Indigenous and Local Water Knowledge, Values and Practices

Dr. Mrittika Basu is an assistant professor at the Graduate School of Global Environmental Studies, Kyoto University. She has a PhD in Global Environmental Studies from Kyoto University, Japan. She undertakes intensive field-based research in rural areas as well as urban areas in developing countries. She specializes in evidence-based policy-making research on water resource management. Her research interests include water security, water resource management, water conservation behavior, ecosystem services and human well-being. Dr. Basu has authored/ co-authored more than 40 scientific papers in peer-reviewed international journals.  Dr. Rajarshi Dasgupta is a senior policy researcher at the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES). His research interests are environmental scenario planning, spatial quantification of ecosystem services, indigenous and local knowledge systems, and community-based conservation. He served as Lead Author (LA) for the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) Asia-Pacific Regional Assessment Report as well as IPBES assessment on Sustainable Use of Wild Species (2018-22). Dr. Dasgupta authored/co-authored more than 60 peer-reviewed papers in reputed international journals on the topic related to the mapping and monitoring of ecosystem services, landscape conservation, Ecosystem and natural resource management.

• Chapter 1. Exploring Indigenous Water Knowledge, Values and Practices: Insights and Examples.- Chapter 2. A political-economic analysis of water, indigeneity, and capitalism in the face of climate change.- Chapter 3. Water Symbolism in Hindu Culture.- Chapter 4. Ways of Water Management in Islam: Potential Insights for Future Water Governance.- Chapter 5. Water and Shintoism: Exploring the link between spirituality and water values in Japan.- Chapter 6.Muslim Peoples and the Challenges of Water Security: A Socio-Anthropological Analysis.- Chapter 7.Indigenous water knowledge: Religious values and cultural practices.- Chapter 8.Bringing Back the Wisdom: Tradition in Urban Water Management.- Chapter 9. Interactions between Changing Climates and Land Uses: The Case of Urmia Lake, Iran.- Chapter 10. Indigenous water governance systems in a post-colonial state: Insights from Zimbabwe.- Chapter 11. Benefits of reviving indigenous water conservation practices for drought resilience in red and laterite zones of West Bengal, India.- Chapter 12. Local Knowledge on Water Use and Water-related Ecosystem Services in Lowland, Midland, and Upland Villages in Mindanao, Philippines.- Chapter 13. Indigenous knowledge, practices, and transformation of drinking water management system: Evidence from Munda community of Bangladesh.- Chapter 14.The cultural approach for community-based conservation of river basins: a case study of the Basin School Network, Taiwan.- Chapter 15. Indigenous knowledge and conservation practices for sustainable water management in lateritic Southwest Bengal, India.- Chapter 16. Importance of women’s indigenous knowledge of water conservation and management in Sri Lanka.- Chapter 17. Role of ponds as a local practice in mitigating salinity intrusion threats at coastal aquifer: a case study from Sundarban Biosphere Reserve, India.- Chapter 18. The water cult and conservation in India.-Chapter 19.Concluding reflections on the indigenous and local waterknowledge, values, and practices, and lessons learned.