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Gbadegesin OA, Gbadamosi San OA. Indigenous Ecological Knowledge: a Transformative Approach to Biodiversity Legislation in Nigeria. ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 2024; 74:317-331. [PMID: 38814459 DOI: 10.1007/s00267-024-01994-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2024] [Accepted: 05/16/2024] [Indexed: 05/31/2024]
Abstract
Indigenous communities worldwide have cultivated and preserved invaluable ecological knowledge on biodiversity conservation long before the formalisation of scientific inquiry. Rooted in familial intimacy with nature and an acute ability to discern subtle micro-changes, these communities profoundly understand the patterns and processes shaping their natural world. In Nigeria, a nation boasting diverse indigenous peoples and rich biodiversity, this unique knowledge system finds limited recognition within the current legal framework on biodiversity conservation. In response to the persistent decline of biodiversity within and beyond protected areas in the country, the paper argues for a shift grounded in integrating indigenous ecological knowledge(I.E.K) into the existing laws and policies on biodiversity conservation. The findings of this paper demonstrate the need for a transformative change- one demanding a fundamental reorganisation in the design, implementation, and enforcement of biodiversity policies in the country to prioritise the rights and agency of indigenous peoples and local communities in biodiversity policies. It submits that by acknowledging and incorporating indigenous knowledge into legal frameworks, the country can effectively combat biodiversity loss and foster a more inclusive, sustainable approach that aligns with the vision of the country and the global conservation goals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Opeyemi A Gbadegesin
- Department of Public Law, Faculty of Law, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria.
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Fish RD, Austen GE, Bentley JW, Dallimer M, Fisher JC, Irvine KN, Bentley PR, Nawrath M, Davies ZG. Language matters for biodiversity. Bioscience 2024; 74:333-339. [PMID: 38854634 PMCID: PMC11153204 DOI: 10.1093/biosci/biae014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2023] [Revised: 01/24/2024] [Accepted: 02/12/2024] [Indexed: 06/11/2024] Open
Abstract
Language is central to the way people learn about the natural world. A salient concern of the biodiversity conservation arena has been to understand how language can be employed by scientists to communicate knowledge to nonexpert audiences and build ecological literacy. The use of analogy and narrative by scientists are prominent techniques. In this article, we consider how these two modes of language-based reasoning extend into ordinary conversational language use by the public, specifically when articulating everyday understanding and experiences of biodiversity. Drawing on a process of public engagement in a UK woodland environment, a typological framework based on principles of analogical and narrative reasoning is developed to characterize the precise character of processes of everyday biodiversity sense making. The implications of the framework are discussed in the context of future biodiversity research, particularly its participatory and educational dimensions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert D Fish
- Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology, University of Kent, Canterbury, England, United Kingdom
- Centre for Environmental Policy, Imperial College London, London, England, United Kingdom
| | - Gail E Austen
- Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology, University of Kent, Canterbury, England, United Kingdom
| | - Jacob W Bentley
- Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology, University of Kent, Canterbury, England, United Kingdom
| | - Martin Dallimer
- Sustainability Research Institute, School of Earth and Environment, University of Leeds, Leeds, England, United Kingdom
- Centre for Environmental Policy, Imperial College London, London, England, United Kingdom
| | - Jessica C Fisher
- Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology, University of Kent, Canterbury, England, United Kingdom
| | - Katherine N Irvine
- Social, Economic, and Geographic Sciences Department, James Hutton Institute, Aberdeen, Scotland, United Kingdom
| | - Phoebe R Bentley
- Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology, University of Kent, Canterbury, England, United Kingdom
| | - Maximilian Nawrath
- Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology, University of Kent, Canterbury, England, United Kingdom
- Norwegian Institute for Water Research, Oslo, Norway
| | - Zoe G Davies
- Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology, University of Kent, Canterbury, England, United Kingdom
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Souther S, Colombo S, Lyndon NN. Integrating traditional ecological knowledge into US public land management: Knowledge gaps and research priorities. Front Ecol Evol 2023. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2023.988126] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) is an understanding of natural systems acquired through long-term human interactions with particular landscapes. Traditional knowledge systems complement western scientific disciplines by providing a holistic assessment of ecosystem dynamics and extending the time horizon of ecological observations. Integration of TEK into land management is a key priority of numerous groups, including the United Nations and US public land management agencies; however, TEK principles have rarely been enshrined in national-level US policy or planning. We review over 20 years of TEK literature to describe key applications of TEK to ecological understanding, conservation, restoration and land management generally. By identifying knowledge gaps, we highlight research avenues to support the integration of TEK into US public land management, in order to enhance conservation approaches and participation of historically underrepresented groups, particularly American Indian Tribes, in the stewardship of ancestral lands critical to the practice of living cultural traditions.
