Volume 89, March 2014, Pages 117–126
Commentary
Volume 89, March 2014, Pages 117–126
Commentary
Marine ethnobiology a rather neglected area, which can provide an important contribution to ocean and coastal management
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Abstract
This
report describes marine ethnobiology as it has been presented and
discussed under the conference session “Ethnothalassic interactions”
organized for the 13th International Congress of Ethnobiology. We define
marine ethnobiology as a field within ethnobiology that specifically
comprises the study of the relationships of present and past human
societies to marine biota and ecosystems. The session stimulated
discussion on this emerging field and its contribution to coastal and
ocean management, by exchanging experiences on a diverse array of
studies within this field that include: co-management of marine
protected areas, seascape management, demise, re-discovery and
re-implementation of traditional knowledge-based management schemes,
history of artisanal shellfish-farming and of the management of
artisanal fisheries, medicinal knowledge of algae, as well as the
outreach of ethnobiological studies for the conservation of the
cultural-ecological heritage in the coastal zone. We here offer the
conclusions of the conference session in the form of a longue duree
perspective on coastal management that highlights a broad array of
human adaptations to coastal environments. We suggest that these
adaptations have to be researched and understood in detail in order to
incorporate them into broader coastal management strategies in the
presence of the severe environmental and political-economical pressures
that currently threaten fishing stocks, marine habitats, and the
livelihoods of the 2.6 billion people that depend on the oceans as their
main source of protein.
- Corresponding author. Tel.:
+33 4 67 14 34 29.
Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Abstract
This
report describes marine ethnobiology as it has been presented and
discussed under the conference session “Ethnothalassic interactions”
organized for the 13th International Congress of Ethnobiology. We define
marine ethnobiology as a field within ethnobiology that specifically
comprises the study of the relationships of present and past human
societies to marine biota and ecosystems. The session stimulated
discussion on this emerging field and its contribution to coastal and
ocean management, by exchanging experiences on a diverse array of
studies within this field that include: co-management of marine
protected areas, seascape management, demise, re-discovery and
re-implementation of traditional knowledge-based management schemes,
history of artisanal shellfish-farming and of the management of
artisanal fisheries, medicinal knowledge of algae, as well as the
outreach of ethnobiological studies for the conservation of the
cultural-ecological heritage in the coastal zone. We here offer the
conclusions of the conference session in the form of a longue duree
perspective on coastal management that highlights a broad array of
human adaptations to coastal environments. We suggest that these
adaptations have to be researched and understood in detail in order to
incorporate them into broader coastal management strategies in the
presence of the severe environmental and political-economical pressures
that currently threaten fishing stocks, marine habitats, and the
livelihoods of the 2.6 billion people that depend on the oceans as their
main source of protein.
- Corresponding author. Tel.: +33 4 67 14 34 29.
Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
