Who are Ethnobiologists?
Ethnobiologists share a binding interest in exploring human-biological relationships, from the very distant past to the immediate present. We are academics, practitioners and students of ethnobiology from around the world. Come and hear our mentors speak »
We come from, and work, around the globe—the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Central and South America, Britain, Europe, China, Indian, Australia, Southeast Asia. Come and see where we work.
What do we do? The strength of the Society of Ethnobiology is that we are explicitly inter-disciplinary. Our membership is made up of researchers who study neo and paleo-ethnobiology, use qualitative and quantitative methods, study human interactions with plants and animals, and conduct applied and basic research. Relevant research fields go from anthropology to zoology: animal husbandry, agriculture, archaeology, botany, chemistry, cuisine, ecology, education, ethnology, evolution, forestry, linguistics, mycology, nutrition, pharmacology, taxonomy, and much more.
Some of our study areas are: neo and paleo-ethnobiology, historical and contemporary ecological knowledge, environmental history and prehistory, archaeology, cultural anthropology, biology, ecology, geography, pharmacology, cultural and political ecology, ethnography of natural products, ethnobotany, ethnozoology, linguistics, linguistic ethnobiology, paleoethnobotany, zooarchaeology, ethnoecology, animal husbandry, agriculture, botany, chemistry, cuisine, education, ethnology, evolution, forestry, mycology, nutrition, taxonomy, systematic, population biology, mathematical biology, conservation, sustainable development, human paleoecology
Big research questions we're interested in are:
- history and evolutionary significance of important ethnobiological patterns;
- application and integration of multiple lines of archaeological and paleoenvironmental evidence;
- incorporation of ethnographic and documentary information into studies of past relationships between humans and culturally important animals and plants;
- human paleoecology, including human impact on past environments; past/present/future of resource management
Ethnobiologists, Education, and Communities: Ethnobiologists share a strong commitment to community inclusion, outreach, and education. We are committed to scholarly research and to inclusive relationships with communities with whom we work and with colleagues around the world. Our studies and members bridge science and traditional knowledge and we work side-by-side with local, indigenous, and traditional practitioners. Within ethnobiology, indigenous people are becoming increasingly empowered to define research, development, and conservation priorities and to participate in the research and education efforts. Ethnobiology endeavors to integrate research with public priorities for enhancement of teaching, training, and learning, inclusion of underrepresented groups, improvement of educational infrastructure, dissemination of results to policy-makers, industry, media, and the general public. Ethnobiologists make education a priority at all levels from public outreach through the academic sectors.