Caring for the planet – one book at a time

It is surely not a coincidence that Earth Day and World Book Day should both fall in the same week.

With increasing uncertainty around the world economy and the general state of the world, the larger and more permanent issue of climate change has once again taken a back seat.

Earth Day was a much needed reminder that none of the challenges of the world will mean much if the planet itself doesn’t survive the way we know it.

As if on cue, World Book Day arrived to show us how the enduring values of learning and sharing knowledge could be the only way out of a world which is looking for hope and meaning in its future.

It is a truism that the world is built on stories, but it is more appropriate to remember that our earliest stories are those which have to do with nature – fables show animals talking to trees and flowers dancing in the forest.

Myths and mythology often deal with the elements of nature – earth, water, air and fire, showing how fundamental they are to life.

Indigenous communities around the world knew how to follow the rhythm of nature. The stories they share until now revolve around the power of the rivers, the spirituality of trees and the importance of every single being, no matter how small.

From the Incas to the Inuits and the Maoris, storytelling is an essential way to communicate beliefs, values and ways of life to the younger generations.

It is a tradition that has to be retained and actively encouraged worldwide. “Indigenous storytelling is a powerful tool for preserving biocultural diversity,” according to Álvaro Fernández-Llamazares, from the University of Helsinki.

This means that communities must be approached diligently and their stories documented before their storytellers leave the world without gifting their knowledge.

Children’s stories of nature from traditional communities teach children to live in harmony with other inhabitants of the Earth: by protecting animals, habitats, and even the rivers and oceans.

‘Sweetest Kulu’ by Celina Kaluk, ‘The rainbow serpent’ by Dick Roughsey and Daniel Auger’s ‘Gandmother’s stories: how the earth and sky began’ are some of the most beloved stories by indigenous writers in Canada and Australia.

There is also a rich choice of literature revolving around nature for adults. From Thoreau’s ‘Walden’, ‘Born Free’ by Joy Adamson to Amitava Ghosh’s ‘Nutmeg’s curse’, there in an endless array of choices of fiction and non-fiction which uses nature as its main theme – at times bleak, most times hopeful.

While the publishing industry in the west has woken up to the untapped world of indigenous storytelling, the Middle East has vast potential to unearth the stories of its communities.

Collecting stories of nature from Bedouin communities or exploring intangible heritage like the songs of fishermen along the coast of the Sultanate of Oman will add precious knowledge, adding to the rich heritage of the Middle East.

It will also engage youngsters in the story of their time, making them stakeholders in their future.