Biocultural conservation Research Papers - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

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- Sociology, Applied Ethics, Environmental Ethics, Science and Society

William Denevan argued that pristine landscapes are a myth, including in Amazonia—imagined by many as one of the last bastions of pristine Nature. During the last century, evidence accumulated to show that humans domesticated Nature during the Holocene by creating cultural niches in all habitable regions of the planet. This process of cultural niche construction is the result of human agency, grounded on culturally transmitted ecological knowledge to domesticate landscapes, and plant and animal populations, thus increasing human carrying capacity. The expansion of culturally constructed niches during the Holocene does not mean that every inch of the habitable planet became a garden; rather, there is a mosaic of landscapes domesticated to different degrees, especially forests. Consequently, domesticated landscapes depend upon their humans, even though humans can also degrade these landscapes, which gave rise to the Anthropocene concept. As a result, Edward O. Wilson proposed that half of the biosphere be set aside for Nature. Many prime areas for the half-Earth proposal are tropical forests, all with high linguistic diversity; Borneo, New Guinea, the Congo, and Amazonia are examples. Since all of Nature in the habitable regions of the planet is cultural to some degree, setting aside half requires partnership with local human populations, rather than their exclusion, which is too common today. Their participation is essential, because it is their niche construction activities that resulted in what we call Nature and without them Nature will change—through natural processes—into something different from that which we plan to conserve.

Monumental olive trees, with their longevity and their remarkable size, represent an important information source for the comprehension of the territory where they grow and the human societies that have kept them through time. Across the centuries, olive trees are the only cultivated plants that tell the story of Mediterranean landscapes. The same as stone monuments, these green monuments represent a real Mediterranean natural and cultural heritage. The aim of this paper is to discuss the value of monumental trees as "biocultural heritage" elements and the role they play in the interpretation of the historical stratification of the landscape. We present the results of a survey of the most significant olive trees growing in Sicily. The selection was based on the "monumentality" aspects of trees, taking into account dendrometric parameters and environmental contexts. The collected dataset constitutes a heterogeneous sample of 367 specimens of considerable size that, in some cases, reach a circumference of about 19 m. Starting from the data presented here, the whole Sicilian territory shows a historical relationship between human and olive. The presence of these plant monuments is, therefore, evidence of long-term, often centennial, landscapes as a result of sustainable use of the territory.

- by Giuseppe Bazan
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- Agrobiodiversity, Biocultural Diversity, Biodiversity, Rural Landscape

Presentamos una iniciativa y proponemos una metodología transdis- ciplinaria para cultivar la memoria biocultural, basada en los proce- sos de participación y materialización en comunidades de práctica (educativas). Presentamos el proyecto «Escuchando a los abuelos», que buscó facilitar diálogos intergeneracionales en tres escuelas mapuche (~ 90 niños y niñas) en Wallmapu, Chile. «Escuchando a los abuelos» utilizó a las aves como protagonistas de narrativas locales sobre el territorio. Cocreamos un ciclo de cinco pasos para promover la participación y la materialización. Los niños y niñas desarrollaron un ejercicio de abstracción para dar significado a las narrativas que ellos mismos recopilaron para crear memes positivos sobre las aves. Estos memes fueron comunicados dentro y más allá de sus comunidades. Concluimos que la experiencia de los abuelos debe ser honrada para contrarrestar la actual extinción de la experiencia biocultural.

- by José Tomás Ibarra and +2
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- Educación Ambiental, Avifauna, Biocultural conservation, Ornitología

For at least 30 years researchers have called for a deeper reflection on the paths we desire for ethnobotanical research. Although the discipline of ethnobotany is growing, as measured by the number of publications in the area, there is still work to be done regarding the homogeneity of theoretical and methodological approaches and the implications of ethnobotanical research findings for society as a whole. In this article we present 10 questions/issues that we believe can guide the research and actions of ethnobotanists for the coming years.

Bezaury-Creel, J., S. Graf-Montero, K. Barcklay-Briseño, R. de la Maza-Hernández, J.S. Machado-Macías, E. Rodríguez-Martínez del Sobral, S. Rojas-González de Castilla, H. Ruíz-Barranco. 2015. Los Paisajes Bioculturales: un instrumento para el desarrollo rural y la conservación del patrimonio natural y cultural de México. México, 40 pp.
Agencia Francesa de Desarrollo, Comisión Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas, The Nature Conservancy En 2011 el gobierno francés invitó a funcionarios de la Secretaría de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales a visitar y conocer los parques naturales regionales de Francia y definir si la adopción de este esquema podría apoyar los es¬fuerzos de México para conservar su extraordinaria diversidad biológica y cultural. Los estudios y deliberaciones subsecuentes concluye¬ron en que el uso de un nuevo instrumento de gestión del territorio, similar al utilizado en Europa para lograr la conservación integral del patrimonio natural y cultural del país, no solo era factible sino deseable para México.
Los paisajes bioculturales serán considerados como áreas naturales pro¬tegidas establecidas voluntariamente a solicitud de los municipios y dele¬gaciones rurales del Distrito Federal, con el consenso de: organizaciones sociales, pueblos indígenas, ejidos, comunidades, pequeños propietarios, productores, iniciativa privada, organizaciones conservacionistas y líderes de opinión locales, en colaboración con los gobiernos de las entidades federativas, con la validación y apoyo por parte de la federación a través de la Secretaría del Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales y la Comisión Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas.

