The role of traditional belief systems in conserving biological diversity in the Eastern Himalaya Eco-region of India

2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-30
Author(s):  
M. Janaki ◽  
Rohan Pandit ◽  
Rishi K. Sharma
Keyword(s):  
Biological Diversity ◽  
Belief Systems ◽  
Eastern Himalaya ◽  
Traditional Belief

scholarly journals Challenging the State: Devolutionary Tenure Transitions for Saving and Expanding Forests

Human Ecology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liz Alden Wily
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Property Rights ◽  
Protected Areas ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Biological Diversity ◽  
Convention On Biological Diversity ◽  
Property Relations ◽  
The Will ◽  
Customary Land

AbstractI address a contentious element in forest property relations to illustrate the role of ownership in protecting and expanding of forest cover by examining the extent to which rural communities may legally own forests. The premise is that whilst state-owned protected areas have contributed enormously to forest survival, this has been insufficiently successful to justify the mass dispossession of customary land-owning communities this has entailed. Further, I argue that state co-option of community lands is unwarranted. Rural communities on all continents ably demonstrate the will and capacity to conserve forests – provided their customary ownership is legally recognized. I explore the property rights reforms now enabling this. The replication potential of community protected forestlands is great enough to deserve flagship status in global commitments to expand forest including in the upcoming new Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).

scholarly journals Big hitting collectors make massive and disproportionate contribution to the discovery of plant species

2012 ◽  
Vol 279 (1736) ◽  
pp. 2269-2274 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel P. Bebber ◽  
Mark A. Carine ◽  
Gerrit Davidse ◽  
David J. Harris ◽  
Elspeth M. Haston ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Biological Diversity ◽  
High Rate ◽  
Type Specimens ◽  
Fundamental Goal ◽  
The World ◽  
Plant Families ◽  
The Right ◽  
Geographical Locations

Discovering biological diversity is a fundamental goal—made urgent by the alarmingly high rate of extinction. We have compiled information from more than 100 000 type specimens to quantify the role of collectors in the discovery of plant diversity. Our results show that more than half of all type specimens were collected by less than 2 per cent of collectors. This highly skewed pattern has persisted through time. We demonstrate that a number of attributes are associated with prolific plant collectors: a long career with increasing productivity and experience in several countries and plant families. These results imply that funding a small number of expert plant collectors in the right geographical locations should be an important element in any effective strategy to find undiscovered plant species and complete the inventory of the world flora.

Doro Rekufa and Tsvitsa: Beer, Animals and Death Rituals among the Ndau of South Eastern Zimbabwe

Utafiti ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 11 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 1-16
Author(s):  
Plan Shenjere-Nyabezi
Keyword(s):  
End Of Life ◽  
Cause Of Death ◽  
Religious Belief ◽  
Belief Systems ◽  
African Continent ◽  
Death Rituals ◽  
South Eastern ◽  
Attitudes Towards Death ◽  
Death Signals

Despite Westernization and particularly the advent of Christianity and its widespread entrenchment on the African continent, traditional indigenous rituals continue to constitute an integral part of African religious belief systems and practices. This article presents the results of an ethnoarchaeological study of two death rituals that are conducted by the Ndau people of south eastern Zimbabwe. The rituals are a demonstration of attitudes towards death and beliefs about the role of the dead among the living. The Ndau do not believe that death signals and represents the end of life. In the same vein and perhaps more importantly, the Ndau do not believe that death just happens. It is caused by human agency out of jealousies, hatred and conflict among the living. These beliefs are central to the two rituals presented and discussed here: the first ritual is conducted to ascertain cause of death and the second to bring back the spirit of the deceased from a temporary state of limbo immediately after death. Meat and beer are central to these rituals, firstly as offerings to the deceased and secondly as an important part of the living celebration of the rituals. The paper then explores some interpretive implications of the rituals from an archaeological perspective.

