Indigenous knowledge systems and practices in the Philippines

Our heritage as Matigsalog of Bukidnon: A participatory documentation of indigenous knowledge systems and practices

The imminent disappearance of our traditional ways into the mainstream of the dominant culture and the many other threatening forces that can lead to its extension had been silently feared by our elders. Documenting our own indigenous knowledge is of utter significance because it renders a permanent record of our ways as a people, thus putting that fear at rest.

The indigenous systems and practices (IKSPs) of the Matigsalog have been handed down through generations by word of mouth. Despite the swirling changes in our environment and the struggles to adapt to these, our IKSPs, technical skills, reverence toward nature and environment to some degree, have endured. Some important factors that contribute to the retention of our beliefs, traditions and customs are our large extended family, the language that unite us, our traditional network of relatives and community relations.