- by Juan E. Bezaury-Creel
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- Cultural Heritage, Natural Resource Management, Landscape, Protected areas
- by Bas Verschuuren
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- Religion, Indigenous Studies, Social Policy, Conservation Biology

Metaphors serve as communication bridges between concepts generated in different languages. They facilitate intercultural dialogues, and enhance educational transformations and interdisciplinary integrations. In a metaphorical parallel to the concepts of ecological keystone species and cultural keystone species, in this paper, we propose the concept of biocultural keystone species to characterize species that play a central, ecological and cultural, role in the regions they inhabit. We identify the Andean Condor (Vultur gryphus) as a «biocultural keystone species» of the South American landscape where, in addition of being a top scavenger species, it plays a prominent function in several cultural domains (e.g., language, myth, art, rite, politics, identity) of diverse Amerindian peoples and other socio–cultural groups associated with the Andes. The Andean condor is part of the South American zoo–cultural heritage and plays a key role in the
biocultural networks of this region that crosses the continent from the high peaks of Venezuela and Colombia to the archipelagic landscapes of Cape Horn. The field of biocultural diversity offers an integrative approach, including theory and applications, to the inextricable links between humans and nature. In the case of the Andean condor, the biocultural perspective generates an ethical understanding of the ecological, cultural, and patrimonial values of birds, and promotes an integrative conservation of biological and cultural diversity. KEYWORDS.– Biocultural diversity, environmental ethics, biocultural keystone species, zoo–cultural heritage, South America.

- by Antonia Barreau D. and +1
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- Andean Culture, Ethnoecology, Biocultural conservation, Ethnoornithology

In this paper, we critically examine the co-management of Indigenous peoples' cultural heritage as simultaneously a driver and product of the culturalisation of Indigenous peoples: The reduction of complex legal-political orders, anchored in specific lands, value systems, rights, and practices, to material cultures. Co-management has been hailed as a defensibly imperfect, 'tweakable' system that benefits both Indigenous and state parties, and moreover, a stepping stone to Indigenous self-determination. Departing from these analyses, we argue that co-management is not just an administrative arrangement but also a state-ratified international rights regime, and accordingly, that it cannot do other than undermine Indigenous self-determination and imperil Indigenous peoples' cultural heritage. We suggest that cultural heritage can only thrive by being actively engaged with in situ: via the living practice of Indigenous governance. Operationalising our argument, we first consider the challenges of cultural heritage protection in Sápmi; specifically, the co-management of Laponia, in Sweden, and the unprotected sacred area of Suttesája in Finland. We then discuss a more promising framework: the Quechua 'Biocultural Heritage Territory' of the Parque de la Papa, in Peru. Finally, we apply the lessons of the Parque to Suttesája, showing how this opens up governance-based avenues to safeguarding Indigenous sacred areas.

- by Sam Grey and +1
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- Cultural Heritage Conservation, Cultural Heritage Law, Cultural World Heritage Sites, Indigenous Governance

This study investigates the changing role of the domesticated sedge waste (Cyperus spp.) among the indigenous Shipibo-Konibo who live in Ucayali river basin in the Peruvian Amazon. Waste is known as piripiri in Spanish and is associated with cultivated plants in the Cyperaceae or sedge family, commonly infected with a fungi. Many indigenous groups in the Amazon are familiar with a large number of piripiri names and uses, however these are associated with only a very small number of botanical taxa. The uses for the grated or mashed tubers of the Cyperus spp. ranges from the treatment of symptoms of physical disease to magical uses that can change state of mind or behaviour. This study offers an analysis of the many folk species of waste that have been used throughout the decades in Shipibo-Konibo culture. The Shipibo-Konibo are known for their medicinal plant knowledge and intricate ken designs, which are closely related with ken waste in particular. A literature analysis, unpublished field data and semi-structured interviews in collaboration with the grassroots organisation Alianza Arkana
provided the data for this study. The results show that Shipibo-Konibo culture is deeply intertwined with the wisdom of the plants spirits and the ancestors. However, their culture is rapidly changing due to influences of western education and urbanisation. The changing uses of waste seem to reflect at least to some extent both persistent and new behaviours and values in Shipibo-Konibo society. The rich connections between linguistics, culture and biology make this an illustrative case study for the concept of biocultural diversity.

- by Inge Kuijper
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- Anthropology, Ethnobotany, Biocultural Diversity, Shamanism
- by Pedro Nájera
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- Psychedelics, Psychedelics (Psychology), Psychedelic Culture, Cactus

Diverse and productive ecosystems and human well-being are too often considered opposing targets. This stems mainly from nature being perceived as separate from culture, which results in resilience indicators that focus predominantly on either ecosystems or humans, and that overlook the interplay between the two. Meanwhile, global targets for biodiversity conservation and human well- being have yet to be satisfactorily achieved. We believe that in order to develop effective, culturally appropriate, and equitable conservation strategies that ensure social-ecological resilience, conservation planners and practitioners must conceive of human and ecological well- beings as an interrelated system. By giving nature a voice, and by viewing nature and people as an undifferentiated whole, some indigenous peoples and local communities (IPLC) have philosophical bases for achieving well-being for both humans and nature. Biocultural approaches to conservation ground management in local knowledges, practices, and ontologies. These approaches encompass both the biological and cultural aspects of a system, address complex relationships and feedbacks within human and ecological well-being, and offer flexible frameworks that facilitate synthesis across different metrics, knowledge systems, and ontologies. The process of developing indicators of resilience with a biocultural approach could help (1) overcome the human–nature dichotomy that often makes global approaches incompatible with local approaches by integrating local peoples’ diverse forms of relating to nature, (2) reflect two-way feedbacks between people and their environment by focusing on processes, not just final states, and (3) define, measure, and monitor ecological and human well-being as a whole. It can also facilitate dialog between IPLCs and global decision- makers who are disconnected from local realities, and between people from a diversity of disciplinary, ontological, and professional backgrounds.

