Climate Education
Indigenous Wisdom Is the Earth’s Oldest Climate Education
August 9, 2025
On August 9 every year, the world marks International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples. A day that reminds us that Indigenous peoples are some of the world’s oldest and most successful environmental guardians. Before “climate education” was a term in classrooms, First and Indigenous people were educating through generations of lived experience and embedding their profound cultural connections to land, water, and biodiversity into everyday life.Indigenous knowledge is not only the past. It is alive, adapting, and urgently present. From the rainforests of Southeast Asia to the Arctic tundra to the Australian outback, Indigenous peoples are custodians for about 80% of the Earth’s remaining biodiversity, yet they comprise only about 6% of the world’s population. This exemplary stewardship is not an accident. It is the result of centuries of traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) transmitted through oral narrative, seasonal ceremonies, and land-based learning.
Yet today, the climate crisis comes for their homelands first and unjustly the climate crisis now imperils Indigenous homelands and their ancient ways of life more than perhaps any other population. We may view them as victims of the climate crisis, but on another level, they are powerful innovators and leaders. Here are some ways they are still teaching us that doing right by the planet and climate education cannot be separated.
The Mentawai (Indonesia) – Forest as Classroom
On the Mentawai Islands, school is about forest life. Kids learn from shamans (sikerei) to harvest sago, heal themselves with plants, and respect the spirits of the land. Recent studies (2023) show that forests managed by Indigenous peoples such as the Mentawai have more stored carbon and preserve more biodiversity than government managed or commercial forests. These lands alone globally contain more than 20% of tropical forest carbon and are central to climate stability.
The Yurok and Karuk (USA) – Cultural Burning to Prevent Wildfires
For centuries, Native American (The Yurok and Karuk) tribes in Northern California have used cultural burning (controlled, seasonal fires) to reduce wildfire risk and create healthy landscapes. However, for many decades, these traditional practices were prohibited by state policies (read: California Act of 1850 article 10 and Weeks Act of 1911), which suppressed cultural burning in favor of Euro-American forest management. After this long period of fire suppression, their knowledge is now rightly influencing forest policy. A 2023 study found that in areas where cultural burns were allowed again, the risk of high-severity wildfires dropped by around 60%.
The Ngāti Awa (New Zealand) – Restoring Life Below Water
When mussel populations declined in Ōhiwa Harbour, the Ngāti Awa people combined two tactics- no-fish areas with reseeding of shellfish. Since 2019, Ngāti Awa’s ecological restoration at Ōhiwa Harbour has grown mussel numbers from around 80,000 to more than 45 million individual mussels by 2024, proving that Indigenous knowledge (mātauranga Māori) and science can effectively rejuvenate marine ecosystems.
The Lepcha (India) – Farming in Harmony with the Mountains
Sikkim farmers of Lepcha in the Eastern Himalayas employ terracing, crop rotation, and bird and cloud weather indicators to grow food without chemicals. Their agroforestry maintains mountain biodiversity and fosters intergenerational respect for nature’s rhythms.
The Tagbanwa (Philippines) – Sea Guardians of Palawan
In Palawan shores, Tagbanwa communities structure marine spaces through sacred laws and fishing calendars.Their territories have no-take zones, seasonal harvesting, and deep respect for the spirits of the sea. A 2023 article from the ICCA Consortium and a 2024 case study from the Darwin Initiative demonstrate that such Indigenous practices have protected coral reefs, replenished marine ecosystems, and deterred destructive fishing.
The Sámi (Arctic Europe) – Herding Reindeer, Navigating a Warming World
The Sámi have relied on snow and animal patterns to guide reindeer herding for centuries. Now melting permafrost and unpredictable winters imperil that knowledge, and their future. Sámi young people are taking the initiative, calling for climate policies that honor both Indigenous science and sovereignty.
What Can We Do
These six communities remind us that living in harmony with nature is not new, but is rooted in Indigenous knowledge and tradition. Yet across the globe, the individuals who possess this knowledge typically are in danger of losing their lands, language, and ways of life.
Here a few ways we can support and stand with Indigenous peoples:
- Respect land and Indigenous rights. Land is not just a resource, its identity, history, and future. Maintaining Indigenous land rights allows communities to continue their stewardship.
- Support Indigenous-led efforts. Funding and following the lead of Indigenous organizations enables local solutions to global problems.
- Make room for Indigenous leadership. From youth movements to climate summits, representation matters. Listening is step one.
- Learn together. Parents, students, and educators can assist in bringing Indigenous knowledge into how we learn and teach about climate change.
- Keep the conversation going. Whether through books, films, courses, or daily discussion, talking about Indigenous contributions keeps them visible.
The world’s oldest climate educators are still teaching us. Our job is to listen to them, learn from them, and act – so that the next generation grows up valuing their deep knowledge that’s kept the planet thriving for centuries.
On this International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, it is important to celebrate their wisdom, as well as create space for it in our own classrooms. The future and success of climate education needs it.
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