Fire and Water: Indigenous Ecological Knowledge and Climate Challenges in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia)

Abstract

ABSTRACT Recently, the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) has become the center of worldwide attention due to large-scale fires that engulfed the tundra in 2020 and the taiga in 2021. Unprecedented forest fires caused enormous economic and environmental damage and left an indisputable mark on the republic’s society, which rallied in the face of fire danger. Along with fires, the Indigenous people of the North also must cope with and adapt to other natural disasters, including floods. As natural disasters become more frequent and extensive, humanity faces acute questions concerning successful adaptation to climate change’s negative impacts. Studying the experience of the Indigenous population can help provide answers. They are the first to bear the brunt of climate change, given their traditional land management, and they are the first to solve the problems of adaptation to changing conditions. The article discusses preventive measures and ways of adaptation of the Indigenous peoples of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) to forest fires and floods. Environmental lessons learned from past disasters are analyzed, drawing on Indigenous knowledge and science, to prevent their recurrence.