Introduction: The Growing Importance of Traditional Forest-Related Knowledge

Abstract

The knowledge, innovations, and practices of local and indigenous communities have supported their forest-based livelihoods for countless generations. The role of traditional knowledge—and the bio-cultural diversity it sustains—is increasingly recognized as important by decision makers, conservation and development organizations, and the scientifi c community. However, there has long existed a lack of understanding of, and an uneasy relationship between, the beliefs and practices of traditional communities and those of formal forest science. This mutual incomprehension has a number of unfortunate consequences, both for human societies and our planet’s forests and woodlands, which play out both on solid ground in many parts of the world as well as in international policy arenas. In this chapter, we define traditional forest-related knowledge, and explore the relationships between traditional knowledge systems and scientifi c approaches. We follow with an overview of the scope and central questions to be addressed in subsequent chapters of the book, and then provide an overview of international and intergovernmental policy processes that affect traditional knowledge and its practitioners. Finally, we introduce some of the major international programmes and research initiatives that focus on traditional forest-related knowledge and its applications for sustaining livelihoods in local and indigenous communities in a world struggling to deal with environmental, cultural, social, and economic change.

Parent Publication

• Integrating grey and green infrastructure to improve the health and well-being of urban populations

Citation

Trosper, Ronald L.; Parrotta, John A. 2012. Introduction: The Growing Importance of Traditional Forest-Related Knowledge. pp. 1-36 (Chapter 1) in: Parrotta, John A. and Trosper, Ronald L., editors. Traditional Forest-Related Knowledge: Sustaining Communities, Ecosystems and Biocultural Diversity. World Forest Series vol. 12. Springer, Dordrecht, the Netherlands.