Environmental Knowledge and Marginalized Communities: The Last Mile Connectivity

Expanding globalization implies, among other things, growing interdependence among peoples of the world. The convergence of information and communication technologies (ICTs) is enabling almost seamless access to a vast and varied range of information and knowledge sources from anywhere at any time. These are features of the emerging knowledge society. However, a substantial proportion of the marginalized communities in most developing countries and even in some of the technologically advanced countries do not appear to be benefiting from these developments. They do not feel participating in and contributing to the society at large. Yet they possess valuable knowledge about nature and its offerings, ethnic, cultural, and spiritual values that can benefit societies beyond their own communities. These communities suffer from several types of handicaps - low literacy, multiplicity of dialects, vulnerability to external exploitation, etc. There are also several impediments to communicating and introducing new ideas, innovations, and technologies into these communities. All these need to be examined and necessary measures and strategies adopted at local, national and international levels to overcome these barriers. Extending ICTs per se to these communities is not a solution. Human intervention is necessary to solve the last mile problem. Illustrative case studies of problems and issues and initiatives undertaken in different countries are briefly described.