Indigenous Knowledge for Millennium Development Goals: 5 Days at a Glance Day 1:
Introduction: Indigenous Knowledge and the Millennium Development Goals Day 2:
Indigenous Knowledge and Healthcare:
Combat HIV/AIDS & Improve Maternal Mortality Day 3:
Indigenous Knowledge, Agriculture and Biodiversity Conservation:
Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger & Ensure Environmental Sustainability Day 4:
Validation and Protection of Indigenous Knowledge:
Develop a Global Partnership for Development Day 5: An Action Plan
National and Community Level Strategies Introduction: Overview of Indigenous Knowledge and the Millennium Development Goals Objectives
The objective of this module is to provide an overview of the course and help the participants understand how IK can be used to help achieve the MDGs. Each local facilitator will briefly introduce the participants from each center to help them get to know each other. This will be followed by four presentations by the local facilitators to provide the participants with an overview of the status of IK in each country (India, Sri Lanka, Uganda and Tanzania). This will provide the context to help the participants start to think of ways of building on these experiences to incorporate IK into their work. Course overview
Nicolas Gorjestani (ppt), World Bank Indigenous Knowledge Program Director, Washington DC Country presentations
Sri Lanka (ppt): Mrs. Hemanthi Ranasinghe, Sri Lanka Resource Centre for IK, Colombo;
National Policy on Indigenous Systems of Medicine in Sri Lanka (pdf)
Uganda (ppt): Mrs. Joyce Mwanga, Uganda National Council for Science and Technology (ppt), Kampala; Overview of IK Applications in Uganda
Overview of IK Applications in Uganda
India (pdf): Dr. Darshan Shankar, Foundation for Revitalization of Local Health Traditions, Delhi
Tanzania (ppt): Mr. George Shemdoe, Council for Science and Technology, Dar es Salaam Videos
President Mkapa of Tanzania highlights the importance of IK for Africa's development Using local knowledge on medicinal plants and seeds to help achieve the MDGs At the end of the module, participants should be able to: Understand how to address development challenges through the unique perspective of Indigenous Knowledge (IK) Appreciate the role of IK in helping achieve the Millennium Development Goals Focus on success stories in using IK to help increase food security and agricultural productivity, reduce maternal mortality and treat opportunistic diseases associated with HIV/AIDS - Learn from the experiences of India, Sri Lanka, Uganda and Tanzania to help scale up IK practices from the grass roots to the policy level
- Think of ways to incorporate IK into their programs/ policies and promote South-South dialogue/ cooperation among IK practitioners and institutions
Learning Methods
The module is delivered via distance learning technologies:
Synchronous learning: video conference presentation (speaker, case study and video film) and inter active discussion between participants from East Africa and South Asia.
Asynchronous learning: preparation assignments, online course material, E-discussions and reading materials. Duration
1 day: 2 hrs Synchronous learning and 1.5 hrs Asynchronous learning Module 1: Traditional medicine can help treat HIV/AIDS Objectives
The objective of this module is to provide evidence that traditional medicine can help combat HIV/AIDS. A case study will be used to demonstrate how traditional healers in the Tanga region of Tanzania have used herbal remedies to treat over 4000 AIDS patients of the opportunistic infections related to HIV/AIDS. The treatment is administered by an NGO - the Tanga AIDS Working Group (TAWG) in partnership with the regional hospital. It provides an affordable alternative to expensive drugs and prolongs the lives of patients. Speakers: Dr. Samwell Mtullu and Dr. Firmina Mberesero, Tanga AIDS Working Group At the end of the module, participants should be able to: Describe how traditional medicine can help combat HIV/AIDS through effective treatment of its opportunistic infections. Understand the need to strengthen linkages between traditional and modern health practitioners. Develop strategies to incorporate traditional medicine into National AIDS Programs. Promote South-South dialogue and cooperation to adapt the African model to combat the AIDS epidemic in South Asia and build on the regions Ayruvedic treatments.
Learning Methods
The module is delivered via distance learning technologies:
Synchronous learning: video conference presentation (speaker, case study and video film) and inter active discussion between participants from East Africa and South Asia.
