Celebrating the International day of the world’s Indigenous peopleAnaghaInternational day of the world’s Indigenous people got celebrated by the Keystone Foundation Nilambur resource center in association with the People and Nature Collective coordinators, Kotagiri and Thoduve Community Foundation. In line with the year’s theme: “The Role of Indigenous Women in the Preservation and Transmission of Traditional Knowledge,” the event focused on felicitating six elderly women figures who have inevitable involvement in safeguarding and continuing traditional knowledge. These women from the Kattunayakan, Paniya, and Muthuvan communities of Pulimunda, Vaniyampuzha, and Palakkayam shared their knowledge of respective traditional food cultures, health practices, and art forms during the program, which served as an opportunity for our community-based researchers and field workers to enter new realms of learning as well as assimilate and accommodate the knowledge they gathered through fieldworks. Another program highlight was a photo exhibition on ‘Traditional Cultural Expressions and the Techniques of Culture’ based on the data collected by our community-based public history researchers.
A feast with various traditional food items was prepared collaboratively by the staff and community members to cater to the program’s celebration mood. The community members of Pulimunda also organized cultural programs like traditional music and dance performances during the program.
A Ph.D. scholar Vinodh from the Cholanaikkan community of Mancheeri, representatives from the tribal extension department, Karulai gram panchayat, Janamaithri excise, forest department, Special Kudumbashree project, and Mahila Samakhya society been part of the program with their presence.
