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VI. Conclusions
To conclude, indigenous know ledge and pract ices on f orest land m anagem ent , such as rot at ional farm ing, have proven t o be sust ainable and in line w ith clim at e change adapt at ion and m it igat ion
st rat egies even t hough com m unit ies are not aw are or conscious of ‘clim at e change’ causes and effect s. Their t radit ional pract ices, based on t his st udy, have show n t o help m aint ain t he balance bet w een
carbon st orage and em ission from slash and burn farm ing.
A. Indigenous Know ledge IK and Local know ledge or LAAM As
In general, t he body of know ledge on ecology relat ed t o t he w ay of life of t he Pgaz K’ Nyau is a result of accum ulat ed experiences in ecological m anagem ent spanning several generations, and
ext ract ed in t he form of TajDuf const raining rules based on beliefs t hat regulat e t he relat ionship bet w een people and ecological syst em . Such rules guide t he people’s every life
pract ice in ut ilizing or t aking care of t he ecological syst em in a suit able and balanced w ays.. The belief t hat hum ans and nat ure have t o coexist wit h each ot her has been reflect ed in m any Pgaz
K’ Nyau sayings such as, “ t hose w ho follow t he rules ar e t hose w ho are free from danger.”
M eanw hile, Pgaz K’ Nyau w ho live in different ecological condit ions w ould assign t he significance of t he condit ion in different w ays. The rules and regulat ions have been based on t he
cust om s and t radit ions w hich serve as t he spirit ual foundat ion connect ing t o holy beings t hat
affect people’s life in every dim ension. To t hem , the cultural landscape w as designat ed as
sacred based on t heir pract ices and cult ural values. Consequent ly, t hey have est ablished rules and regulat ions adapt ed from t radit ions and cust om s t o cont rol, regulat e, and m anage it
t hroughout t he com m unit y’s hist ory. M ae Lan Kham com m unit y is est im at ed t o have been inhabit ed 300– 400 years ago. The t im e period is long enough t o assure t he sust ainabilit y of t he
sacred area. From t he perspect ive of carbon reduct ion, t he com m unit y’s m anagem ent of t he forest is very relevant . When t he forest is conserved, t he t rees release oxygen w hile absorbing
t he carbon dioxide. As long as t he forest exist s, t his chem ical process cont inues leading t o t he decrease of carbon em issions, event ually decreasing global w arm ing.
B. Carbon stock accounting in rotational farming
The rot at ional cropping w it h t he cycle of eight years is likely t o m aint ain t he balance bet w een carbon st orage in t he field for t he period of 3-7 years and carbon em ission from slash-and-burn.
The effect ive carbon m anagem ent such as t he use of w ood w it hout burning helps reduce em ission, leading t o carbon-balanced com m unit ies and st ock enhancem ent . The rot at ional
cropping field w it h carbon-balanced cycle m ust be prom ot ed. The challenge rem ains of how t he reduced cycle affect s carbon balance. The shift t o m onocult ure has not only led t o t he loss of
carbon balance but also ot her environm ent al problem s such as soil erosion, chem ical pollut ion in upst ream ecosyst em , loss of biodiversit y and local food plant species, et c. Therefore, t he
policies should priorit ize and prom ot e t he rot at ional cropping syst em m anagem ent , a sust ainable agro-forest ry t hat int egrat es local pract ices and cult ural dim ension.
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VII. Recommendations
The recom m endat ions in t his st udy focus on t he indigenous and local know ledge on forest and agricult ural land m anagem ent ; and on carbon st ock account ing on rot at ional farm ing from t he point of
view of t he villagers, and t he researchers respect ively.
A. Indigenous Know ledge IK and Local know ledge or LAAM As
At present , som e people have already convert ed t o ot her religion or m arried w it h som eone belongs t o anot her fait h in M ae Lan Kham com m unit y. M ost m odern religions do not alw ays
accept cert ain beliefs in holy beings. Villagers at Ban Klaukleifklo w ho had convert ed int o ot her religions, oft en encroached t he forest at Tajdeidof large wind-reducing area and cleared sm all
t rees under t he forest t o grow coffee w it hout regard for t he holy beings t here. It has t riggered t he discussion am ong t he villagers t o t he point of reviewing t he plans t o m ore effect ively
m anage t he sacred land. The landscape areas t hat have t hese charact erist ics are widely recognized in t he com m unit y and cared for based on t radit ions and cust om s passed on from
generat ion t o generat ion. They have pract iced t hese beliefs in t heir everyday life ever since. The com m unit y m em bers have met and discussed t o com e up w it h t he solut ion and t he process
for m anaging t he nat ural resources as follow s:
Survey sacred areas using GPS t o com e up w it h a reliable and valid m ap.
Work t oget her in issuing rules and regulat ions and reach a consensus t o enforce t hem by set t ing up signs and land m arkers w it h t he ow ner’s nam e.
Organize t he act ivit ies t o revit alize t he t radit ional rit uals and act ivit ies and m odify t hem t o fit t he current sit uat ion and present cont ext s.
Gat her and organize inform at ion on t he sacred areas including t he villagers’ encount ers w it h holy beings t o signify t hat t heir pract ices are based on t radit ional beliefs, and t o
ensure t hat t he people w ill cont inue t o respect t he holy beings in t he fut ure. In t he effort s t o reforest t he areas, in addit ion t o t aking care of t he forest , and discouraging t he
people in m isusing t he forest and prevent ing w ild fire, plans t o reforest by grow ing t rees and plant s t o sust ain t he fert ilit y of t he forest m ust be draf t ed.
B. Carbon stock accounting in rotational farming
Furt her st udy is recomm ended in t he perm anent plot t o generat e clearer dat a, especially t he accum ulat ion of carbon quant it y in rot at ional fields of each age class. In addit ion, t he
com parat ive st udy on t he different im pact s of long and short cycles on carbon balance, biodiversit y, food securit y and cult ure should be conduct ed. These st udies w ill be beneficial t o
t he adapt at ion st rat egies and t he im provem ent of rot at ional cropping syst em m anagem ent in t he cont ext of clim at e and socio-econom ic change.
The policies should priorit ize and prom ot e t he rot at ional cropping syst em m anagem ent ; a sust ainable agro-forest ry t hat int egrat es local cult ural dim ension. In considerat ion of t he
findings, t he proposed approaches in rot at ional cropping m anagem ent of t he com m unit y are present ed below .
1. For clim at e change m it igat ion, t he cycle of m ore t han 7 years should be m aint ained as t his can st ore a large am ount of carbon and provide usable w ood for const ruct ion and ot her
13 product s. Greenhouse gas em ission from burning can be reduced and st ored longer in t he
product w hich is am ong one of t he 5 carbon pools. 2. For clim at e change adapt at ion, t he com m unit y should conserve t he local plant species and
st ock food seeds such as rice, veget ables, t aro, pot at o, et c. This is needed for cult ivat ion during t he period of clim at e variabilit y. M oreover, t he st aple food and usable w ood plant at ion is
recom m ended t o supplem ent t he nat ural forest s around t he com m unit y in t he form of agro- forest ry w hich can be a reserved food source.
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