Asynchronous learning: preparation assignments, online course material, E-discussions and reading materials. Duration
1 day: 2 hrs Synchronous learning and 1.5 hrs Asynchronous learning Course Materials • Presentation on the Tanga AIDS Working Group (Tanzania)
• Project Documentation
• IK Note (pdf)
• Video from the field (to download video to your desktop, click here).
• Debriefing to capture lessons of experience
• Additional Resources
Module 2: Traditional Birth Attendants (TBAs) can help decrease maternal mortality Objectives
The objective of this module is to provide evidence that TBAs can help reduce the high incidence of maternal mortality in developing countries. A case study will be used demonstrate how bridging the gap between traditional and modern health practitioners can help save lives. For example, ICTs (walkie talkies) were used to connect TBAs in rural areas and enable them to make easy referrals to district hospitals. In the Iganga district of Uganda, the process helped reduce maternal mortality rates by 50% in three years. Speaker: Dr. Francois Farah, United Nations Population Fund, New York At the end of the module, participants should be able to: Describe how traditional birth attendants can help save lives through effective application of their knowledge of traditional healthcare and practices. Understand the need to strengthen linkages between traditional and modern health practitioners in order to reduce maternal mortality rates. Develop strategies to integrate traditional and modern health practitioners through innovative and cost effective mechanisms such as ICTs at the project and policy levels. Promote South-South dialogue and cooperation to adapt the Iganga model to countries with high maternal mortality rates such as Afghanistan.
Learning Methods
The module is delivered via distance learning technologies:
Synchronous learning: video conference presentation (speaker, case study and video film) and inter active discussion between participants from East Africa and South Asia.
Asynchronous learning: preparation assignments, online course material, E-discussions and reading materials. Duration 1 day: 2 hrs Synchronous learning and 1.5 hrs Asynchronous learning Course Materials • Presentation on the Iganga District Project
• Project Documentation
• IK Note
• Video from the field
• Debriefing to capture lessons of experience
• Additional Resources
Module 3: Indigenous Knowledge can help raise agricultural productivity and incomes Objectives
The objective of this module is to demonstrate how traditional farming practices can help increase agricultural productivity and income. In the Sodic Lands Reclamation Project in India, farmers built on their traditional knowledge to help reclaim over 68, 000 hectares of land. They applied organic farming practices in place of chemical fertilizers and used Neem and rice husks to help eradicate brown plant hopper infestations. Agricultural yields and incomes consequently rose 60%. Women Self Help Groups also generated income through poultry farming and horticulture. These practices have become institutionalized and widely disseminated through local farmer's field schools. Speakers: Mr. Pravir Kumar and Mrs. Monika Garg, Uttar Pradesh Land Development Corporation, New Delhi At the end of the module, participants should be able to: Learning Methods
The module is delivered via distance learning technologies:
Synchronous learning: video conference presentation (speaker, case study and video film) and inter active discussion between participants from East Africa and South Asia.
Asynchronous learning: preparation assignments, online course material, E-discussions and reading materials. Duration
1 day: 2 hrs Synchronous learning and 1.5 hrs Asynchronous learning Course Materials
Module 4: Indigenous Knowledge can help conserve biodiversity and reduce poverty Objectives
The objective of this module is to demonstrate how natural resources can be used towards development without causing environmental degradation. The focus is on a project that has promoted the conservation and sustainable use of medicinal plants in Sri Lanka. The project has documented ancient medicinal knowledge and transferred it to younger generations; promoted the conservation and cultivation of medicinal plants; and developed a national biodiversity strategy. Speaker: Dr. Ranjith Mahindapala, International Union for Conservation of Nature, Bangkok At the end of the module, participants should be able to: Understand how to promote the conservation and cultivation of medicinal plants in local home gardens. Develop ways to document and preserve traditional knowledge related to diseases and their diagnosis, as well as prescriptions into local language databases. Support programs that enable the bearers of traditional knowledge, community elders, to transfer their skills to selected acolytes. Develop strategies to incorporate IK practices into natural resource management projects and policies.
Learning Methods
The module is delivered via distance learning technologies:
Synchronous learning: video conference presentation (speaker, case study and video film) and inter active discussion between participants from East Africa and South Asia.
