Biodiversity, Management and Sustainable Use of Medicinal and Aromatic Plant Resources

2021 ◽  
pp. 85-111
Author(s):  
Amrina Shafi ◽  
Farhana Hassan ◽  
Insha Zahoor ◽  
Umer Majeed ◽  
Firdous A. Khanday
Social Change ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 33 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 204-221
Author(s):  
Ghazala Shahabuddin

During the last few decades, there has been a growing realisation that biodiversity conservation cannot be successful without the active involvement of the people living close to and dependent on natural ecosystems for their survival and livelihoods. Consequently, there has been a gradual broadening of the global conservation agenda from strict nature protection to include the sustainable use of natural resources, which is now reflected in governmental policy the world over. However, as conservationists strive today towards the harmonisation of people's needs with biodiversity conservation, one of the most elusive, yet critical, goals for them has been the sustainable extraction of plant resources from the wild. Hundreds of plant species continue to be extracted from natural habitats for use as food, medicine, fuel and fodder in households and for commercial sale, both legally and illegally. As a consequence of unmonitored extraction and over-exploitation, many plant species populations are reported to be declining in the wild. In the face of increasing pressure on forest resources, it has become more important than ever before to devise quantitative management policies for sustainable plant use so that both forests and the livelihoods of millions of rural people who are dependent on them, can be sustained. One of the major stumbling blocks for conservationists in developing countries, who are attempting to design and implement sustainable forest management systems, is the lack of information on the state-of-the-art in this field, especially that relating to field methods, data analysis, data recording and monitoring systems. In order to fill this lacuna, a comprehensive bibliography of studies undertaken so far in the science of sustainable use from terrestrial ecosystems is presented here. The scope of this bibliography includes sustainable


Check List ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 317 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gh. Hassan Dar ◽  
Akhtar H. Malik ◽  
Anzar A. Khuroo

The current paper provides a taxonomic inventory of the vascular plant species collected by the authors during the last two decades from the Rajouri and Poonch districts, located along the Pir Panjal range in the Indian Himalayan State of Jammu and Kashmir. The inventory records a total of 352 species, which belong to 270 genera in 83 families. Of the total taxa, the angiosperms are represented by 331 species in 253 genera and 77 families; gymnosperms by 12 species in 9 genera and 3 families; and pteridophytes by 9 species in 7 genera and 3 families. Asteraceae is the largest family, contributing 42 species; while Artemisia is the largest genus, with 5 species. The inventory is expected to provide baseline scientific data for further studies on plant diversity in these two border districts, and can be used to facilitate the long-term conservation and sustainable use of plant resources in this Himalayan region.


2012 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 735-747 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariana Reis de Brito ◽  
Luci de Senna-Valle

The number of publications about the Caiçaras population is growing, which shows that researchers are interested in these natives. This study aimed to survey the flora used by local specialists of the Praia do Sono Caiçara community, and recorded how these taxa were used, with the goal of understanding traditional management systems that help to conserve natural ecosystems. Twelve informants were selected and interviewed. The applied grouping analysis, together with the chi-squared test, underlined that the analysed ethnobotanical knowledge showed a heterogeneous distribution in relation to the gender of the interviewee. A total of 190 taxa were cited and were classified into nine usage categories. The Shannon-Wiener index (H') value obtained in this study was the second highest in comparison to other Brazilian coastal communities. This work showed that the local specialists of this Caiçara community maintain a wide knowledge of, and affinity to, the plant resources that surround them. This knowledge is not only important, but fundamental to discussions about the application of sustainable use and management strategies for this area of conservation value.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leul Kidane ◽  
Abu Balke Balke

Abstract Background: Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs) do have significant role as local source for medicine, fiber, forage and sustenance and offer income opportunities for poverty mitigation mainly in rural families. Sustainable use of NTFPs is imperative so, this study was focused on the documentation of plant species used for NTFPs and their conservation status in Sera forest. Methods: The study applied a combination of plant ecological and ethnobotanical methods. Ethnobotanical data were gathered through semi-structured questionnaires and interviews which involved 230 (206 randomly sampled general and 24 purposively selected key informants); group discussion, guided field walk and market survey. Data were analyzed and presented using analytical methods of ethnobotany including descriptive statistics, informant consensus factor (ICF) and ranking. Results: A total of 137 plant species belonging to 49 families used as a source of NTFPs were documented from the study area. In addition, 11 major use categories of the NTFPs were identified. Out of these, medicine, fire wood and charcoal making and construction materials were the most dominant uses requiring large volume of NTFPs in the study area. The output of direct matrix ranking of plant species used for multipurpose revealed - Hagenia abyssinica ranked first followed by Olea europaea ssp cuspidata, Grewia mollis, Croton macrostachyus, Ximenia americana and Carissa spinarum. Hence, local communities of the study area possess rich potential indigenous knowledge that helped to use their natural resources for sustainable livelihood. Conclusions: Sera forest is rich in NTFPs bearing plants and associated indigenous conservation knowledge. However, nowadays illegal timber extractions, grazing, over harvesting NTFPs, farm expansion and fire hazards were found to be threatening of the plant resources in the study area. Therefore, awareness creation on complementary conservation (in-situ and ex-situ) and sustainable use of plant resources of the area for higher livelihood outcomes with lower environmental impacts is desirable.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jingxian Sun ◽  
Yong Xiong ◽  
Yanhong Li ◽  
Qingsong Yang ◽  
Yijian Chen ◽  
...  

