Peer-to-Peer Learning Exchange between Kuboes youth and the Nieuwoudtville community

Drieka Koopman and Kuboes share knowledge around
livestock keeping at Sonderwaterkraal (Photo credit: Cath Traynor)

The peer-to-peer learning exchange between the Kuboes youth group and the Nieuwoudtville community took place between 2-4 September, 2016. Natural Justice had reached out to the local environmental NGOs Indigo Development & Change and the Environmental Monitoring Group (EMG) who have been supporting the small-scale Rooibos farmers to adapt to climate change through community-based approaches.  Natural Justice’s Dr Cath Traynor and intern Julia Röttinger, joined eight Kuboes youth and Community Co-Researchers Gerren De Wet (Kuboes) and Reino Le Fleur (Vredendal) in Nieuwoudtville, to learn more about their climate change adaptation processes and share perspectives from the Richtersveld.

Rietjiehuis Ecolodge
(Photo credit: Cath Traynor)

After a warm welcome on Friday afternoon and brief introduction to the NGOs’ work Shannon Parring, Albert ‘Berty’ Kooman (Indigo – Development & Change), Siyabonga Myeza (EMG) took everyone to the Rietjiehuis Eco Lodge in Melkkraal where they had a traditional potjekos and spent the next two nights. The Eco Lodge is run by Marie Syster and consists of a few traditional reed huts which are located on a quiet piece of land surrounded by untouched beautiful nature, with goats and chickens freely roaming. The sustainable accommodation offers the full experience including cooking on an open fire and solar powered lamps in the huts.

Rooibos farmers Jan and Drieka explain the "pot experiment"

(Photo credit: Cath Traynor)

Saturday started off with a short hike to local rooibos farmers Jan and Drieka where they explained their “pot experiment”, a study by PhD students who are monitoring the growth of rooibos plants with the help of the local Rooibos farmers. The different pots get separate treatments, such as different types of soil as well as amounts of water or sun, which is hoped will show what might happen to Rooibos in the future due to climate change impacts. The whole area is famous for its organic Rooibos tea, Rooibos plants are endemic to the area, and the tea is in high demand, especially overseas. The community owns the land and also controls the entire Rooibos production process through the Heideveld Co-operative, which is becoming more and more successful. It was interesting to hear how the community have organised themselves for the benefit of all.

Jan's own observations on Rooibos

propagation have resulted in the
high survival rates of his seedlings

(Photo credit: Cath Traynor)

Every three months the community has a “Climate Change Preparedness” workshop with Indigo and EMG where participants exchange their experiences as small scale farmers raising questions such as: When did I plant or harvest? What has changed? And what can I do better? Those workshops are helping the participants to adapt to changing circumstances by learning from each other.

The next stop was Sonderwaterkraal, home to Drieka Koopman, who is a female pastoralist and had started a livestock monitoring project a couple of years ago. The Kuboes youth group used that opportunity to ask Drieka everything about keeping livestock and noticeable changes in the weather patterns over the past few decades. It turned out that here too, just like in the Richtersveld area, the climate has become drier with much less rainfall. It is therefore more difficult now to find good grazing areas for the animals and to maintain the health of the livestock.

Driving back to Melkkraal the participants had some time to reflect on the eventful and interesting day so everyone could share their thoughts in the next session at the Eco Lodge in the early evening. It was exciting to see how the Kuboes youth group was inspired by the Nieuwoudtville community and the young leaders in the NGOs. All participants were very comfortable with one another and happy to share their thoughts, future plans but also fears with regard to brining change and adaption projects to their own community. 

The last reflection session on Sunday morning, led by Siyabonga and Shannon, in their office gave another insight in the young leaders’ minds and showed how the youth can engage with traditional knowledge from the communities’ elders in order to adapt to climate change.  Berty Koopman shared ‘Berty’s Journey’ a touching film of his journey back to his parents farm at Sonderwaterkraal, and discussions with his elders regards their lives and local knowledge.  It was the perfect ending to an inspiring weekend filled with learning, valuable experiences and new friends. It seems like the next “peer-to-peer learning exchange” might take place between the Kuboes youth group and their own community’s elders.