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Hakkarainen V, Soini K, Dessein J, Raymond C. Place‐embedded agency: Exploring knowledge–place connections for enabling plurality in governance of social–ecological systems. PEOPLE AND NATURE 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/pan3.10365] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Viola Hakkarainen
- Natural Resources Institute Finland Helsinki Finland
- Ecosystems and Environment Research Program, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences University of Helsinki Helsinki Finland
- Helsinki Institute of Sustainability Science University of Helsinki Helsinki Finland
| | | | - Joost Dessein
- Department of Agricultural Economics Ghent University Ghent Belgium
| | - Christopher M. Raymond
- Ecosystems and Environment Research Program, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences University of Helsinki Helsinki Finland
- Helsinki Institute of Sustainability Science University of Helsinki Helsinki Finland
- Department of Landscape Architecture, Planning and Management Swedish University of Agrcultural Sciences Alnarp Sweden
- Department of Economics and Management, Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences University of Helsinki Helsinki Finland
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Novick KA, Metzger S, Anderegg WRL, Barnes M, Cala DS, Guan K, Hemes KS, Hollinger DY, Kumar J, Litvak M, Lombardozzi D, Normile CP, Oikawa P, Runkle BRK, Torn M, Wiesner S. Informing Nature-based Climate Solutions for the United States with the best-available science. GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY 2022; 28:3778-3794. [PMID: 35253952 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.16156] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2021] [Accepted: 02/04/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Nature-based Climate Solutions (NbCS) are managed alterations to ecosystems designed to increase carbon sequestration or reduce greenhouse gas emissions. While they have growing public and private support, the realizable benefits and unintended consequences of NbCS are not well understood. At regional scales where policy decisions are often made, NbCS benefits are estimated from soil and tree survey data that can miss important carbon sources and sinks within an ecosystem, and do not reveal the biophysical impacts of NbCS for local water and energy cycles. The only direct observations of ecosystem-scale carbon fluxes, for example, by eddy covariance flux towers, have not yet been systematically assessed for what they can tell us about NbCS potentials, and state-of-the-art remote sensing products and land-surface models are not yet being widely used to inform NbCS policymaking or implementation. As a result, there is a critical mismatch between the point- and tree-scale data most often used to assess NbCS benefits and impacts, the ecosystem and landscape scales where NbCS projects are implemented, and the regional to continental scales most relevant to policymaking. Here, we propose a research agenda to confront these gaps using data and tools that have long been used to understand the mechanisms driving ecosystem carbon and energy cycling, but have not yet been widely applied to NbCS. We outline steps for creating robust NbCS assessments at both local to regional scales that are informed by ecosystem-scale observations, and which consider concurrent biophysical impacts, future climate feedbacks, and the need for equitable and inclusive NbCS implementation strategies. We contend that these research goals can largely be accomplished by shifting the scales at which pre-existing tools are applied and blended together, although we also highlight some opportunities for more radical shifts in approach.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kimberly A Novick
- O'Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs, Indiana University-Bloomington, Bloomington, Indiana, USA
| | - Stefan Metzger
- Battelle, National Ecological Observatory Network, Boulder, Colorado, USA
| | | | - Mallory Barnes
- O'Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs, Indiana University-Bloomington, Bloomington, Indiana, USA
| | - Daniela S Cala
- O'Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs, Indiana University-Bloomington, Bloomington, Indiana, USA
| | - Kaiyu Guan
- College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, USA
- National Center for Supercomputing Applications, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, USA
| | - Kyle S Hemes
- Woods Institute for the Environment, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA
| | - David Y Hollinger
- USDA Forest Service, Northern Research Station, Durham, New Hampshire, USA
| | - Jitendra Kumar
- Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, USA
| | - Marcy Litvak
- Department of Biology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
| | | | | | - Patty Oikawa
- Department of Earth & Environmental Science, California State University-East Bay, Hayward, California, USA
| | - Benjamin R K Runkle
- Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA
| | - Margaret Torn
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California, USA
| | - Susanne Wiesner
- Department of Biological Systems Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
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Runkle BRK. Review: biological engineering for nature-based climate solutions. J Biol Eng 2022; 16:7. [PMID: 35351176 PMCID: PMC8966256 DOI: 10.1186/s13036-022-00287-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2022] [Accepted: 03/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Nature-based Climate Solutions are landscape stewardship techniques to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase soil or biomass carbon sequestration. These mitigation approaches to climate change present an opportunity to supplement energy sector decarbonization and provide co-benefits in terms of ecosystem services and landscape productivity. The biological engineering profession must be involved in the research and implementation of these solutions-developing new tools to aid in decision-making, methods to optimize across different objectives, and new messaging frameworks to assist in prioritizing among different options. Furthermore, the biological engineering curriculum should be redesigned to reflect the needs of carbon-based landscape management. While doing so, the biological engineering community has an opportunity to embed justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion within both the classroom and the profession. Together these transformations will enhance our capacity to use sustainable landscape management as an active tool to mitigate the risks of climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin R K Runkle
- Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, USA.
