Embracing Ancestral Wisdom: Harnessing Indigenous Knowledge for Climate Adaptation and

Resilience in Pakistan

Two integrated methods:

1. Narrative Walks/Transect Walks

2. Adapted Photovoice dialogue through Talking Circles, Indaba, and Dare

Welcome, and thank you for joining today’s discussion. My name is [Name], and I’m from the Institute
for Global Health and Development at Aga Khan University. We truly appreciate your time and
willingness to participate in this research. Climate change is becoming a serious concern worldwide, and
communities in many parts of Pakistan are especially affected due to already harsh environmental
conditions and limited resources. Today, we are here to learn from you, your experiences, your
connection with the environment and the traditions and practices passed down in your community.
Your knowledge is valuable in helping us understand how Indigenous Knowledge supports climate
adaptation and resilience. There are no right or wrong answers, and you are free to share as much or as
little as you feel comfortable. Your participation is entirely voluntary, and everything you share will be
kept confidential.

Your voices are essential for shaping sustainable, culturally appropriate responses to climate challenges.
By sharing your wisdom, you help strengthen the role of Indigenous practices and support their
transmission across generations.

I look forward to learning from your experiences and working together toward a more resilient future
for your community and for others facing similar challenges.

Permission for Recording and Confidentiality

Before we begin, I would like to let you know that we will be audio recording this conversation. This
helps us ensure that we don’t miss any of your responses or important points during the discussion. We
would like to ask for your permission to record the session.

Please know that your privacy is very important to us. All information you share will be treated with the
strictest confidentiality. The recordings will only be used for research purposes, and your name or
identity will not be shared or linked to any of your responses in any report or publication. You are free to
decline being recorded or to skip any question you do not wish to answer. If at any point you feel
uncomfortable, you may also withdraw from the discussion.

Do I have your permission to record this session?

* For researchers: Use the consent form and attendance sheet for documentation, refer to
Table 1 to follow the discussion sequence, and use Table 2 to select appropriate image sets .
Table 1: Participatory Methods Toolkit for Research Staff
Method / How to Use / Expanded Stakeholders
Description & Purpose Facilitation Notes
Activity Details Involved
1. Narrative place-based exploration 1. Walk with participants Elders, farmers, Encourage narration and
Walk / Transect through community sites to through fields, homes, water herbalists, youth demonstration of local practices. Be
Walk collect lived IK, real-time points, etc. (often men) respectful, move at participant’s
observation. 2. Ask: “Can you show us pace. Use findings in later stages
herbal trees, seed storage, or (Talking Circles, Indaba).
household cooling methods?”
3. Observe, listen, take
notes/photos (with consent).
4. Use findings to prepare for
visual prompts and
discussions.
1a. Post-Walk Clarify, reflect, and complete Conducted the next day in Same as Walk Create a comfortable environment
Debrief data collection. small groups. Ask: “Is there participants for additional insights. Use as
anything we missed?” or opportunity to verify data.
“Would you like to add
more?”
1b. Image Select visuals for dialogue and Choose culturally appropriate Researchers, local Ensure visuals are respectful,
Curation memory-triggering. images from walks/archives advisors context-specific, and align with key
for use in Talking Circles and themes (Table 2).
Indaba.
2. Adapted Small, inclusive group 1. Show one image at a time. Women, youth, Respect silence, allow reflection
Photovoice via discussion using curated 2. Ask: “What does this quieter voices time. Use Table 1 image categories.
Talking Circles images and a talking object. remind you of in your Facilitate inclusive and safe
Encourages deep listening community?” participation.
and equal participation. 3. Use a talking object to give
each person a turn.
3. Indaba Inclusive, mixed-stakeholder Facilitate open dialogue using Elders, youth, Encourage equitable contributions.
group dialogue to co-design maps, images, or prompts. community Focus on co-developing feasible,
strategies and build Ask: “What can we do leaders, key culturally relevant adaptation
consensus. together to protect traditional stakeholders strategies.
 practices?”
4. Dare Elder-led structured Invite elders to review Elders, religious or Follow local customs. Create space
discussion to validate findings findings, images, and cultural leaders for moral storytelling and
and guide culturally practices. Ask: “Which endorsement. Seek guidance on
appropriate decision-making. practices are sacred or must sensitive or intergenerational
be passed down?” knowledge.
Table 2: Image Categories to Support Visual Narrative Elicitation for Research Staff

