Climate change: 5 techniques from our grandparents that will become vital again

Faced with increasingly severe climate change, our modern societies are discovering their vulnerabilities. Supply chain disruptions, prolonged power outages, extreme weather conditions: these are all situations where our technological dependence reveals its limitations. Yet, our grandparents lived for decades without refrigerators, weather apps, or 24-hour supermarkets. Their techniques, forged by necessity and perfected by experience, are once again proving highly relevant today. Rediscovering these ancestral skills is no longer a mere historical curiosity, but a true life insurance policy for the future.

Preserving food without electricity: when salt replaces the refrigerator

Our great-grandmothers mastered the art of preserving meat without refrigeration using salting techniques we have almost forgotten. This age-old method is based on a simple principle: salt draws moisture from food and creates an environment hostile to the bacteria responsible for spoilage.

The traditional process begins with dry salting, a technique that involves rubbing the meat with a mixture of salt, wood ash, and sometimes natural saltpeter. This preparation was then hung in cool, well-ventilated cellars, where it could be preserved for months. Our ancestors also knew how to make brines, salt baths in which hams and cuts of meat soaked throughout the winter.

With increasingly frequent heat waves and a growing risk of power outages, these techniques are regaining their full relevance. A refrigerator breakdown lasting just a few days can now ruin hundreds of euros worth of food, whereas our grandparents would have simply taken their salted meats and jars of vegetables out of the cellar. Air drying, carried out in well-ventilated attics, also allowed for the transformation of fruits and vegetables into long-lasting stores, without any energy dependence.

Predicting the weather without satellites: the art of reading natural signals

Before the era of modern weather forecasting, our ancestors developed a remarkable sensitivity to the signals that nature sent them. This ability to anticipate weather changes allowed them to adapt their agricultural activities and prepare for inclement weather with often astonishing accuracy.

Cloud observation formed the basis of this natural science. White, cottony cumulus clouds heralded stable, fine weather, while dark, threatening formations, accompanied by shifting winds, signaled the approach of a storm. Our grandparents also knew how to interpret animal behavior: swallows flying low indicated a drop in atmospheric pressure, cats licking themselves insistently predicted rain, and frogs croaking loudly confirmed the arrival of a humid front.

This knowledge is taking on crucial importance as extreme weather events become more frequent. Knowing how to recognize the warning signs of a severe storm or heat wave allows individuals to adapt their activities, secure their homes, or take preventative measures. This natural meteorology, passed down orally from generation to generation, is essential knowledge when official forecasts are unreliable or unavailable.

Recovering every drop: the hydraulic ingenuity of the past

Water management was a major concern for our grandparents, who developed ingenious systems for collecting and storing it. These ancestral techniques are strikingly relevant again in the face of increasingly frequent droughts and widespread water restrictions.

Roofs were designed as veritable collectors, guiding every drop of rain towards underground cisterns or storage basins. Zinc gutters, Japanese rain chains, and natural filtration systems allowed for the creation of substantial reserves without any complex technology. Our ancestors also mastered the art of creating infiltration ponds that naturally replenished groundwater.

Even more remarkably, they knew how to locate underground springs by observing vegetation and animal behavior. This ability to "read" the landscape to locate water represents invaluable knowledge in a context where water resources are becoming more precious and more uncertain. Natural purification techniques, using sand, charcoal, and aquatic plants, made it possible to make water of dubious quality potable without resorting to chemical or energy-based processes.

Building shelters that defy the elements

The traditional architecture of our regions was not a product of chance, but the result of centuries of adaptation to local climatic conditions. These buildings, constructed with locally available materials, demonstrated remarkable resistance to weathering and temperature variations.

The thick stone or rammed earth walls provided considerable thermal inertia, keeping the buildings cool in summer and warm in winter. The steeply pitched roofs efficiently channeled rainwater away, while the generous overhangs protected the facades from the elements. The buildings' orientation, always carefully considered, maximized solar gain in winter while preventing overheating in summer.

These construction principles, developed long before the era of air conditioning and central heating, made it possible to maintain acceptable comfort with minimal energy consumption. Faced with peak energy consumption that strains our networks and soaring energy costs, these ancestral bioclimatic techniques offer solutions of renewed relevance. Construction using raw earth, local materials, and careful adaptation to the microclimate are all avenues for designing resilient housing.

Cultivating abundance in adversity

Our grandparents practiced a remarkably productive form of local agriculture, capable of feeding large families on small plots of land. These gardening techniques, developed without chemical fertilizers or synthetic pesticides, created productive and sustainable ecosystems that were remarkably resistant to climatic hazards.

Intercropping formed the basis of this agricultural wisdom. Three Native American sisters—corn, beans, and squash—mutually supported one another, optimizing the use of space and water. Complex rotations preserved soil fertility while interrupting pest cycles. Forest gardens, with their layers of vegetation, replicated the structure of natural ecosystems to create maximum productivity with minimal intervention.

These traditional agricultural systems demonstrated extraordinary resilience in the face of climate variations. Variety diversity, staggered harvests, and seed storage were all strategies that enabled farmers to weather difficult years. Faced with the challenges of climate change, biodiversity loss, and dependence on industrial inputs, these ancestral techniques offer proven solutions for feeding local populations sustainably and independently.

The awakening of a forgotten wisdom

These five pillars of ancestral resilience (food preservation, natural weather forecasting, water management, adapted construction, and diversified agriculture) constitute a heritage of inestimable know-how. Far from being mere folkloric curiosities, these techniques represent concrete solutions to the challenges of our time.

Climate change is forcing us to rethink our lifestyles and reduce our dependence on complex, energy-intensive systems. The techniques of our grandparents, tested by centuries of practice, offer robust and proven alternatives. They simply need to be rediscovered, adapted, and passed on to new generations.

The climate emergency reminds us of a simple truth: nature has always been our mistress, and our ancestors learned to dance with her rather than fight her. Perhaps it's time to relearn those dance steps before the music stops forever.