Community Knowledge

Farmers in Nepal

Image: Woman with Cane Basket, Crates filled with oranges from orange orchards in Panauti Nepal. These orchards are sold by the farmers’ families while the profit goes to the landowners and they only earn a part of the profit made on the crop since they do not own the lands anymore due to brain-drain, high taxes and the push for privatization by the government.

Cloth as Vehicle of Malian Crisis

This large cotton boubou, well sewn, shows one of the designs that reflect the Malian crisis. The product comes from Douentza (located in the 5th region of Mali). The elements seen on the boubou illustrate the proliferation of the crisis. Each element is in the form of a hook and the two small dashes from top to bottom to show the continuation of the chain. The arrangement of the design forms a chain of problems.

Inter-Community Dialogue Around Rice: From Kokrajhar Workshop

The Kokrajhar workshop on rice revealed how urbanization and ‘modern’ non-agricultural lifestyle is putting pressure on the practice of rice cultivation. The space for transmitting indigenous knowledge system is shrinking and rice as a site of knowledge and meaning is being challenged, though it continues to be the main staple in the region. With growing number of younger people migrating to urban areas looking for job opportunities and the gradual spread of urbanization process, the biggest challenge is how to sustain productivitity.

Making Jou: Traditional Boro Rice Beer

Jou is the most favoured traditional brew of the Boro people in Assam. It has social, cultural and religious usage but jou for a long time was identified with the community. Particularly the Hindu caste society of Assam looked down upon the indigenous (tribal) people of Assam because of their traditional lifeways that involved making and drinking of jou. But for the Boros, no ritual and custom is complete without it. Traditionally, Boro women were expected to know how to make jou, and therefore, this community knowledge also is held by women.

Subscribe to RSS - Community Knowledge