Role of Green Chemistry in Ecosystem Restoration to Achieve Environmental Sustainability - Chapter 8 - Importance of indigenous knowledge in achieving environmental sustainability

Indigenous knowledge or traditional knowledge refers to the understanding of the people residing in a community that has evolved and is still evolving from the historical times. It is obtained from experiences, repetitive use over the centuries, and adaptations to the environment and the local cultures. This consciousness has transferred genetically through a long run of observations as well as through word of mouth and belongingness to cultural rituals. Over time people came to know about how to face the drastic conditions and learned the system of crop development, which crops are to be grown when the seeds are to be sown, and plants possessing poisonous nature could be used for controlling pests in case of livestock, plants as well as the human beings. Nowadays indigenous knowledge has emerged as a preferable base where the decision is required in fields like the security of foods, managing educational resources, along with the decision related to animals as well as human health including social activities. The chapter aims to present the contribution of indigenous knowledge in enhancing effectiveness along with efficient methods for the development of a sustainable ecosystem without harming the environment. An attempt has been made to explore the responses of indigenous people toward the challenges related to ecological development.