An IASH Work-in-Progress seminar, delivered by Professor Enongene Sone (Walter Sisulu University and Catalyst Fellow 2021):
Oral Literature and Environmental Education in Swaziland (Eswatini)
Abstract:
There is widespread recognition among Swazis that their country’s vast and diverse natural resources are endangered as a result of unsustainable exploitation and are in dire need of preservation. The worsening environmental crisis in Swaziland in recent decades has prompted environmentalists to begin educating people about the need to adopt sustainable ways of managing natural resources. Unfortunately, this general awareness of ecology in Swaziland, though laudable and worthy of encouragement, has failed to reduce the negative impact of human activity on the environment. The study aims at showing how oral tradition can be used to create awareness on how to protect and conserve the environment. The study is based on the assumption that, for environmental education to succeed, it must incorporate the traditional knowledge of the people of the land and its resources. In other words, environmental educators must recognize and integrate the localized knowledge of the indigenous people about sustainable natural resource management in their projects. Written against the background of Afrocentric ecocritical theory, the study concludes by recommending the need to strengthen traditional and customary knowledge and practices by protecting and recognising the values of such systems in the conservation of biodiversity for sustainable development.
Please click the link below to join the webinar:
https://ed-ac-uk.zoom.us/j/89589770548
Passcode: WuQrSc5U