TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE SYSTEMS
Throughout time, cultures have obtained and categorized knowledge about their
environments. The vast majority of this knowledge was unwritten, passed verbally from generation to generation. The amount of knowledge is staggering. Individuals
in traditional cultures usually know a great deal about the environment,
as they work in it every day. Many hold specialized knowledge relating to
medicine, religion, or other fields. The practical applications of traditional
knowledge and wisdom have attracted ecological scientists as well as anthropologists
(see Ford and Martinez 2000). However, intellectual property rights remain
an issue in regard to this knowledge (Posey 2001; also see the special issue
of Cultural Survival Quarterly, vol. 24, no. 4, 2001).
All of the information (data) obtained through perception (e.g., vision and
hearing) are subject to cognitive interpretation and filtration in the mind of the
observer/player. Cognition, the way a culture views things, is an integral part of
any information system and must be taken into consideration in any analysis.
Classification systems are part of the cognitive doctrine of all cultures and are
important analytical elements (see below).
Each culture has a system by which knowledge is obtained, that is, a science.
As noted in chapter 1, modern science is strictly empirical and requires that a
specific method be used in scientific inquiry. All traditional cultures also use empirical
science, and all recognize objective realities. Relatively few use the strict
formal method of Western science, but considerable experimentation occurs in
traditional science, although written records are generally lacking. If one were to
de-emphasize methods and concentrate on results, the contribution would be
rightly viewed as staggering. A traditional doctor might not be able to explain the
specific chemical properties of the substances used but clearly understands the
results.
An example of such scientific understanding may be found with the Navajo
(see Grady 1993; Schwarz 1995). In 1991, healthy Navajo people in the southwestern
United States were dying from a mysterious disease. After considerable
scientific effort, the culprit was found to be a hantavirus carried by deer mice
(Peromyscus maniculatus). The virus was spread to humans through exposure to
mouse urine and saliva. An examination of traditional Navajo beliefs, much of
which was conducted by Navajo trained in Western medicine, showed that they
recognized mice as disease carriers and took special precautions to protect themselves
from mouse urine and saliva. This knowledge appears to be centuries old,
indicating that Navajo science had identified the vector (mice) and had developed
precautions to avoid getting the disease. Navajo elders blamed the recent
outbreak on the movement away from traditional beliefs.
Many cultures also include a nonempirical aspect in their science. Nonempirical
data are those that are not physical, are not objective, cannot be reproduced,and are not subject to verification by experimentation. Generally, nonempirical
knowledge is gained by specific individuals under special circumstances. The use
of a hallucinogenic substance is a common method by which to gain such knowledge.
In some cultures, such knowledge has an equal, and sometimes privileged,
status with empirical knowledge. Much religious behavior and belief is nonempirical,
being based on faith. Interestingly, despite the pervasiveness of empirical
science in Western society, many westerners include a great deal of nonempirical
belief in their lives, with psychic readings and astrology being very popular.
Few traditional cultures adhere to the rigorous requirements of Western science,
and many Western scientists consider the scientific practices and knowledge
of traditional cultures to be inferior (in much the same way as the other
components of their cultures are viewed by Westerners) and so ignore their results.
However, much of the traditional knowledge base has been utilized by
Western science, and now a serious concern exists regarding the intellectual
property rights of the traditional peoples who amassed the knowledge (Brush
and Stabinsky 1996). In particular, considerable traditional medical lore has been
appropriated by multinational drug companies, without compensation. Worldwide,
legal authorities are debating the proper course of action—how to extend
something like copyright laws to unwritten traditions. One could argue, and indeed
many have, that native knowledge is being stolen without compensation to
the holder of the knowledge, a sort of copyright or patent infringement. Many
see this as an extension of Western colonial practices and a further exploitation
of traditional peoples.Ways to deal with this problem have been suggested (Laird
2002).
As traditional cultures disappear, much of their knowledge is lost. Thus, the
recording of traditional knowledge is a critical concern in anthropology (e.g.,
Nazarea 1998, 1999) and in science in general. Even if traditional knowledge does
not fit that ofWestern science, it is still of great interest to anthropologists trying
to understand how a culture operated. As cultural ecologists, we want to know
how a culture interacted with its environment, and so it is necessary to understand
how a culture knows that environment.