Photo Category Description

Traditional construction materials, insulation methods, cooling/heating

Homes
setups

Agricultural techniques, crop types, irrigation methods, seed storage,

Fields/Farms
harvesting cycles, soil fertility management, Drought resistant crops

Herbs, plants, shrubs, leaves, flowers or trees used for treating common
Medicinal Plants and Trees
illnesses and maintaining health (Traditional Remedies)

Wells, canals, tanks, bunds, glacial streams, rainwater harvesting

Water Sources
systems, underground channel or tunnel, Storing rain/floodwater

Community Spaces Places where people gather for meetings, disaster preparedness zones

Sun-drying setups, underground pits, storage vessels, salting,

Food Storage Areas
Community grain banks, Preserving dairy products

Natural Environment Evidence of drought, flood impact, deforestation, or climate change

Cultural Practices Clothing, seasonal foods, rituals, or tools used during heat/cold

Warning Systems or Indicators Loudspeakers, natural warning signs (e.g., river flow, clouds)
 Table 3: Interview Guide

Theme Key Questions Probes

1. Can you help us draw a timeline from your  What climate events (floods, droughts,
childhood to now? What major weather or snow, heat, rain, snowfall patterns,
General Perceptions of farming changes have happened? glacier melting)
Climate Change
 How flooding/drought has impacted the
area
2. What crops do you grow here?  Decline in crop
 Alterations in the timing of planting
3. How have crop choices changed over time? and harvesting cycles
 Soil fertility management and
4. Crop timing? Local soil practices? Seed changes
selection?  Pest control techniques (organic
manure/ Control pests without
5. What major impacts have you observed on chemical pesticides or fertilizers eg
agriculture cow/animal dung/ ashes., organic
ingredients, spray)
6. Are there traditional methods for harvesting
rainwater or managing floods?  Traditional/ Ancient system of
underground channels between
Agriculture Protection
7. What materials/tools do you use here that canals and lands or glacial meltwater
& Adaptation
are passed down from elders? channels

8. What changes have you noticed in the land  Building of small earthen
or weather? dams/bunds/ over wells, canals, and
ponds
9. Where do you farm or store seeds?  Qanat or Karez (underground
channel or tunnel), Spring-fed
10. What old methods do you still use? irrigation
 Drought resistant crops such as bajra
11. How has modern infrastructure (such as
(pearl millet) and guar (cluster beans)
roads or dams) affected local or community-
based flood control and water management
practices?
12. How is water sourced and stored,  Well
particularly during dry periods or other  Storing rainwater during monsoon
climate extremes?  Storing floodwater
Water Conservation
 Channels between canals and lands
13. Are there traditional methods for harvesting  glacial meltwater channels
rainwater or managing floods?
Food Security and 1. How do communities traditionally ensure  Harvesting and storing wild edible plants,
Climate (Food food security during drought, summer, fruits, or nuts
preservation) winters with heavy snowfall?  Drying and storing seeds, grains,
legumes, or vegetables (e.g., sun-drying
2. What role do locally grown dried fruits and wheat, maize, or lentils)
 grains play in food security  Salting or pickling vegetables or meats to
preserve them
 Using underground storage pits or clay
pots to keep food cool and pest-free
 Fermentation techniques (e.g., yogurt,
dried cheese, fermented pickles)
 Community grain banks or collective
storage for drought periods
 Sealed mud containers or bamboo
baskets for storage
 Preserving dairy products as ghee or
dried cheese (e.g., kurut)
 Bartering or exchanging food with
neighboring communities
 Rotating crop harvests and maintaining
kitchen gardens
3. Specific Indigenous or traditional foods that Sindh: Thari vegetables, wild melon Chiber,
are commonly consumed in your dried watermelon and seeds, dried pheli
community during periods of drought,
extreme heat, or other climate-related Northern areas: dried Apricot, dry fruits,
challenges dates, nuts, desi ghee, honey etc
4. What do you eat in summer vs winter to
cope with weather  Summer: Lassi (buttermilk), juices,
lemonade, Rooh Afza, thandai etc
Food & Dietary
 Winter: Desi ghee, Jaggery rice,
Practices
 Kara, green tea, sesame ladu, honey,
soup etc