- by Sophie Caillon and +2
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- Conservation, Resilience, Traditional Ecological Knowledge, Well-Being

Vásquez-Dávila, M.A. y G.I. Manzanero Medina. 2021. Mercados regionales de Oaxaca como nodos bioculturales complejos. En: S. Moctezuma Pérez y D. Sandoval Genovez (comps.): Mercados y tianguis en el siglo XXI. Repensando sus... more

- by Marco Antonio Vásquez Dávila
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- Ethnography, Biocultural Diversity, Ethnobiology, Ethnoecology

Through research, restoration of agro-ecological sites, and a renaissance of cultural awareness in Hawai'i, there has been a growing recognition of the ingenuity of the Hawaiian biocultural resource management system. The contemporary term for this system, "the ahupua'a system", does not accurately convey the nuances of system function, and it inhibits an understanding about the complexity of the system's management. We examined six aspects of the Hawaiian biocultural resource management system to understand its framework for systematic management. Based on a more holistic understanding of this system's structure and function, we introduce the term, "the moku system", to describe the Hawaiian biocultural resource management system, which divided large islands into social-ecological regions and further into interrelated social-ecological communities. This system had several social-ecological zones running horizontally across each region, which divided individual communities vertically while connecting them to adjacent communities horizontally; and, thus, created a mosaic that contained forested landscapes, cultural landscapes, and seascapes, which synergistically harnessed a diversity of ecosystem services to facilitate an abundance of biocultural resources. "The moku system", is a term that is more conducive to large-scale biocultural restoration in the contemporary period, while being inclusive of the smaller-scale divisions that allowed for a highly functional system.

- by Malia K H Akutagawa and +1
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- Social-Ecological Systems, Traditional Ecological Knowledge, Hawaii, Biocultural conservation

The highest small-scale biodiversity or density of species (in the world scale) has been recorded in semi-natural communities. It demonstrates that sustainable role of humans can be beneficial in terms of biodiversity for the whole of... more

- by Kalevi Kull
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- Human Ecology, Biocultural Diversity, Sustainable Development, Cultural Landscapes

Sacred natural sites (SNS) are instances of biocultural landscapes protected for spiritual motives. These sites frequently host important biological values in areas of Asia and Africa, where traditional resource management is still upheld by local communities. In contrast, the biodiversity value of SNS has hardly been quantitatively tested in Western contexts, where customs and traditions have relatively lost importance due to modernization and secularization. To assess whether SNS in Western contexts retain value for biodiversity, we studied plant species composition at 30 SNS in Central Italy and compared them with a paired set of similar but not sacred reference sites. We demonstrate that SNS are important for conserving stands of large trees and habitat heterogeneity across different land-cover types. Further, SNS harbor higher plant species richness and a more valuable plant species pool, and significantly contribute to diversity at the landscape scale. We suggest that these patterns are related not only to pre-existent features, but also to traditional management. Conservation of SNS should take into account these specificities, and their cultural as well as biological values, by supporting the continuation of traditional management practices.

- by Riccardo Guarino
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- Biocultural Anthropology, Biodiversity, Sacred Space, Biocultural conservation

Growing ecological problems have raised the need for conceptual tools dedicated to studying semiotic processes in cultural-ecological systems. Departing from both ecosemiotics and cultural semiotics, the concept of an ecosemiosphere is proposed to denote the entire complex of semiosis in an ecosystem, including the involvement of human cultural semiosis. More specifically, the ecosemiosphere is a semiotic system comprising all species and their umwelts, alongside the diverse semiotic relations (including humans with their culture) that they have in the given ecosystem, and also the material supporting structures that enable the ecosemiosphere to thrive. Drawing parallels with Juri Lotman's semiosphere concept, the ecosemiosphere is characterized by its heterogeneity, asymmetry, and boundedness. But unlike Lotman's concept, the ecosemiosphere is not characterized by an overall boundedness, that is, by the presence of external binary boundaries and the shared identity arising from this unity. The involvement of human culture in the ecosemiosphere manifests in interspecies dialogues and semiotic engagements. We need to scrutinize what affordances and semiotic resources culture could offer to nonhuman species and how culture could, by semiotic means, raise the integrity, stability, and resiliency of the ecosystem. The ecosemiosphere is a grounded semiosphere.

- by Timo Maran
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- Semiotics, Ecosystems Ecology, Biocultural Diversity, Social-Ecological Systems

We contend that biocultural approaches to conservation
can achieve effective and just conservation outcomes
while addressing erosion of both cultural and biological
diversity. Here, we propose a set of guidelines for the
adoption of biocultural approaches to conservation.
First, we draw lessons from work on biocultural diversity
and heritage, social–ecological systems theory, integrated
conservation and development, co-management, and
community-based conservation to define biocultural
approaches to conservation. Second, we describe eight
principles that characterize such approaches. Third, we
discuss reasons for adopting biocultural approaches and
challenges. If used well, biocultural approaches to conservation
can be a powerful tool for reducing the global
loss of both biological and cultural diversity.

Monumental olive trees, with their longevity and their remarkable size, represent an important information source for the comprehension of the territory where they grow and the human societies that have kept them through time. Across the centuries, olive trees are the only cultivated plants that tell the story of Mediterranean landscapes. The same as stone monuments, these green monuments represent a real Mediterranean natural and cultural heritage. The aim of this paper is to discuss the value of monumental trees as “biocultural heritage” elements and the role they play in the interpretation of the historical stratification of the landscape. We present the results of a survey of the most significant olive trees growing in Sicily. The selection was based on the “monumentality” aspects of trees, taking into account dendrometric parameters and environmental contexts. The collected dataset constitutes a heterogeneous sample of 367 specimens of considerable size that, in some cases, rea...

- by Claudia Speciale
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- Geography, Agrobiodiversity, Biocultural Diversity, Biodiversity