Asynchronous learning: preparation assignments, online course material, E-discussions and reading materials. Duration
1 day: 2 hrs Synchronous learning and 1.5 hrs Asynchronous learning Course Materials • Presentation on the Medicinal Plants Project (Sri Lanka)
• Project Documentation
• IK Note
• Video from the field
• Debriefing to capture lessons of experience
Module 5: Scientific validation of indigenous knowledge and practices
The case of traditional medicine from Africa Objectives
The objective of this module is to address the challenges involved in the scientific validation of traditional medicine. How do we bring the two different worlds of scientists and traditional healers together and ensure that both their concerns are addressed through formal scientific processes and informal traditional forms of validation. A number of organizations are helping to address these concerns such as the WHO and Councils for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) by focusing on the safety and efficacy of traditional medicine. The US National Institutes of Health has sponsored projects that seek to validate herbal treatments used by local healers to treat the opportunistic infections related HIV/AIDS. This module will highlight how this process has worked with regards to medicinal plants used to treat cancer. Speaker: Dr. Gordon Cragg, National Institutes of Health, Washington, D.C. At the end of the module, participants should be able to: - Identify the main challenges involved in validating traditional medicine and understand the needs of traditional healers and scientists involved in the process.
- Understand community based informal systems of validation, in addition to scientific approaches that focus on safety and efficacy.
- Identify approaches that bring these two worlds together and draw lessons from successful partnerships between scientists and traditional healers.
- Develop a collective validation process to help award due recognition and credibility to IK practices and integrate them into development polices and projects.
Learning Methods
The module is delivered via distance learning technologies:
Synchronous learning: video conference presentation (speaker, case study and video film) and inter active discussion between participants from East Africa and South Asia.
Asynchronous learning: preparation assignments, online course material, E-discussions and reading materials. Duration
1 day: 2 hrs Synchronous learning and 1.5 hrs Asynchronous learning Course Materials • Presentation on scientific validation of traditional medicine (pdf)
• Literature Review (pdf)
• Summary of WHO resources and recommendations (pdf)
• CSIR and the San community of Namibia (pdf)
• CSIR and the Ayurvedic system of medicine in India (pdf)
• TRAMIL: Lessons from Latin America (pdf)
Module 6: Protecting the intellectual property rights of IK practitioners
The Kani tribe benefit sharing model from India Objectives
The objective of this module is to introduce the concept of intellectual property and the challenges of protecting indigenous knowledge. Intellectual property is a means of acquiring ownership over an intangible resource and involves the protection of inventions created by the human mind (music, novels, drugs, IK). Intellectual property rights (IPRs) confer ownership rights on the inventors of new innovation (process) or product, enabling them to profit from its commercial use. The module will idenifity the IPR needs of local communities and explore strategies to address these at the local and international levels. Lessons of experience will be drawn from international organizations and case studies including the Kani tribe benefit sharing model from India. Speakers: Dr. Anthony Taubman, World Intellectual Property Organization, Geneva and Dr. G. M. Nair, Tropical Botanic Garden Institute, New Delhi At the end of the module, participants should be able to: Understand the strengths and limitations of intellectual property rights protection for IK. Identify the options for protecting IK under the WTO TRIPS Agreement (patents, copyrights, trademarks, geographical indications, trade secrets and sui generis systems). Assess the effectiveness of the UN Convention on Biodiversity (CBD) framework for regulating access and fair and equitable benefit sharing from indigenous knowledge and resources. Identify appropriate mechanisms for addressing the legal and economic concerns of IK practitioners related to the protection of IK through national legislation and the work being done by international organizations such as WIPO. Develop partnerships to replicate and scale up successful approaches towards the protection of IK such as the Kani tribe benefit sharing model.
Learning Methods
The module is delivered via distance learning technologies:
Synchronous learning: video conference presentation (speaker, case study and video film) and inter active discussion between participants from East Africa and South Asia.
