Exploring the concept of Biocultural Heritage, which comes from the lived experience of Indigenous Peoples and is critical to the success of the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework up for negotiation in Kunming later this year.
Hosted by Liz Carlile, this podcast discusses the term 'biocultural heritage' and the benefits of recognising and applying Indigenous knowledge to biodiversity conservation, and features:
- Krystyna Swiderska Principal researcher (agriculture and biodiversity), IIED
- Alejandro Argumedo, Quechua native from southern Peru and coordinator of the International Network of Mountain Indigenous Peoples (INMIP)
- Pierre Du Plessis, expert advisor in the Convention on Biological Diversity from Namibia
- Joji Carino, Ibaloi Igorot from the Philippines, senior policy advisor with Forest Peoples programme, and Indigenous Peoples’ negotiator on biodiversity.
Introducing Indigenous knowledge in policymaking
Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs) have been the guardians of biodiversity for thousands of years. As a result, today, IPLCs conserve the world’s richest biodiversity on their lands and territories using a holistic approach that brings together their biological and cultural legacy: wild and domesticated biodiversity, traditional knowledge, cultural and spiritual values, customary laws and traditional languages.
The belief in a unified biocultural heritage has allowed Indigenous Peoples to develop successful and long-term strategies for biodiversity conservation.
As the UN biodiversity convention and the development of the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework approach, this episode of Make Change Happen advocates for the rights of Indigenous People and Local Communities to be recognised, and for Indigenous Peoples and their knowledge to be considered at the centre of global governance and policymaking efforts.
Additional resources:
- Biocultural heritage territories: key to halting biodiversity loss, Krystyna Swiderska, Alejandro Argumedo, Michel Pimbert (2020), IIED Briefing
- Building a global biocultural brand to support indigenous landscapes, Krystyna Swiderska, Alejandro Argumedo, Graham Dutfield (2019), IIED Briefing Paper
- Project: Indigenous biocultural heritage for sustainable development
- Film documents visit to "Guardians of Diversity" in the Potato Park
The ‘Make Change Happen’ podcast provides informal insights into IIED’s work to create positive change and make the complex issues we face more accessible to wider audiences. The title refers to IIED’s 2019-2024 strategy, which sets out how IIED plans to respond to the critical challenges of our time.
You can follow some of the people you have heard in this episode on Twitter at @lizcarlile and @KrystynaSwider4. Follow the podcast on @IIED_Voices for all the latest updates.