Traditional Land-Based Knowledge and Practice as Environmental Sustainability

Dear Colleagues,

Traditional land-based knowledge and practice (TLBKP), rooted in Indigenous and land-based communities' knowledge systems, is essential for developing environmental sustainability in the current polycrisis era. This era, marked by interconnected global challenges such as human-created climate change, biodiversity loss, and social inequities, requires holistic approaches that emphasize long-term environmental sustainability. TLBKP offers a critical understanding of the Earth as a living system interconnected with cultural and spiritual connections that guide environmental sustainability. For example, studies have shown that Indigenous land management practices, including controlled burns and rotational agriculture, enhance biodiversity and improve resilience against climate shocks (Berkes et al., 2000; Datta, 2024, 2020; Mistry and Berardi, 2016). Recognizing and integrating these time-tested practices is essential to counteract extractive practices that have led to ecological degradation (Kimmerer, 2013). The bridging of TLBS and Western scientific approaches can be transformative, creating comprehensive strategies that incorporate both empirical and Indigenous experiential knowledge (Nakata, 2007; Sutherland and Nichols, 2020). Following TLBKP frameworks that respect Indigenous sovereignty and promote knowledge exchange can lead to land-based environmental solutions (Whyte, 2013). For instance, co-management models of protected areas have shown significant promise in balancing conservation goals with community empowerment (Ban et al., 2018). The TLBKP not only enhances scientific understanding by providing multiple lenses for observation, but also upholds ethical considerations that recognize the rights and contributions of Indigenous peoples (Hill et al., 2020). TLBKP can foster resilient environmental stewardship that is both culturally relevant and scientifically sound, addressing the polycrisis through shared insights and cooperative action.

This Special Issue aims to showcase the significance of traditional land-based learning and practice in addressing pressing environmental challenges. By highlighting traditional knowledge systems, sustainable practices, and the deep relationality between Indigenous communities and their lands, this Special Issue will bridge gaps between Indigenous and academic perspectives. It seeks to create interdisciplinary dialog, inspire culturally grounded environmental policies, and challenge colonial environmental management, governance, and policies that have historically marginalized land-based minority and Indigenous contributions. This Special Issue will advance the understanding of how Indigenous land-based approaches can drive equitable, sustainable, and transformative solutions for global environmental resilience.

This Special Issue will cover, but is not limited to, the following themes:

• Reclaiming traditional land-based spirituality;
• Land back as climate action;
• Land-based spirituality is a proven science;
• Rethinking developments from land-based knowledge and practice;
• Land-based spirituality as biodiversity conservation;
• Decolonizing environmental sustainability through land-based learning;
• Relationality and reciprocity: principles of Indigenous environmental ethics;
• Land sovereignty as a pathway to sustainability;
• Healing the land: the role of indigenous ceremonies and spiritual practices in ecosystem restoration;
• Challenges and opportunities in integrating indigenous knowledge into global sustainability frameworks;
• Youth leadership in advancing Indigenous environmental knowledge;
• Cultural resilience: protecting Indigenous land rights to address environmental injustice.

Dr. Ranjan Datta
Dr. Rani Muthukrishnan
Dr. Jean Kayira
Dr. Yvonne Vizina
Guest Editors

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• indigenous land-based knowledge
• traditional ecological practices
• environmental sustainability
• land sovereignty
• decolonizing environmental management
• biodiversity conservation
• indigenous climate action