Este ensayo constituye el segundo de una trilogía publicada en Etnoecológica de manera secuencial. El primer ensayo (16 de julio 2014, 10:6) ofreció una revisión diacrónica de las nociones de naturaleza que se han aplicado en varias épocas de la tradición Occidental. Se hace evidente la polisemia de la diversidad de connotaciones de lo natural en diferentes periodos del pensamiento y en la hegemonía de una concepción objetual de naturaleza desde una perspectiva Occidental. Este segundo ensayo explora sin ser exhaustivo, algunos aspectos con los que grupos amerindios en especial amazónicos, han definido su entorno de vida que analógicamente puede considerarse lo natural. Este texto ofrece cinco diacríticos que forman parte del carácter de diversos grupos amazónicos y que contribuyen a entender su visión de biosfera o esfera de vida: carencia de un lexema que traduzca naturaleza, ausencia de una noción equiparable de cultura o sociedad, calidad de persona o condición intersubjetiva de las entidades del cosmos más allá del hombre, estado de transformación permanente de las entidades e inexistencia de concepciones de ambientes prístinos a favor de nociones de cambio, impermanencia o continuidad transformadora de los espacios. Se proveen nueve series de ejemplos significativos del ethos indígena amazónico substanciando su condición de agentes creativos en las composiciones, estructuras y dinámicas de los bosques que han ocupado consuetudinariamente representado en la fabricación tipos y formaciones de suelos que en muchos casos son el resultado de intervención humana (terra preta do indio) bosques antropogénicos de diversas especies y dominancias en la Amazonia boliviana, brasileña, ecuatoriana, venezolana (Mauritia flexuosa L.f., Astrocaryum vulgare Mart., Elaeis oleifera (Kunth) Cortés, Attalea speciosa Mart., Guadua glomerata Munro, Bertholletia excelsa Bonpl., Platonia insignis Mart, Caryocar villosum (Aubl.) Pers., entre otros), manejo sucesional de las estructuras y composición de bosques (entre los runa, piaroa, jotï), de paisajes y zonas florísticas mediante los cuales emergen zonas de vegetación y ecotono (montículos y campos elevados entre ancestros indígenas y actualmente sirionó, piaroa), domesticación o semi-domesticación de árboles frutales desde el principio del período Holoceno, dinamismo y facilitación de sucesión de bosques (entre los ka'apor), conocimiento de clima, estaciones anuales, fauna y flora, tipos de vegetación asociados, composición y estructura de la formación de bosques entre otros (kayapó), el impacto positivo de las actividades hortícolas y las poblaciones de presas (plantación de cacería entre los piaroa) y manejos análogos. Se propone el concepto de ecogonía cuyo objetivo es entender los fundamentos que subyacen a las interacciones particulares entre un grupo humano y su entorno abiótico y biótico en diversos nodos articulatorios (ideológicos, materiales, espirituales, funcionales, dinámicos, ontológicos, entre otras esferas similares). Finalmente, se invita al lector a examinar de manera critica el empleo del enfoque ecogónico entre los indígenas jotï de la Amazonía venezolana desarrollado en el último ensayo de esta trilogía.

En la comunidad de Taxco, Gro., el consumo de insectos es una tradición que se ha venido conservando a lo largo de los años, el jumil, que ya era utilizado como condimento en la alimentación de algunos habitantes
del México prehispánico y forma parte de la identidad de los habitantes de esta ciudad.
Su consumo tiene la doble cualidad del cambio y la persistencia en el tiempo, es decir el uso del jumil se ha preservado, pero las formas que adopta han sufrido una serie de cambios, aspectos que dependen de la disponibilidad del organismo y del gusto por su consumo, que representa una actitud cultural, todo
ello influenciado por la dinámica de Taxco, que en los últimos años ha cambiado sus tradiciones, hábitos,
usos y costumbres, ya que es una ciudad en constante desarrollo económico, a partir de su creciente actividad turística.

- by Eduardo Corona-M.
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- Biocultural Diversity, Biocultural Anthropology, Ethnobiology, Ethnozoology

Pese al papel fundamental que desempeñan los hongos psilocibios en la medicina tradicional indígena de México desde tiempos inmemoriales, su desatención institucional y su condición de ilegalidad imposibilita el despliegue de esquemas de conservación, investigación y aprovechamiento de este recurso biocultural endógeno. Partiendo del paradigma conceptual de la bioculturalidad y desde el enfoque socioterritorial del desarrollo local, el presente artículo plantea una discusión sobre el potencial de los hongos psilocibios para constituirse como patrimonio biocultural de México y favorecer el desarrollo local en la Sierra Mazateca de Oaxaca. El artículo se fundamenta metodológicamente en una investigación documental y etnográfica para destacar el valor biocultural y el potencial terapéutico de los hongos psilocibios a fin de proponer su reconocimiento institucional y científico en el ámbito nacional. Los resultados indican que la comunidad mazateca reconoce el potencial endógeno de los hongos psilocibios y favorece su uso turístico. No obstante, la ausencia de capacidades comunitarias para la cooperación cohesiva inhibe la articulación de estrategias regionales de conservación y desarrollo. La reflexión final propone que la dinamización de las plantas visionarias por medio de esquemas de conservación biocultural y aprovechamiento turístico responsable puede contribuir a la mitigación de la pobreza en regiones indígenas.

Following the Herds: Rhythms of Tibetan Pastoral Life in A mdo is an ethnographic exploration of traditional ecological knowledge in a Tibetan pastoralist community. This editorial introduction explains how and why the book came about, and how I worked together with the author, Chos bstan rgyal, to produce the book. For those interested in seeing the final product, the open access book can be downloaded here: http://plateauculture.org/writing/following-herds-rhythms-tibetan-pastoral-life-mdo.

- by Gerald Roche and +1
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- Buddhism, Anthropology, Ethnobotany, Tibetan Studies

Background: Traditional veterinary medicine (TVM) or ethnoveterinary medicine comprises knowledge, practices,
and beliefs about farm animals. Its study serves to offer ecologically and culturally appropriate strategies for the
management of animals and their health in a context marked by the increased use of synthetic pharmaceuticals,
social–environmental degradation, pollution, and climate change. In this study, we examine the TVM that Mapuche
and non-Mapuche campesinos in the southern Andes have about the management of animals and their health. In
addition, we investigate the main factors influencing the current use of TVM.
Methods: Between December 2020 and March 2021, we undertook participant observation and conducted 60 semi-
structured and informal interviews with Mapuche and non-Mapuche campesinos from the Pucón and Curarrehue
municipal districts in the southern Andes of Chile.
Results: We identified a set of knowledge about cycles and manifestations of nature used in planning 14 animal
management practices related to a Mapuche kosmos expressed in living with respect for and in dialogue with non-
human elements. On health management, we recorded knowledge about 30 plant species, whose use for different
categories of wounds and parasites has the highest informant consensus factors. The use of these plant species is
governed by a kosmos associated with respect and reciprocity in their gathering. Nonetheless, 70% of the campesinos
interviewed prefer to use synthetic pharmaceuticals. We found that the growing use of synthetic pharmaceuticals, the
processes of reduction and change in the structure of land ownership, and climate change are perceived as the main
factors behind processes of assimilation of new praxis and hybridization as well as the reduction and/or loss of the use
of TVM.
Conclusion: Our results reveal the presence of ethnoveterinary knowledge, practices, and beliefs that are safe-
guarded by Mapuche and non-Mapuche campesinos in the southern Andes. However, in the context of different
social–environmental changes, it is imperative to document, visibilize, and revitalize TVM since it provides new per-
spectives for bioculturally diverse and sustainable animal production.