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Lehnen L, Arbieu U, Böhning‐Gaese K, Díaz S, Glikman JA, Mueller T. Rethinking individual relationships with entities of nature. PEOPLE AND NATURE 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/pan3.10296] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Lisa Lehnen
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK‐F) Frankfurt am Main Germany
| | - Ugo Arbieu
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK‐F) Frankfurt am Main Germany
- Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute National Zoological Park Front Royal VA USA
- Université Paris‐Saclay CNRS AgroParisTech Ecologie Systématique Evolution Orsay France
| | - Katrin Böhning‐Gaese
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK‐F) Frankfurt am Main Germany
- Department of Biological Sciences Goethe University Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt am Main Germany
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle‐Jena‐Leipzig Leipzig Germany
| | - Sandra Díaz
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal (IMBIV) CONICET Córdoba Argentina
- Departamento de Diversidad Biológica y Ecología Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales Universidad Nacional de Córdoba Córdoba Argentina
| | - Jenny A. Glikman
- Instituto de Estudios Sociales Avanzados (IESA‐CSIC) Córdoba Spain
| | - Thomas Mueller
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK‐F) Frankfurt am Main Germany
- Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute National Zoological Park Front Royal VA USA
- Department of Biological Sciences Goethe University Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt am Main Germany
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Hessburg PF, Prichard SJ, Hagmann RK, Povak NA, Lake FK. Wildfire and climate change adaptation of western North American forests: a case for intentional management. ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS : A PUBLICATION OF THE ECOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2021; 31:e02432. [PMID: 34339086 PMCID: PMC9285088 DOI: 10.1002/eap.2432] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2020] [Revised: 02/17/2021] [Accepted: 03/03/2021] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
Forest landscapes across western North America (wNA) have experienced extensive changes over the last two centuries, while climatic warming has become a global reality over the last four decades. Resulting interactions between historical increases in forested area and density and recent rapid warming, increasing insect mortality, and wildfire burned areas, are now leading to substantial abrupt landscape alterations. These outcomes are forcing forest planners and managers to identify strategies that can modify future outcomes that are ecologically and/or socially undesirable. Past forest management, including widespread harvest of fire- and climate-tolerant large old trees and old forests, fire exclusion (both Indigenous and lightning ignitions), and highly effective wildfire suppression have contributed to the current state of wNA forests. These practices were successful at meeting short-term demands, but they match poorly to modern realities. Hagmann et al. review a century of observations and multi-scale, multi-proxy, research evidence that details widespread changes in forested landscapes and wildfire regimes since the influx of European colonists. Over the preceding 10 millennia, large areas of wNA were already settled and proactively managed with intentional burning by Indigenous tribes. Prichard et al. then review the research on management practices historically applied by Indigenous tribes and currently applied by some managers to intentionally manage forests for resilient conditions. They address 10 questions surrounding the application and relevance of these management practices. Here, we highlight the main findings of both papers and offer recommendations for management. We discuss progress paralysis that often occurs with strict adherence to the precautionary principle; offer insights for dealing with the common problem of irreducible uncertainty and suggestions for reframing management and policy direction; and identify key knowledge gaps and research needs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul F. Hessburg
- USDA‐FS, Pacific Northwest Research Station1133 N. Western AvenueWenatcheeWashington98801USA
- College of the Environment‐SEFSUniversity of WashingtonSeattleWashington98195USA
| | - Susan J. Prichard
- College of the Environment‐SEFSUniversity of WashingtonSeattleWashington98195USA
| | - R. Keala Hagmann
- College of the Environment‐SEFSUniversity of WashingtonSeattleWashington98195USA
- Applegate Forestry LLCCorvallisOregon97330USA
| | - Nicholas A. Povak
- USDA‐FS, Pacific Northwest Research Station1133 N. Western AvenueWenatcheeWashington98801USA
- USDA‐FS, Pacific Southwest Research Station2480 Carson RoadPlacervilleCalifornia95667USA
| | - Frank K. Lake
- USDA‐FS, Pacific Southwest Research Station1700 Bayview DriveArcataCalifornia95521USA
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