Ethnographic examination of disappearing vernacular sustainability in rural Punjab, Pakistan

Abstract This ethnographic study investigates the profound shift from historically sustainable socio-ecological practices to contemporary unsustainable modes of living in rural Punjab, Pakistan. Employing Social-Ecological Systems (SES) Resilience Theory as a framework and autoethnography and ethnography as methodology, researchers conducted observations and informal interviews over eighteen months in four villages across Central and Southern Punjab. This qualitative research analyzes past practices encompassing energy use, subsistence agriculture, vernacular architecture, resource conservation, thermal comfort strategies, and community-based financial systems to present a complex and apparently low-impact socio-ecological system deeply rooted in the cultural values of self-reliance, simplicity and reciprocity. These findings are contrasted with the contemporary increasing reliance on fossil fuels, modern extroverted concrete construction style, market-driven consumption and formal financial indebtedness, leading to heightened ecological footprints, social fragmentation and economic vulnerability. The applied framework explores the possibilities for the restoration of effective local community based practices to alternate the existent toxic methods harmful for the climate and the planet. The findings underscore the urgent need for development paradigms that integrate, rather than discard, proven indigenous ecological knowledge. Hence, recognizing the superior ecological harmony of past socio-economic systems necessitates a conscious revival and integration of these indigenous practices to forge a sustainable future for rural Punjab.