Over recent decades, people and particularly children are interacting less and less with biodiversity. This ongoing alienation of humans from nature, so called " extinction of experience " , is having negative consequences on biodiversity conservation. We argue that possible drivers of this shift, such as technological progress and sedentary habits, not only produce a loss of engagement with local biodiversity; they also trigger a cycle of detachment of children from the experience of elders. Elders fill a special role in social-ecological communities. They serve as stewards of knowledge, intertwined with practice and beliefs, of long-term changes in the territory. Elders help link individuals to the broader community as a whole, connecting the past with the future, and thus act as the foundation of social-ecological memory. We present an ongoing project aiming to articulate intergenerational dialogues between children and elders in three rural Mapuche indigenous and peasant schools (~90 children) of La Araucanía Region, Andes of southern Chile. To facilitate these dialogues, we use birds and forests as the foundation of local narratives about long-term and large-scale changes in the territory over generations. We have developed a 5-step cycle including 1. Natural history workshops; 2. Children led guided grand tour interviews with their parents and grandparents; 3. Systematization, analysis and illustration of narratives; 4. Intergenerational " Dialogues of Memory " ; and 5. Communication to the broader community. We found that birds, forests, elders, and the social-ecological memory they carry, are imbricated in complex networks of environmental, social, psychological, political and cultural practices. It is through nurturing social-ecological memory that children will engage with their local biological and cultural (biocultural) heritage. We conclude that elder experience should be honored so as to help counteract further " extinction of biocultural experience " and build resilient communities.

- by José Tomás Ibarra and +2
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- Education, Indigenous Studies, Ornithology, Environmental Studies
- by Zerihun Doda
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- Geography, Conservation, Ethiopian Studies, Traditional Medicine

Las prácticas recreativas al aire libre reflejan diversos modos de convivir con la biodiversidad. Una de ellas, la observación de aves, ha ganado popularidad mundial pues, a través de las aves, las personas socializan entre sí y con la naturaleza. Esta actividad también puede fomentar el cultivo de una relación ética con las aves, la gente y sus culturas. En este trabajo se presenta al “pajareo biocultural” como una propuesta teórico-práctica para enriquecer la ética del turismo relacionado a las aves mediante la integración de narrativas ecológicas y culturales de las aves en un ciclo de observación–reflexión. Se integró investigación ornitológica interdisciplinaria
con la creación de metáforas y el diseño de actividades de observación de aves en Puerto Williams, Chile. El Chimango (Milvago chimango) es capaz de unir los sistemas ecológicos y sociales del Cono Sur americano a través de sus funciones biológicas y significados culturales. Éstos fueron socializados a través de las metáforas “vínculo marino-terrestre” y “cara-a-cara con el caracara”, confeccionados desde la ecología y la extensión de la expresión “cara-a-cara” de Emmanuel Lévinas. Utilizando criterios de adecuación referencial, social, ambiental y de sustentabilidad, se evaluó la capacidad de estas metáforas para acercar a los participantes a las aves, sus ecosistemas
y las culturas en que participan. Se recomienda adaptar esta propuesta con otras aves y contextos, para diversificar las relaciones y valoraciones actuales de la avifauna y la gente en los sistemas socio-ecológicos.

- by Christopher B. Anderson and +1
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- Environmental Philosophy, Tourism Studies, Environmental Education, Ornithology

Measuring progress toward sustainability goals is a multifaceted task. International , regional, and national organizations and agencies seek to promote resilience and capacity for adaptation at local levels. However, their measurement systems may be poorly aligned with local contexts, cultures, and needs. Understanding how to build effective, culturally grounded measurement systems is a fundamental step toward supporting adaptive management and resilience in the face of environmental, social, and economic change. To identify patterns and inform future efforts, we review seven case studies and one framework regarding the development of culturally grounded indicator sets. Additionally, we explore ways to bridge locally relevant indicators and those of use at national and international levels. The process of identifying and setting criteria for appropriate indicators of resilience in social-ecological systems needs further documentation , discussion, and refinement, particularly regarding capturing feedbacks between biological and social-cultural elements of systems. Indigenous and other place-based, local communities increasingly face an assortment of externally codified development and sustainability goals, regional commitments, and national policies and actions that are designed, in part, to foster adaptation and resilience at the local level. Resilience refers to the capacity of a system to absorb shocks and disturbances and to catalyze renewal, adaptation, transformation, and innovation (Béneét al. 2013). Identifying and setting criteria for the underlying factors that confer resilience to a community are the first steps toward effectively aligning external sustainability-seeking processes, often associated with resourcing mechanisms, with locally relevant and locally embraced approaches to sustaining environmental health and community well-being in the face of environmental, social, and economic change (Fazey et al. 2011; Folke et al. 2003).

