KUCHING: It is impossible to preserve a particular culture as it will continue to evolve, said an environmental practitioner Cynthia Chin.
She said this during a virtual dialogue session entitled “Tales from the Mountains” organised by Sarawak Eco Warriors recently.
This is because society has become more modern and thus, adaptation continues to occur, she pointed out.
“Although it is impossible to preserve a culture as it goes on forever, cultural evolution is one of the ways to make sure the culture is passed on from time to time.
“There will be some adaptations of culture during reiteration to make it relevant to the current society which is better than losing the culture at all,” she explained.
Chin further emphasised on how cultures had rapidly evolved and how some traditions had gone extinct.
“Nature is something essential to humans but at this moment many of us do not appreciate it as mentioned. Humanity needs nature to survive but at the same time we are losing it,” she added.
Another speaker, Liew Suet Fun, who is an author, writing on human society and natural environment, regarded the loss of culture too was due to human migration and urbanisation.
“The culture begins to be deprived when the sense of connection between urban and rural people is absent.
“Modern society has brought an impact to the community in many ways; men and women who are educated have moved away from their villages and liberated to the society,” she added.
The dialogue session was organised in conjunction with the celebration of International Mountains Day and Y SEALI YOUnified.
Those who missed out the session can catch up through its podcast on Spotify, Google Podcasts and Apple Podcasts.
The recording of this session will serve as the first episode of The Eco Experience, an environmental podcast that features Malaysian and Southeast Asian voices to discuss the Earth and the ever-changing environment.
