ABSTRACT Climate change is considered by many to be one of the greatest challenges to humanity, with Africa seen as one of the most affected continents. There is a growing recognition that purely scientific and modern approaches alone are not enough to mitigate the “multiple stresses” of climate change in Africa. Nonetheless, the dominant thinking in climate change science appears to treat indigenous approaches to climate change impact mitigation as primitive or backward. Even though the debate around indigenous knowledge systems is a contentious one, some scholars have acknowledged that, if well harnessed, indigenous knowledge systems can help in empowering local communities to mitigate climate change impacts. This paper is based on findings from a study of climate change awareness and adaptation strategies in rural and peri-urban communities in East London and Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape, South Africa. Based on empirical research with 140 respondents, the study found that indigenous knowledge plays an important role in the ways local residents adapt to, and in some ways curb, the adverse impacts of climate change. The paper highlights the relevance of indigenous African knowledge in climate change impact mitigation and the need to combine modern global approaches with indigenous knowledge to better handle climate change-related challenges.

中文翻译：

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本土知识，全球无知？东开普气候变化研究的见解

摘要 许多人认为气候变化是人类面临的最大挑战之一，非洲被视为受影响最严重的大陆之一。人们越来越认识到，仅靠纯粹的科学和现代方法不足以缓解非洲气候变化的“多重压力”。尽管如此，气候变化科学的主导思想似乎将本土减缓气候变化影响的方法视为原始或落后。尽管围绕土著知识体系的辩论是有争议的，但一些学者承认，如果利用得当，土著知识体系可以帮助增强当地社区的能力，以减轻气候变化的影响。本文基于对东伦敦和南非东开普省伊丽莎白港的农村和城郊社区的气候变化意识和适应策略的研究结果。该研究基于对 140 名受访者的实证研究，发现土著知识在当地居民适应和遏制气候变化不利影响的方式中发挥着重要作用。该文件强调了非洲土著知识在减缓气候变化影响方面的相关性，以及将现代全球方法与土著知识相结合以更好地应对气候变化相关挑战的必要性。并在某些方面遏制气候变化的不利影响。该文件强调了非洲土著知识在减缓气候变化影响方面的相关性，以及将现代全球方法与土著知识相结合以更好地应对气候变化相关挑战的必要性。并在某些方面遏制气候变化的不利影响。该文件强调了非洲土著知识在减缓气候变化影响方面的相关性，以及将现代全球方法与土著知识相结合以更好地应对气候变化相关挑战的必要性。