- by Sophie Caillon and +1
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- Sustainability Indicators, Biocultural conservation

Although there is general agreement among conservation practitioners about the need for (1) social involvement on the part of scientists; (2) interdisciplinary approaches; (3) working on local, regional, and global levels; and (4) implementing international agreements on biodiversity and environmental protection, a major challenge we face in conservation today is how to integrate and implement these multiple dimensions. Few researchers have actually offered hands-on examples for showing in practical terms how such integration can be accomplished. To address this challenge we present an innovative case study: the Omora Ethnobotanical Park, a long-term biocultural conservation initiative at the southern extreme of the Americas. Located near Puerto Williams (55º S), Cape Horn Archipelago region, Chile, the Omora Park is a public-private reserve that provides material and conceptual foundations for three complementary conservation actions: (1) interdisciplinary scientific research; (2) informal and formal education, i.e., school, university, and training courses; and (3) biocultural conservation. The latter entails an actual reserve that protects biodiversity and the water quality of Puerto Williams' watershed, as well as programs on Yahgan traditional ecological knowledge and interdisciplinary activities, such as " field environmental ethics " and ecotourism, carried out in the reserve. Being at the " end of the world, " and within one of the most remote and pristine ecoregions on the planet, Omora Park offers a " bio-cultural treasure. " At the same time, its geographical and technological isolation presents a challenge for implementing and sustaining conservation actions. To achieve the general conservation goals, we have defined 10 principles that have guided the actions of Omora: (1) interinstitutional cooperation, (2) a participatory approach, (3) an interdisciplinary approach, (4) networking and international cooperation, (5) communication through the media, (6) identification of a flagship species, (7) outdoor formal and informal education, (8) economic sustainability and ecotourism, (9) administrative sustainability, and (10) research and conceptual sustainability for conservation. These principles have been effective for establishing the long-term Omora initiative, as well as involving multiple actors, disciplines, and scales. Upon these foundations, the Omora initiative has extended its local goals to the regional level through a successful 5-yr process in cooperation with the Chilean government to create the Cape Horn Biosphere Reserve, designated by UNESCO in June 2005, with the goal of establishing a long-term institutional-political framework that promotes social well-being and biocultural conservation at the southernmost tip of the Americas.

- by Ricardo Rozzi
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- Cultural Studies, Comparative Literature, Philosophy, Philosophy of Science

TRANSHUMANCE IS ONE OF THE MOST INTERESTING ETHNOGRAPHIC CONTEXTS IN WHICH IS POSSIBLE TO OBSERVE THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN NATURE AND CULTURE CONSERVATION AND VALORIZATION. POLICY-MAKERS AT DIFFERENT SCALES, SCHOLARS, LOCAL ACTIVISTS AND COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE ARE ENGAGED IN MANAGING, PROJECTING AND ENHANCING TERRITORIES AND COMMUNITIES LINKED TO TRANSHUMANCE IN THE PAST. MORE RECENTLY THEY ARE INVOLVED IN A PROCESS OF 'TOURISTIZATION' AND 'HERITAGIZATION' OF TRADITIONAL PASTORALISM AND TRANSHUMANT ROUTES. ETHNOGRAPHERS ENTER THIS FIELD AS A PRIVILEGED WAY FOR UNDERSTANDING CONTEMPORARY HERITAGE PROCESSES AND THEIR COMPLEX AMBIVALENCES.

- by Nathan Badenoch and +1
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- Agrobiodiversity, Biocultural Diversity, Crop genetic diversity, Okinawan Studies
- by Christian Reinhard Vogl and +1
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- Biocultural Diversity, Biocultural conservation, Reservas de la biosfera, Patrimonio Biocultural

There is growing recognition that sacred natural sites (SNS) form hotspots of biocultural diversity and significantly contribute to conservation in traditional non-western societies. Using empirical evidence from SNS in Central Italy, we illustrate how a similar link between spiritual, cultural, and biological values can be fundamental also in relatively secular and modernized European contexts. We show that SNS are key to sustaining traditional practices and local identities, and represent important instances of biodiversity-rich cultural landscapes. Based on other case studies from across Europe, we suggest that these conclusions can be relevant also at a broader European scale. Greater awareness from planners and policy-makers, however, is needed to safeguard and emphasize the role of European sacred sites as refugia for biocultural diversity. We review policy guidelines on SNS previously developed by International Union for the Conservation for Nature (IUCN) and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and aimed at protected area managers and planners. We assess the applicability of these guidelines in European contexts, and complement them with findings and insight from Central Italy. We provide recommendations for guidelines that are suited to SNS related to mainstream faiths in Europe.

Se presentan resultados parciales de un proceso de investigación cualitativa con enfoque hermenéutico crítico realizado en Ciudad Mutis, cabecera municipal de Bahía Solano, Chocó, Colombia, en el que a partir del registro de campo, entrevistas no directivas, entre otros métodos desarrollados con la participación activa de la comunidad, se logró propiciar un acercamiento a la comprensión de las realidades ambientales del municipio y analizar las relaciones en términos históricos y actuales de las comunidades de Bahía Solano con el ecosistema de manglar, desde la mirada de los actores sociales de la región. Se evidencia una situación de conflicto alrededor de estos bosques teniendo en cuenta los altos niveles de contaminación, deforestación y sobreexplotación de los recursos que albergan estos ecosistemas, problemáticas que se relacionan directamente con los procesos de globalización y migración de los que es objeto el municipio desde el año 1935. Por otra parte, analizamos que dichos procesos han influido en la pérdida de valores y prácticas culturales de las comunidades nativas a lo largo del tiempo, en la falta de apropiación del territorio de los habitantes actuales de la región, entre otros factores. Finalmente, se reflexiona a partir de la importancia de esta investigación a la hora de establecer procesos educativos participativos que conduzcan al reconocimiento del territorio en su contexto biofísico y cultural por parte de sus habitantes en distintos contextos, un factor que resulta esencial para contribuir en la reconstrucción progresiva de tejido social y en las transformaciones sociales en este municipio del Pacífico colombiano.