Exchange participants
(Photo credit: Cath Traynor)

Exploring knowledge co-production processes for effective adaptation: Natural Justice shares insights at the 2nd Southern African Adaptation Colloquium

Mr Gerren De Wet at the 2nd Southern African Adaptation
Colloquium

Dr. Cath Traynor (Natural Justice) and Community Researcher Mr Gerren De Wet (Indigenous Nama youth) attended the recent 2^nd Southern African Adaptation Colloquium recently in  Johannesburg, South Africa (which was hosted by GSRI, Wits University, ACDI and the Adaptation Network). A key theme of the conference was “knowledge co-production and learning”, and we presented a reflection co-authored with Dr Laura Foster (Indiana University, Bloomington) regards conducting formal Participatory Action Research (PAR) with indigenous communities. We started with provocations, asking questions such as “who gets to produce scholarly knowledge?” and “who gets to benefit from such knowledge?” Through applying a critical approach to our own research processes, our findings suggest that those who get to produce scholarly knowledge are those that first, meet the criteria of funders, and second those who adhere to the normative standards of human subject research approaches and research ethics processes. In an attempt to counter more extractive research processes, we as researchers have co-developed community-researcher contracts with communities, these aim to outline expectations regards how knowledge shared by community participants will be used and also to ensure protection of their indigenous knowledge. Through examining our own research processes and the formal research structures we work within, we hope to develop practices of knowledge production that are more responsive to hierarchies of power and inequality.

During the colloquium, presenters and the participants shared ideas and approaches regards how social learning values and methodologies could contribute towards and improve climate change adaptation, in a variety of situations from cities, to rural communities, to engage different sectors such as youth, and how better to ensure co-design in adaptation projects. Funding sources for adaptation were discussed and government representatives presented their perspectives of the UNFCCC COP21 Paris Agreement, and how South Africa is responding with its adaptation strategy, mainstreaming of adaptation, and the development of monitoring and evaluation for adaptation. Trends in transformative adaptation were also debated and the colloquium finished with a session on how South Africa can better prepare professionals and researchers for knowledge co-production processes in climate change. 

Natural Justice met with adaptation practitioners from the Environmental Monitoring Group and Indigo Development and Change to plan a Peer-to-Peer Learning Exchange between the Nama youth and the Nieuvoudtville community.

Reclaiming the Nama Past to Adapt to the Future

Exploring national responsibility past & present through
diagrams and graphs

By Julia Röttinger, Intern with the Climate Change Program

On the 26^th and 27^th of August 2016 Dr Cath Traynor and intern Julia Röttinger held a workshop with the Kuboes Youth Group facilitated by Gerren De Wett who himself is a community and lives in Kuboes. It was the first time that Natural Justice worked with that specific youth group and therefore interesting to see how the young participants between 23 and 31 years would react.

Studies on climate change have indicated that vulnerable groups, which include Indigenous Peoples are likely to be negatively impacted, and groups such as the Nama People in Kuboes, Richtersveld are expected to suffer climate change impacts, with effect principally felt through water resource availability and food security. The workshop therefore introduced key issues related to climate change: namely climate science, climate justice, the role of indigenous knowledge and community rights issues.

On the first day some background information on Natural Justice’s work was given before moving on to the topic of climate change and climate justice. The young adults were asked to explain what they associate with climate change. It was interesting to see how the group engaged with the topic through participatory activities.  After the first session it was clear that the group had some knowledge on climate change which helped to introduce climate justice including the issues of responsibility and the moral obligation of more developed countries to act. Short videos and other activities raised awareness and caught the group’s interest which made it easier to connect to the last task. After discussing their own experience as active pastoralists of climate change impacts in the Richtersveld area, the participants went out to interview Kuboes’ elders in order to find out more about changes in the climate during the past 30-50 years.

Mapping international to local responses
to climate change

The second day started with a short icebreaker activity which was facilitated by one of the youth group members, Regina, and energized the group. It was obvious that everyone was more comfortable now and the young adults were open and keen to learn more about the topic. The next session started off with an introduction to climate change responses on all levels – from international to municipal –through this the group realised how much is being done in theory. Further, an activity illustrated that there are ways to engage on climate change and climate justice issues on all levels as well as to participate and use human and also indigenous rights in engagements. In the next part the interview outcomes were discussed and reflected. The members had a very interactive and participatory conversation and came to the conclusion that they would like to learn much more about their indigenous knowledge with regard to climate change from the elders in the Nama community.  Furthermore, the group prepared a “participation contract” for the Peer-to-Peer Learning Exchange with Small-Scale Rooibos Producers in Nieuwoudtville (Northern Cape) for the following weekend which the youth group members are definitely looking forward to.

Energizers from Forum Theater approaches

In summary, the objectives and expectations of the workshop, such as raising awareness of climate change and climate justice issues, examining impacts of climate change in the Richtersveld area as well as highlighting the value of Nama indigenous knowledge and its relevance to climate change adaptation were achieved. 

The Quiver Tree (a long-lived giant tree Aloe)
is shifting its distribution towards the poles in response to climate change