Center for Indigenous Knowledge for Agriculture and Rural DevelopmentIOWA STATE UNIVERSITY,
AMES, IOWA
CIKARD Summary
The Center for Indigenous Knowledge for Agriculture and Rural Development (CIKARD) at Iowa State University focuses its activities on preserving and using the local knowledge of farmers and other rural people around the globe. CIKARD was established at Iowa State University in October 1987 as part of ISU's Technology and Social Change Program. Its goal is to collect indigenous knowledge and make it available to development professionals and scientists. CIKARD concentrates on indigenous knowledge systems (such as local soil taxonomies), decision-making systems (such as knowledge of which crops are best suited to particular types of soils), organizational structures (such as farmers problem-solving groups), and innovations (such as local methods for pest control).

CIKARD's activities and current programs are based on the following objectives: (1) to act as a global clearinghouse for collecting, documenting, and disseminating information on indigenous knowledge of agriculture, natural resource management, and rural development; (2) to develop cost-effective and reliable methodologies for recording indigenous knowledge; (3) to conduct training programs and design materials on indigenous knowledge for extension and other development workers; (4) to conduct interdisciplinary research on indigenous knowledge systems; (5) to promote the establishment of regional and national indigenous knowledge resource centers; and (6) to formulate agricultural and natural resource management policies and design technical assistance programs based on indigenous knowledge.

CIKARD Locations
CIKARD
318 Curtiss Hall
Iowa Sate University
Ames, Iowa 50011
USA
Tel: 1-515-294-0938
Telex: 283359 IASU UR
Bitnet: S2.DMW@ISUMVS
Fax: 1-515-294-6058

CIKARD Datasets/Resources
In the fall of 1988, a documentation unit and library was formally established as a part of CIKARD, to serve the Center in its effort to record, analyze, and disseminate indigenous knowledge for agriculture and rural development. One major objective of the unit is to identify and acquire all relevant literature and ethnographic descriptions on indigenous knowledge and associated disciplines from worldwide sources. All of CIKARD's holdings have been catalogued using bibliographic software to allow easy retrieval of materials.

Datasets from other organizations containing environmental, earth science, and global change information can be located through CIESIN's Gateway.

Related Organizations
CIKARD is one constituent of a Global Network of Indigenous Knowledge Resource Centers. At the global level CIKARD is joined by the Center for International Research and Advisory Networks (CIRAN) and the Leiden Ethnosystems and Development Program (LEAD). Regional Centers have been established in Africa through the African Resource Centre for Indigenous Knowledge (ARCIK) and in Asia through the Regional Program for the Promotion of Indigenous Knowledge in Asia (REPPIKA). In addition, national indigenous knowledge resource centers are located in Ghana, Indonesia, Mexico, the Philippines, Kenya, Sri Lanka, Venezuela, Burkina Faso, Brazil, Nigeria, Uruguay, Cameroon, South Africa, and Madagascar.

Information about other Information Cooperative partner organizations may be located through CIESIN's Organizational Guides.

CIKARD Contacts
Dr. D. Michael Warren
Director
CIKARD
318 Curtiss Hall
Iowa Sate University
Ames, Iowa 50011
USA
Tel: 1-515-294-0938
Fax: 1-515-294-605