Asynchronous learning: preparation assignments, online course material, E-discussions and reading materials. Duration
1 day: 2 hrs Synchronous learning and 1.5 hrs Asynchronous learning Course Materials • Presentation by WIPO (ppt)
• WIPO Guidelines (pdf)
• WIPO-UNEP Study (pdf)
• Presentation by TBGRI (ppt)
• Kani Tribe benefit sharing model (pdf)
• IK Notes 19 and 61 (pdf)
• Recommendations by the Africa Group to the WTO (pdf)
Module 7: Developing national strategies to mainstream IK at the policy level -- The experiences of Uganda and India (Kerala) Objectives
The objective of this module is to provide a road map to help development practitioners and policy makers to work together to scale up IK practices from the grass roots to the policy level. To facilitate the process, the World Bank has sponsored national stakeholder workshops in India, Sri Lanka, Uganda and Tanzania, bringing together IK practitioners, NGOs, academia, civil society, national research institutions and government officials. The workshops help to identify the overall needs of different stakeholders, formulate a strategy to address these needs and identify a national champion that could oversee the implementation of the strategy. In Uganda for instance, the National Council for Science and Technology (UNCST) has begun to implement a national IK strategy that has been institutionalized in the country’s Poverty Eradication Action Plan (PEAP). In India, the Government of Kerala has integrated IK into the state’s 10th Five Year Plan and allocated budgetary resources to initiate pilot projects. Speakers: Ms. Joyce Mwanga, Uganda National Council for Science and Technology
Dr. G.M. Nair, Tropical Botanic Garden Research Institute, New Delhi At the end of the module, participants should be able to: - Understand how a national IK strategy can provide a framework and platform to support and scale up grass roots IK practices into mainstream development
- Start networking with other individuals and institutions working on IK related activities in the country and foster partnerships for sharing experiences and resources
- Identify a high profile national champion and sponsor that can be a local and national spokesperson for IK
- Mobilize resources to initiate IK related activities in individual work programs, partner organizations and at the regional and national levels
- Develop partnerships for cross regional exchanges between IK practitioners from different regions to share experiences, learn from each other and undertake joint activities.
Learning Methods
The module is delivered via distance learning technologies:
Synchronous learning: video conference presentation (speaker, case study and video film) and inter active discussion between participants from East Africa and South Asia. Asynchronous learning: preparation assignments, online course material, E-discussions and reading materials. Duration
1 day: 2 hrs Synchronous learning and 1.5 hrs Asynchronous learning Course Materials • Presentation on IK in Uganda
• Presentation on IK in Kerala
• How did Uganda do it? Report; Video
• How did Kerala do it? Workshop Report; Video
• Guidelines for developing a National Strategy on IK
Module 8: Local level strategies to mainstream IK at the grass roots
Examples of community-to-community exchanges Objectives
The objective of this module is to demonstrate how local communities can advance their own development by sharing experiences and learning from each other. The World Bank has sponsored a number of community exchanges to help local communities build their own capacity to exchange effective IK practices related to agriculture, healthcare and the environment. The community-to-community (C2C) exchanges typically try to match knowledge seekers with knowledge providers to help (i) increase the knowledge base of all participants, (ii) empower them to envisage other options, and (iii) engage scientists, politicians and IK practitioners on an equal footing. A pilot community exchange held in South Africa in 2001, enabled a group of tea farmers in the Cape province to secure a $15,000 export contract from the EU. Speaker: Mr. Noel Oettle, Environmental Monitoring Group, Cape Town At the end of the module, participants should be able to: - Understand the value of using the C2C exchange process to help local communities empower themselves and promote community driven development
- Test out the Community Exchange Toolkits developed by EMG and the World Bank by adapting these to individual projects involving local communities and NGOs working on health, agriculture and environmental management.
- Develop a pilot project to use the community exchange model to promote a bottom up approach to solving development challenges, through learning from local communities.
- Adapt these guidelines to help forge partnerships between development practitioners and policy makers to work together towards using IK to help achieve the MDGs.
Learning Methods
The module is delivered via distance learning technologies:
Synchronous learning: video conference presentation (speaker, case study and video film) and inter active discussion between participants from East Africa and South Asia.
Asynchronous learning: preparation assignments, online course material, E-discussions and reading materials. Duration
1 day: 2 hrs Synchronous learning and 1.5 hrs Asynchronous learning Course Materials • Presentation on the Community Exchange Process (ppt)
• Community Knowledge Exchange Toolkit
• Community Exchanges: India, Sri Lanka, Malawi
• Video from Pilot Community Exchange in South Africa
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