5. What Indigenous health practices do herbal or traditional remedies commonly

communities use to treat climate-related used?
illnesses (e.g., heat exhaustion,
Indigenous Knowledge dehydration, vector-borne diseases)?
and Traditional Healing
Practices 6. How are indigenous communities involve in
identifying local plants, understanding their
benefits, and implementing traditional
methods?
Clothing, Housing & 7. What materials are used in traditional How do these help with heat or cold? (stone,
Infrastructure homes, how it keeps you cool or warm? mud, thatch (chappra), bamboo, wood,
traditional cooling/heating techniques or jute mats, clay plaster)
materials How do you manage ventilation, sunlight, or
8. How do traditional designs help protect insulation in your homes
against extreme weather events like heavy
rain, floods, heat, storms, extreme cold?

9. What has changed over time?

 10. What traditional winter clothing practices

11. What traditional summer clothing practices Winter clotting: Wool, layered clothing,
handmade socks, traditional shawls,
firewood heating, community heating
practices
Summer Clothing: Light-colored fabrics, lawn
or cotton clothing, loose-fitting clothes,
dupattas or turbans for sun protection
12. How do you know when a disaster is  Are there natural signs or community
coming? alerts? e.g, rain, glacier movements, river
flow changes, animal behaviors help
13. What signs tell you rain is coming? predict natural disasters like rain,
landslides?
14. How did ancestors predict rain, flood
drought? Do you still rely on these methods  Reduction in the number of birds,
why and why not reptiles, or insects
Weather Prediction and
Disaster Preparedness 15. Do younger generations value and practice  How accurate and effective have these
these traditional techniques? Please methods
elaborate?
 Are there any early warning systems to
16. How does your community prepare for inform communities about upcoming
extreme weather events such as climate events (Loudspeaker)
heatwaves, floods, or droughts, glaciers,
and land sliding?  Do you still rely on these traditional
indicators? Why or why not?
17. How is IK taught to youth? What do  Do you think traditional knowledge
they retain? What are threats to this and practices can be combined with
transmission? modern technologies to address
climate challenges? If yes, how?
18. Do younger generations value and practice  Are there any examples of successful
Intergenerational
these traditional techniques? Please
Knowledge Transfer integration of traditional and modern
elaborate?
practices in your community?
19. What are the biggest challenges in
maintaining and passing traditional
knowledge to future generations?
Recommendations 20. What do you think can be done to
strengthen the role of Indigenous
Knowledge in climate adaptation?
21. What support do you need from
government and NGOs to enhance
 community resilience?
22. What efforts should be made by indigenous
peoples in future climate induced disaster
mitigation?
Additional Themes: Co-Design & Community Priorities

Table 4: Indaba
Theme Key Questions Probes
Which practices should be preserved
Community What are the most urgent climate
or scaled? (Use narrative walk and
Priorities challenges here?
dialogues key findings)
 What ideas do you have for adapting to
Co-designing climate change?
Solutions  How can we combine Indigenous and
modern knowledge for better outcomes?
 What formats are most accessible
(radio, WhatsApp, YouTube,
digital storytelling ;(Local Success
Stories for positivity and
inspiration), farming app, online
communities etc.)?
 Community-led or school-based
How should Indigenous Knowledge be
Knowledge Sharing initiatives or programs that
documented or taught?
encourage youth to engage with
IK
 What kind of support (training,
tools, policies) would help you
adapt better?
 What should a community-led
climate adaptation plan include?
Collaboration Who should be involved in future planning? What role can youth/women play?

Table 5: Dare Method

Theme Key Questions Possible Probes
 Are these values taught to younger
What values guide your
generations?
Moral Values decisions about land and
 What teachings from ancestors are
water?
most important today?

 How do these relate to climate

Which practices are considered resilience?
Cultural Validation
sacred or non-negotiable?  How should decisions be made about
land, water, and food in times of crisis?

 Can you share a story that teaches

resilience?
Intergenerational What lessons from ancestors
Wisdom are still relevant today?
 What role should elders play in guiding
youth on climate resilience?
 How should new technologies  What boundaries should not be
Ethical Adaptation
be integrated with tradition? crossed?