|
Director, World Storytelling Institute eric@storytellinginstitute.org 98403 94282 (Chennai) Date: 19 May 2013 "Ways Tribal People Could Develop their
Cultures" Tribal people are living-links with the past. For examples: often their histories are
related to ancient kings, and their dialects contain elements of ancient
language. It is now widely-accepted that Biological diversity is
healthy for the environment. For
examples: diversified plant-life cleans the air, keeps moisture in the area,
and keeps ground soil in place.
Biological, Linguistic, and Cultural diversity are intertwined and are
mutually supportive: tribal people have been living sustainably in nature for
tens of thousands of years. Over this
time, they have developed a great deal of knowledge about nature, including
about medicinal uses of plants and flowers. Thus, it may be beneficial to all of the people of India
-- and of the entire world -- for tribal people who live in forest areas to
remain in place and to continue developing their nature-related cultures. Ways for tribal people to contribute to the larger society
include: 1 Storytelling Festivals Including stories relating to nature (Animal fables,
Raja-Rani stories, Grandmother stories, Local legends, etc). These stories could entertain the public,
and could also educate the public about aspects of the forest. Translation could be provided, including
typed-translation (in English and other languages) projected onto
screens. 2 Living Museums In such museums, the objects on display are still in
everyday use, and members of the community could act as guides, explaining
about the objects. Tribal arts and
crafts could be displayed. Many tribal
crafts involve the use of plant materials: bark, wood, leaves, vines, etc. 3 Storytelling Tour-Guides Community members could be trained in storytelling in relation
to the objects in the Living Museum, and the history of the people and the
land. Storytelling tour-guides could
tell stories about plants kept in pots, and could also lead "Nature
Walks" in parks and other publicly-accessible places. Such activities could be parts of
community-based Eco-Tourism. Ways for tribal people to develop their cultures
internally include: 1 Annual Visits to Forest Locations Young members of tribal communities could be taken on
annual visits to the forest. In these
camps, tribal elders could teach the youngsters about traditional
nature-related knowledge. 2 After-School Programs Young members of tribal communities could be taught about
the traditional culture, at times in the tribal dialect, in after-school
programs, with Government support (use of school facilities, etc). People
tend to abandon a culture if the culture does not bring them any income, or
help them with their livelihood. Thus,
if tribal cultures are to survive, ways need to be found by which these
cultures could generate some income for members of the community. Many of the above-mentioned ideas are already being
implemented by tribal organisations.
One such organisation in India, Acoustic Traditional, produces an
annual Festival of Indigenous
Storytellers, along with other projects. <end> |