The role of weeds in supporting biological diversity within crop fields*

Weed Research ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 77-89 ◽  
Author(s):  
E J P Marshall ◽  
V K Brown ◽  
N D Boatman ◽  
P J W Lutman ◽  
G R Squire ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Biological Diversity ◽  
Crop Fields

scholarly journals Weathering the Storm: Supernatural belief and cooperation in an insecure world

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rita Anne McNamara
Keyword(s):  
Resource Availability ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Belief Systems ◽  
Dictator Game ◽  
Support Networks ◽  
Knowledge Systems ◽  
Traditional Beliefs ◽  
Traditional Belief ◽  
Supernatural Beliefs ◽  
Belief Content

Religious and supernatural beliefs may facilitate social life by promoting and sustaining cooperation, but the specific cooperation problems each society faces may lead to unique belief systems adapted to local socio-ecological conditions. As societies mix and belief systems spread, local and introduced belief systems may present conflicting solutions to the same social problem. How do we choose among these different solutions? The present study recruits participation from villagers living on Yasawa Island, Fiji (N=179), who espouse both Christian and traditional beliefs that promote different expectations about local and distant others. This study focuses on the relationships among existential/ resource insecurity and supernatural beliefs across these belief systems using an experimental priming procedure and a dictator game to allocate food resources. Though reminders of insecurity had no impact on allocations, the effects of being reminded of Christian or Traditional belief depended on (was moderated by) how worried participants were about resource availability and beliefs about the Christian God’s tendency toward punishment or forgiveness. Analyses of interview data suggest Christian and Traditional imagery may evoke different conceptions of Gods as either supportive (Christian) or authoritarian (Traditional). Results highlight belief content as key for sustaining different social support networks and traditional belief/ knowledge systems as a source of community resilience against threats like natural disasters.

scholarly journals The Role of Faith Systems and Religions in the Future of Sustainable Development: An Islamic Outlook

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 23
Author(s):  
Mamdouh M. A. Sobaihi
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Belief Systems ◽  
Distant Future ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Religious Networks ◽  
Development Plans ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Shed Light

Reference material concerning sustainable development has increased dramatically over the last decades, with more and more countries, agencies and businesses following the sustainable development ideals and principles. However, one of the most basic of human institutions has not contributed, and perhaps not allowed to contribute, to the debate. Religion and faith systems have a great potential in influencing not only the definitions of sustainable development but also concepts of human sustainable practices to achieve sustainable development goals. The main obstacle to the fulfillment of this potential appears to be the lack of outreach and acceptance of the scientific community to the religious and faith system institutions and individuals. In this paper, a review of the literature is carried out to shed light on the root of this schism between science and belief systems. In addition, the paper will highlight how the majority of the literature deals with process rather than the individual human being and how to make him/her a better practitioner of sustainability. It is also aimed that the paper shed some light on how religious and faith system ideals can be incorporated into sustainable development plans and systems. The main focus of the paper is to cast light on the religion of Islam and some of the Islamic teachings and Ideals and how they can be incorporated in delivering the message of sustainable development since the religion of Islam is forecast to be the largest faith on the planet in the not too distant future. In conclusion, a discussion on how the various religious networks can deliver the message of sustainability will be discussed.

scholarly journals The resource role of flowering woody plants in increasing the insects biological diversity

2021 ◽  
Vol 38 ◽  
pp. 00067
Author(s):  
Tatiana Kuzmina ◽  
Elena Toropova
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
High Power ◽  
Woody Plants ◽  
Woody Plant ◽  
Biological Diversity ◽  
Taxonomic Composition ◽  
Forest Steppe ◽  
Flowering Period ◽  
Northern Forest

The aim of the study was to assess the resource role of flowering woody plants in maintaining the biological diversity of insects. The studies were carried out in 2019–2020 in the northern forest-steppe of the Ob region during the flowering period of woody plants from the Oleaceae family of the genus Syringa: S. josikaea J. and S. vulgaris L. Insects were collected by mowing with an entomological net in the crowns and under-crown space. The flowering of plants attracted insects from more than 25 families from 7 orders. The largest number of insects belonged to the order Thysanoptera 79.2%, followed by representatives of the orders Hemiptera (7.1%) and Diptera (6.4%). The entomological faunas of S. josikaea and S. vulgaris differed significantly in their taxonomic composition, insects abundance, and their association with flowering periods. Low coefficients of similarity and high power of the factor “plant species” influence on biological diversity and the insects number were revealed. S. josikaea played a more significant role in maintaining the biological diversity of insects. Research showed that insects are associated with a certain species of woody plant.

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