Ethnobiology In The City: Embracing the Urban Ecological Moment

Emery, Marla R.; Hurley, Patrick T.

doi:10.2993/0278-0771-36.4.807

Cited by 24 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 56 publications

(63 reference statements)

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“…Our results reiterate the calls of several other authors to direct the ethnobiological studies towards the most populated areas, which are the ones that have the greatest environmental impact (Barthel et al 2010;Hurrell 2014;Emery & Hurley 2016). Knowing how to configure urban spaces and having an idea of the popular knowledge associated with the plants that citizens are growing can improve communication and undertake research, conservation and working plans on functional and sustainable green areas with communities as suggested by recent works (Caicedo et al 2016;Emery & Hurley 2016;Sierra & Amarillo 2017).…”

Section: Insights From the Ethnobotanical Datasetsupporting

confidence: 88%

Describing and diffusing the ethnobotanical knowledge of Bogotá D.C. (Colombia) through an online tool focused on common names of plants

Rodríguez-Calderón¹,

Muñoz²,

Moreno³

et al. 2019

Acta Bot. Bras.

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Although ethnobotanical knowledge is considered potentially valuable information for several human disciplines, it is currently declining due to a decrease in the transmission of cultural knowledge and the depletion of natural resources. Consequently, focused eff orts are required to compile such information and ultimately facilitate its diff usion. Bogotá D.C. consists of a large territory of rural and urban zones which has become a place of diverse cultural dynamics due to complex processes of historical evolution, making it an important target to conserve ethnobotanical knowledge. Here, we made a thorough compilation of ethnobotanical data for Bogotá focusing on plant common names and developed a freely available online tool (Platform of Plant Common Names of Bogotá) with the aim of preserving and promoting the transmission of biocultural heritage. Th e compiled dataset consists of over 2,226 combinations between scientifi c and common names which may be queried using the online tool, leading to specifi c pages that display several additional features. Since its launch, the online tool has been visited over 6200 times, mainly by Colombian users under the age of 34, which is conveniently in line with our goal of improving the intergenerational transmission of biocultural heritage.

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Section: Insights From the Ethnobotanical Datasetsupporting

confidence: 88%

Describing and diffusing the ethnobotanical knowledge of Bogotá D.C. (Colombia) through an online tool focused on common names of plants

Rodríguez-Calderón¹,

Muñoz²,

Moreno³

et al. 2019

Acta Bot. Bras.

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“…We join Emery and Hurley [ 67 ] in highlighting the vibrant botanical knowledge and practices in urban areas. Women in Mecca are the primary household health carers and hold a singular, lay body of medicinal plant knowledge to treat mostly common ailments.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Medicinal plants used by women in Mecca: urban, Muslim and gendered knowledge

Alqethami

Hawkins

Teixidor‐Toneu

2017

J Ethnobiology Ethnomedicine

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BackgroundThis study explores medicinal plant knowledge and use among Muslim women in the city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Ethnobotanical research in the region has focused on rural populations and male herbal healers in cities, and based on these few studies, it is suggested that medicinal plant knowledge may be eroding. Here, we document lay, female knowledge of medicinal plants in an urban centre, interpreting findings in the light of the growing field of urban ethnobotany and gendered knowledge and in an Islamic context.MethodsFree-listing, structured and semi-structured interviews were used to document the extent of medicinal plant knowledge among 32 Meccan women. Vernacular names, modes of preparation and application, intended therapeutic use and emic toxicological remarks were recorded. Women were asked where they learnt about medicinal plants and if and when they preferred using medicinal plants over biomedical resources. Prior informed consent was always obtained. We compared the list of medicinal plants used by these Meccan women with medicinal plants previously documented in published literature.ResultsOne hundred eighteen vernacular names were collected, corresponding to approximately 110 plants, including one algae. Of these, 95 were identified at the species level and 39 (41%) had not been previously cited in Saudi Arabian medicinal plant literature. Almost one half of the plants cited are food and flavouring plants. Meccan women interviewed learn about medicinal plants from their social network, mass media and written sources, and combine biomedical and medicinal plant health care. However, younger women more often prefer biomedical resources and learn from written sources and mass media.ConclusionsThe fairly small number of interviews conducted in this study was sufficient to reveal the singular body of medicinal plant knowledge held by women in Mecca and applied to treat common ailments. Plant availability in local shops and markets and inclusion in religious texts seem to shape the botanical diversity used by the Meccan women interviewed, and the use of foods and spices medicinally could be a global feature of urban ethnobotany. Ethnobotanical knowledge among women in Islamic communities may be changing due to access to mass media and biomedicine. We recognise the lack of documentation of the diversity of medicinal plant knowledge in the Arabian Peninsula and an opportunity to better understand gendered urban and rural knowledge.

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“…Creates and sustains connections to nature and place [11,62,66], and (6). Supports identities and cultures [13,39,42,46,56,82].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The length of residence in the city may affect foraging behaviour, where an individual forager may fall anywhere on a temporal continuum from episodic and recent to permanent and multigenerational. Thus, some urban foragers are intra-and international migrants recently settled in the city, while others are nomadic peoples whose annual cycle of movement includes time spent in the city [37], and still others are long-term or lifetime residents [21,37,46]. In many cities, children and adolescents are active participants in foraging activities, either in peer groups foraging together or with adults, and they may also be targeted as students by urban ecology or urban agricultural and food growing programmes in formal educational institutions.…”

Section: Theme 2: Urban Foraging Occurs Across the Full Range Of Urbamentioning

confidence: 99%

Urban Foraging: A Ubiquitous Human Practice Overlooked by Urban Planners, Policy, and Research

et al. 2017

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Abstract:Although hardly noticed or formally recognised, urban foraging by humans probably occurs in all urban settings around the world. We draw from research in India, South Africa, Sweden, and the United States to demonstrate the ubiquity and varied nature of urban foraging in different contexts. Across these different contexts, we distil seven themes that characterise and thereby advance thinking about research and the understanding of urban foraging. We show that it is widespread and occurs across a variety of urban spaces and places. The species used and the local practices vary between contexts, and are in constant flux as urban ecological and social settings change. This requires that urban foragers are knowledgeable about diverse species, harvest locations, and rights of access, and that their practices are adaptable to changing contexts. Despite its ubiquity, most cities have some forms of regulations that prohibit or discourage urban foraging. We highlight a few important exceptions that can provide prototypes and lessons for other cities regarding supportive policy frameworks and initiatives. The formulation of dynamic policy, design, and management strategies in support of urban foraging will benefit from understanding the common characteristics of foraging in cities worldwide, but also will require comprehension of the specific and dynamic contexts in which they would be implemented.

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Ethnobiology In The City: Embracing the Urban Ecological Moment

Cited by 24 publications

References 56 publications

Describing and diffusing the ethnobotanical knowledge of Bogotá D.C. (Colombia) through an online tool focused on common names of plants

Describing and diffusing the ethnobotanical knowledge of Bogotá D.C. (Colombia) through an online tool focused on common names of plants

Medicinal plants used by women in Mecca: urban, Muslim and gendered knowledge

Urban Foraging: A Ubiquitous Human Practice Overlooked by Urban Planners, Policy, and Research

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