future risk and how the vulnerability assessment, how it can be carried by macro, meso and the micro-levels.

This section introduces the concept of an adaptive built environment, emphasizing the importance of assessing vulnerability at multiple levels—macro (large), meso (community), and micro (individual buildings). It also focuses on the importance of planning through different phases: before a disaster occurs, during, and after, to ensure resilience against future risks.

Imagine building a house in a flood-prone area. Before construction (pre-disaster), you must understand the flood patterns (macro) and how local infrastructure (meso) can support your house. After the flood (post-disaster), assessing the damage to your home (micro) helps you plan for better protection next time. This layered assessment ensures that the house is resilient in the face of future floods.

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