Voices of the rainforest: co-creating a traditional ecological knowledge-based climate change curriculum framework with indigenous communities in Malaysia

The project seeks to cultivate a novel approach to raise awareness and improve understanding of climate change among primary school children. This research aims to co-create a curriculum framework with indigenous communities, children, and school partners in the Perak, Pahang, and Kelantan states. The curriculum, intended for schoolteachers, will embed indigenous knowledge to nurture children who appreciate the richness of their ecological inheritance in responding to climate change. Through a multimodal approach incorporating participatory, indigenous, ethnographic and creative methodologies, this project aims to produce an authentic and relevant curriculum framework that fosters a holistic understanding of climate change, not only within rainforest areas of Malaysia, but also beyond. This research seeks to amplify often-overlooked indigenous voices within underrepresented communities, contributing to a broader dialogue on climate change.

Principal Investigator: Dr Syafiq Mat Noor, University of Leeds