Traditional Kaingin (Deforestation) Practices: The Case of Daraitan Dumagats
Year: 2018
Type: conference-abstract
Abstract: Many indigenous groups in the Philippines, especially those living in the mountainous regions, continue to practice the traditional deforestationcalled kaingin. Kaingin is slashing and burning of trees and plowing the ashes forfertilizer. It causes soil erosion, loss of soil fertility, and climate change. It is anillegal farming practice, which the Dumagats of Daraitan, Tanay, Rizal are awareof. However, they do not have any alternative way of farming. This paper, basedon Ogburn’s Social Change Theory, is a qualitative case study that aimed tounderstand the cultural meaning of kaingin to the Dumagats and why they continueto practice it despite the environmental laws in the country. Also, this studyproposes an alternative upland farming for environmental and economicsustainability. Data thematically analyzed were from the focus group discussions(FGD) and one-on-one interviews with the tribal kaingenyeros. Results showedthat kaingin is a part of Dumagat culture and it is a source of their social andeconomic (socio-economic) bonding and therefore, cultural preservation.Furthermore, despite law’s prohibition, they continue the practice because theyhave no alternative land to till except the mountains which are their ancestral lands.They also lack education and training in farming. Alley cropping is proposed torestore the soil fertility without destroying the cultural economic bonding of theDumagats by growing suitable plants based on the soil type as farm alleys whileplanting other crops such as corn in between the alleys without using chemicals asthe leaves of the alley plants may serve as organic fertilizer.
Institution: Adventist University of the Philippines
Language: English
Subfield: Anthropology
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
SDG: Life on land
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W3009268474