Verweven Inheemse Kennissystemen en Praktijken (IKSP) en Territoriale Transformaties in de Mekongdelta. Casestudy’s van Kampong Luong, Cambodja en Phnom Kto, Vietnam

Today's socio-ecological crises have been accelerated by the impact of global warming. However, responses have been inadequate, and many initiatives have failed. This emphasises a critical request to rethink human-nature interactions, redefining global development strategies, and reinforcing local solutions. The Indigenous Knowledge System and Practice (IKSP) is believed to provide important insights into these matters. In this PhD research, the Mekong Delta provides an incredibly dynamic geographical context shaped by multi-ethnic communities across its floodplain. While modernisation and hydraulic infrastructures have sought to stabilise the deltaic landscape, IKSP continues to redefine and shape its evolving, dynamic mosaics. Focusing on the Khmer and Viet communities, this study explores how IKSP coexists with contemporary development and provides alternative perspectives on urbanism and spatial wisdom—particularly regarding inhabitation, resistance to imposed development, and resilience to environmental change. Using a case-based approach, the study analyses the temporal and concurrent transformations of two strategically selected transects in the Mekong Delta: Vietnamese floating villages on Cambodia's Tonle Sap Lake and Khmer settlements at Phnom Kto (mountain) in Vietnam. Both cases illustrate the transnational natural-cultural entanglements of the deltaic landscape. Their interconnected narratives also reveal Indigenous resilience and struggle within the development contexts of both nations. This study primarily employs drawings and visual representations to examine territorial evolution and landscape patterns through three key themes: Sacred, Settled, and Productive. These themes are illustrated on a double-sided scroll—one side documenting fieldwork on existing Indigenous landscape mosaics and seasonal practices, while the other, based on archival research, constructs a non-linear historical narrative of spatial transformation, shifting meanings, and emerging challenges. The findings define the contemporary spatial morpho-typologies of IKSP, emphasising their historical resilience and resistance. Identified spatial logics include Indigenous identity reconstruction, social (re)formation, adaptive dynamism, reclaiming common spaces, fostering spatial and social diversity, natural replication, and hybridity in transitional landscapes. These insights contribute to a broader understanding of contemporary urbanism and landscape transitions, where everyday local practices serve as transformative forces in navigating crises.