- by Felipe Rodríguez Moreno and +1
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- Ethnography, Conservation Biology, Mangroves, Biocultural Anthropology
- by Ricardo Rozzi
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- Environmental Science, Environmental Economics, Philosophy, Ethics

A pluralist and cross-cultural approach that accommodates differing values while encouraging the collaboration and social cohesion necessary for the complex task of ecological restoration is needed. We used qualitative and quantitative analyses to investigate value assigned to biocultural restoration of coastal forests in northern New Zealand by 26 interviewees from three groups (environmental managers, M¯ aori community members, and community project leaders). M¯ aori community members primarily emphasized the importance of Cultural Stewardship and Use in the restoration process, while placing less emphasis on Ecological Integrity. Otherwise, all participants shared common trends, culminating in three interrelated value sets: (1) Personal Engagement, (2) Connection, and (3) the generation and transfer of Knowledge & Wisdom. These values demonstrate that restoration's benefits to people and community are as significant as its reparations of ecological components. Despite differences, all stakeholders were united in a broadly common goal to restore socio-ecological systems. Their knowledge and shared passion for conservation signal enormous promise for accelerated and effective restoration of coastal forests, if it is conducted using a pluralistic approach. Because some values expressed were intangible and complex, with cross-cultural dimensions, current valuation tools used by ecological economists to guide management investment fail to adequately account for, in particular, M¯ aori values of ecological restoration. Implications for Practice • Cultural stewardship and future customary use of natural resources are often key outcomes desired by indigenous communities from ecological restoration initiatives. • Restoration values are often inseparable and intangible, with interrelated and complex dimensions based on cultural and professional differences. • The value to people and community of being involved in ecological restoration is as significant as its reparations of ecological elements and systems. • Cross-cultural accommodations do more than removing conflict and mobilizing more local resources for restoration ; they can also suggest different directions and methods for success, and trigger transformation of personal and community values that extend well beyond and applications to ecological restoration.

- by Ashli Akins and +1
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- Biocultural Diversity, Ecological restoration, Biocultural conservation, Environmental Values

RESUMEN.– Como ícono del paisaje biocultural andino, el tero serrano (Vanellus resplendens) ejemplifica la necesidad de incorporar el conocimiento ecológico tradicional para la mejor comprensión del ecosistema de montaña y para su gestión efectiva hacia la sustentabilidad de las comunidades de altura. La mitología asociada al tero serrano invita a reflexionar sobre la etnoecología en los bosques neotropicales y los pastizales altoandinos y su apropiación social en el imaginario del paisaje cultural altoandino. Esta apropiación determinaría un cambio de paradigma desde la preservación de la biodiversidad en las áreas naturales hacia la nueva conservación de patrimonio biocultural a lo largo de la cordillera de los Andes. Se presentan una gama de nueve categorías para entender cómo las relaciones bioculturales con el tero serrano plantean reflexiones identitarias, de custodia del paisaje y de servicios ambientales. Más aún, el tero puede ser un potencial indicador para la adaptación frente al cambio climático, como se observa con ejemplos de su comportamiento defensivo y selección de hábitat alimen-ticio dependiente de la ganadería extensiva en áreas protegidas de montaña. De esta manera, el acervo cultural andino se beneficia no solamente de las producciones inmateriales o de monumentalidad material, sino también de las formas de vida idealizadas en la montaña y de la ingeniería indirectamente realizada por las costumbres an-cestrales de las culturas andinas que han hecho posible la simbiosis biocultural del paisaje andino. PALABRAS CLAVE.– tero serrano, identidad, paisaje biocultural, patrimonio, Ecuador, Andes. ABSTRACT.– As an iconic bird from Andean biocultural landscapes, the Andean lapwing (Vanellus resplen-dens) exemplifies the need to integrate traditional ecological knowledge for a better comprehension of mountain ecosystems and for their effective management towards sustainability of highland communities. The mythology associated with the Andean lapwing prompts inclusion of ethnoecological insights of Neotropical forests and highland grasslands of the Andes and its societal appropriation in the imaginary of Andean cultural landscapes. This appropriation would determine the paradigm shift from biodiversity preservation in natural areas to new biocultural heritage conservation throughout the Andean cordillera. I present a gamut of nine categories to aid in understanding of how biocultural relations with this bird pose questions about identity, landscape stewardship and environmental services. Even more, the Andean lapwing might be a potential indicator for climate change, as it is observed with examples of its defensive behavior, habitat selection and extensive husbandry in mountain protected areas. Therefore, Andean cultural heritage benefits not only from intangible and monumental material productions, but also from the idealized mountain lifescape and the engineering made indirectly by ancestral uses kept through generations (or man–agement) of highland cultures, making the symbiotic Andean biocultural landscape possible. KEY WORDS.– Andean lapwing, identity, biocultural landscape, heritage, Ecuador, Andes. Manuscrito recibido el 08 de febrero de 2015, aceptado el 30 de junio de 2015.

The global ecological footprint of humanity has exceeded the Earth’s annual biocapacity by 150 percent since 2007. It is not the whole of the human race, however, that is equally responsible for “humanity’s unsustainable environmental footprint”. Consequently, we need to better distinguish specific human groups or individuals who have negative, or favorable, environmental impacts. To improve an unsustainable environmental footprint it is indispensable to better assess the carrying capacity of heterogeneous habitats, contrasting life habits that influence environmental impacts, and human inhabitants that are most responsible for these impacts.1 In order to undertake this task, and to foster planetary sustainability in the midst of the vortex of socio-environmental changes in our twenty-first century we urgently need to forge more informed and respectful forms of dialogue between different socio-cultural groups, and between local and global discourses. To foster intercultural dialogues that incorporate both the biophysical and the cultural heterogeneity of the planet, we offer the perspective of the biocultural ethic. Its central concept relies on the vital links between (i) the well-being and identity of the co-inhabitants (humans and other-than-humans);2 (ii) their life habits; and (iii) the habitats where they take place. This formal proposal of the “3Hs” (co-inhabitants, habits and habitats) offers a conceptual framework to analyze, from a biocultural viewpoint, the worldviews of cultures from different geographic regions, historical periods and/or socio-environmental contexts, and provides a methodological approach to undertake three tasks that contribute to favoring sustainable geographies.

