Knowledge Systems, Socio-ecological System Resilience and Coping with Environmental Uncertainties in the Context of Global Change

The issue of coping up with environmental uncertainties, arising from ‘climate change’ which is part of a larger set of ‘global change’ phenomena, complex on account of its having multi parametric nature and uncertainities in quantifying the parameters to sufficient precision, (Bondeau et al., 1997; Walker et al., 1999; Ramakrishnan, 1998). Added to this complexity is the less understood adverse impacts of economic ‘globalization’, for the developing world, (Dragun and Tisdell, 1999; Ramakrishnan, 1999).

With uncertainties in the frequency of monsoon-linked floods and droughts, melting glaciers, disappearing mangrove vegetation and the protection, that the monsoon provides all along the sea coasts, food security for the vast majority of the population, is under threat. Coping up with these environmental uncertainties is bound to be exacerbated by the broader ‘global change’ and ‘globalization’ factors.

In this effort to cope up with emerging environmental uncertainties, biodiversity (both natural and humanmanaged) viewed in all its scalar dimensions (sub-specific, species, ecosystems and landscape levels) is a powerful tool, and therefore, their effective conservation/management becomes important. Much of this biodiversity now remains confined to the uplands where traditional societies (those living close to nature and natural resources around them) live. The larger plains of the country remain largely depleted of its biodiversity, and even where they exist, it remains highly degraded.