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Ethnobotany

Ethics In Ethnobotanical Research



Ethnobotanists working in remote regions have a number of special ethical responsibilities that they must fulfill. One of these is to ensure that their studies of indigenous cultures are not overly intrusive, and do not result in fundamental changes in local values and lifestyles. People living in remote areas should not be exposed to the full possibilities of modern lifestyles too quickly, or their local, often sustainable lifestyles could quickly disintegrate. This change is sometimes referred to as a kind of cultural genocide. Ethnobotanists have a responsibility to ensure that their studies do cause this to happen.



In addition, indigenous knowledge of useful plants (and other species) is an extremely valuable cultural resource of aboriginal people living in many parts of the world. The ethics of ethnobotanists must include actions to ensure that as this local knowledge is tapped to provide benefits for humans living throughout the world, the local people also benefit significantly from their generous sharing of valuable information about the uses of biodiversity. The benefits could take many forms, ranging from royalties on the sales of products, to the provision of hospitals and schools, and the legal designation of their land rights to places where they and their ancestors have lived for long periods of time.


Resources

Books

Balick, M.J., and P.A. Cox. Plants, People, and Culture: The Science of Ethnobotany. New York: W.H. Freeman and Co., 1997.

Balick, M.J., E. Elisabetcky, and S.A. Laird, eds. Medicinal Resources of the Tropical Forest: Biodiversity and Its Importance to Human Health. New York: Columbia University Press, 1995.

Chadwick, D. Ethnobotany and the Search for New Drugs. New York: John Wiley and Sons, 1994.

Cotton, C.M. Ethnobotany: Principles and Applications. New York: John Wiley and Sons, 1996.

Johnson, T. CRC Ethnobotany Desk Reference. Boca Raton, FL: Lewis Publishing Co., 1998.

Moerman, D.E. Native American Ethnobotany. Portland, OR: Timber Press, 1998.

Schultes, R.E., and S. Van Reis eds. Ethnobotany: Evolution of a Discipline. Portand, OR: Timber Press, 1995.

Other

Society for Economic Botany (2003). The New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, NY 10458-5126. (718) 817-8632. <http://www.econbot.org>.


Bill Freedman

KEY TERMS

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Biodiversity

—The richness of biological variation, including that at the levels of genetics, species, and ecological communities.

Ethnobotany

—The study of the relationships between plants and people, particularly in relation to preindustrial aboriginal cultures.

Indigenous knowledge

—The understanding of local people of the usefulness of plants and other organisms occurring within their ecosystem.

Additional topics

Science EncyclopediaScience & Philosophy: Ephemeris to Evolution - Historical BackgroundEthnobotany - The Diversity Of Plants, Plants As Food, Plants As Medicines And Drugs, Ethics In Ethnobotanical Research - Conservation of ethnobotanical resources