- by Ricardo Rozzi
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- Geography, Anthropology, Philosophy, Political Philosophy

Diverse and productive ecosystems and human well-being are too often considered opposing targets. This stems mainly
from nature being perceived as separate from culture, which results in resilience indicators that focus predominantly on either ecosystems
or humans, and that overlook the interplay between the two. Meanwhile, global targets for biodiversity conservation and human wellbeing
have yet to be satisfactorily achieved. We believe that in order to develop effective, culturally appropriate, and equitable conservation
strategies that ensure social-ecological resilience, conservation planners and practitioners must conceive of human and ecological wellbeings
as an interrelated system. By giving nature a voice, and by viewing nature and people as an undifferentiated whole, some
indigenous peoples and local communities (IPLC) have philosophical bases for achieving well-being for both humans and nature.
Biocultural approaches to conservation ground management in local knowledges, practices, and ontologies. These approaches
encompass both the biological and cultural aspects of a system, address complex relationships and feedbacks within human and
ecological well-being, and offer flexible frameworks that facilitate synthesis across different metrics, knowledge systems, and ontologies.
The process of developing indicators of resilience with a biocultural approach could help (1) overcome the human–nature dichotomy
that often makes global approaches incompatible with local approaches by integrating local peoples’ diverse forms of relating to nature,
(2) reflect two-way feedbacks between people and their environment by focusing on processes, not just final states, and (3) define,
measure, and monitor ecological and human well-being as a whole. It can also facilitate dialog between IPLCs and global decisionmakers
who are disconnected from local realities, and between people from a diversity of disciplinary, ontological, and professional
background

- by Eleanor Sterling and +1
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- Biocultural Diversity, Biocultural conservation
- by Robert Petitpas
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- Wildlife Conservation, Marine Turtles, Biocultural conservation, Rapa Nui

Impacts of global climate change, habitat loss, and other environmental changes on the world’s biota and peoples continue to increase, especially on islands and in high elevation areas. Just as floristic diversity is affected by environmental change, so too are cultural and linguistic diversity. Of the approximately 7000 extant languages in the world, fully 50% are considered to be at risk of extinction, which is considerably higher than most estimates of extinction risks to plants and animals. To maintain the integrity of plant life, it is not enough for botanic gardens to consider solely the effects of environmental change on plants within the context of major conservation strategies such as the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation and the Convention on Biological Diversity. Rather, botanic gardens should actively engage in understanding and communicating the broader impacts of environmental change to biological and cultural diversity.

Through research, restoration of agro-ecological sites, and a renaissance of cultural awareness in Hawaiʻi, there has been a growing recognition of the ingenuity of the Hawaiian biocultural resource management system. The contemporary term for this system, “the ahupuaʻa system”, does not accurately convey the nuances of system function, and it inhibits an understanding about the complexity of the system’s management. We examined six aspects of the Hawaiian biocultural resource management system to understand its framework for systematic management. Based on a more holistic understanding of this system’s structure and function, we introduce the term, “the moku system”, to describe the Hawaiian biocultural resource management system, which divided large islands into social-ecological regions and further into interrelated social-ecological communities. This system had several social-ecological zones running horizontally across each region, which divided individual communities verticall...

- by rosario schicchi
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- Geography, Agrobiodiversity, Biocultural Diversity, Biodiversity

tIndigenous peoples and local communities (IPLC) manage over half of the world’s landscapes, andthis management involves landscape transformations associated with their sociocultures. Althoughanthropologists have shown that IPLC sociocultures influence management, and historical-ecologicalstudies have shown that this management influences environments, how interactions between IPLCsociocultures and environments influence landscape transformations is less clear. Here we use ahistorical-ecological approach and a cultural niche construction perspective to present an IPLC landscapetransformation framework that identifies and integrates sociocultural and environmental elements.Our framework shows that IPLC’ landscape transformations occur through cultural niche construc-tion and are influenced by historical events. IPLC sociocultures influence ecological processes andpatterns through interactions that create sociocultural and ecological inheritances. These inheritancesinvolve IPLC worldviews and associated norms, practices and knowledge which influence ecologicalprocesses that, in turn, engender ecological patterns. On the other hand, ecological processes and patterns influence IPLC sociocultures as they are perceived and processed according to local worldviews, so gener-ating sociocultural–environmental feedbacks. To exemplify our framework, we present cases of culturalniche construction by Amazonian IPLC that show how interactions between sociocultures and environ-ments influence landscape transformations. We argue that understanding how IPLC sociocultures haveinteracted with environments can help scientists, conservation practitioners and policymakers to combinescientific knowledge production, biodiversity protection and IPLC’ well-being.

- by Juliano Franco-Moraes and +1
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- Ethnography, Traditional Ecological Knowledge, Indigenous Knowledge, Indigenous Peoples

The Index of Linguistic Diversity (ILD) is a new quantitative measure of trends in linguistic diversity. To derive the ILD we created a database of time-series data on language demographics, which we believe to be the world's largest. So far, the database contains information from nine editions of Ethnologue and five other compendia of speaker numbers. The initial version of the ILD, which draws solely on the Ethnologue subset of these data, is based on a representative random sample of 1,500 of the world's 7,299 languages (as listed in the 2005 edition). At the global level, the ILD measures how far, on average , the world's languages deviate from a hypothetical situation of stability in which each language is neither increasing nor decreasing its share of the total population of the grouping. The ILD can also be used to assess trends at various subglobal groupings. Key findings: • Globally, linguistic diversity declined 20% over the period 1970–2005. • The diversity of the world's indigenous languages declined 21%. • Regionally, indigenous linguistic diversity declined over 60% in the Americas, 30% in the Pacific (including Australia), and almost 20% in Africa.

- by David Harmon and +1
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- Conservation, Biocultural Diversity, Linguistic diversity, Biodiversity

The culture of global society commonly associates the word animal with vertebrates. Paradoxically, most of animal diversity is composed of small organisms that remain invisible in the global culture and are underrepresented in philosophy, science, and education. Twenty-first century science has revealed that many invertebrates have consciousness and the capacity to feel pain. These discoveries urge animal ethicists to be more inclusive and to reevaluate the participation of invertebrates in the moral community. Science also has warned of the disappearance of small animal co-inhabitants that is occurring in the midst of the sixth mass extinction. This “invisible extinction” compels environmental philosophers to make visible invertebrates, whose existence is precious in itself and for the functioning of ecosystems on which biodiversity and human societies depend. With a biocultural approach that integrates the biophysical and cultural dimensions of biodiversity, I investigate the root...

- by Ricardo Rozzi
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- Entomology, Ethology, Philosophy, Applied Ethics