Biocultural Diversity Conservation

The field of biocultural diversity is emerging as a dynamic, integrative approach to understanding the links between nature and culture and the interrelationships between humans and the environment at scales from the global to the local. Its multifaceted contributions have ranged from theoretical elaborations, to mappings of the overlapping distributions of biological and cultural diversity, to the development of indicators as tools to measure, assess, and monitor the state and trends of biocultural diversity, to on-the-ground implementation in field projects. This book is a unique compendium and analysis of projects from all around the world that take an integrated "biocultural" approach to sustaining cultures and biodiversity. The 45 projects reviewed exemplify a new focus in conservation, based on the emerging realization that protecting and restoring biodiversity and maintaining and revitalizing cultural diversity and cultural vitality are intimately interrelated. In indigenous, rural, and mobile communities worldwide, cultural beliefs, values, knowledge systems, practices and languages all manifest a close relationship between humans and the environment. This implies that, to maintain biodiversity, we also need to sustain cultural diversity; conversely, in order to sustain cultural diversity, we need to maintain biodiversity.This book shows how biocultural diversity conservation is done in practice, using a diversity of approaches adapted to a variety of contexts. The methodological diversity that is adapted to different contexts is in line with the biocultural diversity of life itself, and confers individual and collective strength to these integrated conservation efforts. The book reviews the theory of biocultural diversity and why it is relevant for conservation; presents and analyzes the projects; draws lessons learned; offers recommendations and proposes next steps for the further development of this approach; and considers the role of biocultural diversity in relation to the future of sustainability.