Abstract Background With a population of more than 5 million, Yi is the largest of the 25 ethnic groups in Yunnan Province, China. Yi people tend to live in mountainous areas, and their culture includes a unique dietary system for treating illnesses and protecting people against them. Medicinal plants occupy an essential place in the Yi diet because they play a key role in health and the prevention and treatment of diseases. The objectives of this paper were to document the medicinal dietary plants and the traditional knowledge associated with them and describes this paper adequately. Methods Field investigations were carried out in six villages in Mile County, Honghe Hani and Yi Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan, from July 2017 to May 2018. Information was collected using participatory rural appraisal (PRA), direct observation, semi-structured interviews, key informant interviews, individual discussions, focus group discussions, and questionnaires. Results The study documented 124 species belonging to 62 families and 102 genera. These included: angiosperms (117 spp.), gymnosperms (3), pteridophytes (2), lichens (1), and fungi (1). The most commonly used plant parts were fruits and roots. The most frequently used edible parts were fruits, and the most frequently used medicinal parts were roots. The medicinal parts were used to treat conditions such as cough, catarrh, rheumatism, swelling, kidney deficiency, spleen deficiency, gastric disease, and others. Some of the plants required special preparation. Several had good economic potential due to their significant effects. In addition, a number of these plants are scarce and require conservation. The use-value (UV) and frequency of utilization index (FUI) of medicinal dietary plant species were analyzed. The 20 species with the highest UV were noted as particularly important to the Yi people’s daily life in Mile county. Conclusion A wide variety of medicinal dietary plants is used by Yi people in Mile. These plants occupy an essential position in the Yi diet and medicine. These plants are not only nutritious but also have medicinal value and, by consuming them, the Yi people maintain health and treat diseases through their daily diet. Ethnobotanical surveys of medicinal dietary plants provide a theoretical reference for the conservation and sustainable use of these plant resources and can contribute to the protection of the Yi food culture and traditional medicine in Mile. In addition, this information provides a basis for the development and utilization of Yi ethnic medicine and health products.


2021 ◽  
pp. 45-64
Author(s):  
Karen Hahn ◽  
Anna Leßmeister

AbstractWest African savannas undergo severe changes due to climate change and land use pressure, resulting in degradation and biodiversity loss. These changes directly impact local rural livelihoods, as many cash poor rural communities depend on the provisioning ecosystem services of their environments. In a case study of the interdisciplinary research project UNDESERT, the increasingly challenging sustainable use of wild plant species in West African savannas was investigated. In this study, we present the results and give examples of how scientific results can serve for practical actions to foster sustainable use of important plant resources.


2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
R. K. Salgotra 1 ◽  
Manmohan Sharma 1 ◽  
Pankaj Pandotra 1

Climate change is an unequivocal fact and its impacts are already perceptible today. Climate change will profoundly alter the present conditions of agriculture in almost all countries with variable severity from region to region. On one hand unpredicted changes in climatic parameters are likely to threaten the production and productivity of economically important plant species particularly that of food crops, at the same time agriculture productivity requires significant increase to meet the expected growth in demand for food by the ever increasing world population. Conservation and sustainable use of diversity present in plant genetic resources and traditional knowledge of germplasm within and among plant species represent economic, scientific and societal value which has tendency to solve the food security problems erupt due to expanding global population. An advance made in biotechnology field such as in vitro culture technology, cryopreservation and molecular markers technology has generated significant contributions to improve the methods of conservation of rare and endangered plant genetic resources and traditional knowledge of germplasm and their valuable management in an effective way. A strategic and forward vision for conservation of plant genetic resources and traditional knowledge of germplasm and sustainable use of plant resources in the 21st century is of far reaching significance for sustainable development.


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