Traditional ecological knowledge in the Peruvian Andes : practice, synergies, and sustainability

Abstract

This thesis presents a theoretical discussion on the role of Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) in livelihood activities and resilience strategies of the Indigenous peoples of the Peruvian Andes and the possibility of creating synergies with Western science. Using two case studies, from the Potato Park in Pisaq and the Chalakuy Maize Park in Lares, Cusco Region, it reviews how this ancestral knowledge is converted into practice by its holders to cultivate and protect the potato and maize varieties of the Andean highlands. The Quechua values of community, reciprocity, complementarity and solidarity are also considered, as they play an important role in the governance structures and the redistributive mechanisms of the parks. The study then examines how the collaboration with civil society and science practitioners has sparked innovation, improved the resilience of these communities to climate change and established the parks as Biocultural Heritage Territories for the protection of the Andean biodiversity. The analysis of the case studies demonstrates that TEK is a living, highly adaptable and valid source of information and practices of ecosystem management and climate-change adaptation for its holders. It may, however, be unsuitable to solve global sustainability problems due to its local and context-specific nature. The thesis concludes that TEK can, however, offer much-needed reflections on how to reconsider the anthropocentric view of Western science and capitalism, and rediscover a long-lost connection with our roots and a renewed respect for the natural world.