Ethnoecology: Traditional Ecological Knowledge for Conservation and Sustainability

Ethnoecology is the study of conceptions of ecological relationships and the natural world held by different peoples and cultures. In this reading and discussion seminar we employ ethnoecology to explore the role of traditional ecological knowledge—also called Indigenous or local knowledge--in establishing, maintaining and restoring healthy ecological relationships between human societies and the environment. We begin by comparing local ways of knowing (including Indigenous science) with western science, identifying the epistemological strengths and limits of each. We then explore how traditional ecological knowledge is conceptualized, systematized, and helps guide the management of landscapes and biota by rural, Indigenous, and folk communities in many different contexts worldwide. Students will examine how traditional ecological knowledge based on a profound and active engagement with place can lead to a rethinking of conventional approaches to environmental conservation, rural development, and sustainability.