DIGITIZING INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE: LEVERAGING DIGITAL LIBRARIES FOR SUSTAINABLE LAND AND WATER RESOURCE MANAGEMENT IN THE ANTHROPOCENE
Indigenous ecological knowledge (IEK) represents centuries of adaptive experimentation with land and water systems, yet remains critically underrepresented in digital repositories and mainstream environmental governance frameworks. This study investigates the perceptions, challenges, and aspirations of key stakeholders regarding the digitization of indigenous knowledge for sustainable land and water resource management in the Anthropocene era. Employing a convergent mixed-methods design with data collected from 15 purposively selected respondents, comprising indigenous knowledge custodians, teachers, ICT/library professionals, and farmers across Nigerian rainforest and savannah eco-zones, the study reveals that 93.3% of participants are willing to co-create digital repositories of indigenous knowledge, while 93.3% affirm that digital libraries can help protect indigenous heritage. Despite high digital library awareness (80.0%), a critical representational deficit persists: only 33.3% confirmed the existence of any digital platform containing indigenous knowledge from their communities. Lack of technology infrastructure (60.0%), language barriers (53.3%), and fear of cultural misappropriation (53.3%) emerged as the most pressing digitization challenges. The study introduces the Community-Anchored Indigenous Digital Ecosystem (CAIDE) framework, a novel participatory model integrating CARE and FAIR principles with mobile-first, multilingual, and community-governed digital repositories. Findings strongly affirm IEK’s untapped potential in advancing SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation, 66.7%), SDG 13 (Climate Action, 40.0%), and SDG 15 (Life on Land, 40.0%).
Keywords: Indigenous Ecological Knowledge; Digital Libraries; Knowledge Preservation; CAIDE Framework; CARE Principles; FAIR Principles; Water Resource Management; Climate Resilience; Sustainable Development Goals; Anthropocene
