Engaging Local Knowledge in Biodiversity Research: Experiences from Large Inter- and Transdisciplinary Projects

Abstract

The management of biodiversity represents a research topic that needs to involve not only several (sub-) disciplines from the natural sciences but, in particular, also the social sciences and humanities. Furthermore, over the last couple of years, the need for the integration of other kinds of knowledge (experience based or indigenous knowledge) is increasingly acknowledged. For instance, the incorporation of such knowledge is indispensable for place-based approaches to sustainable land management, which require that the specific ecological and social context is addressed. However, desirable as it may be, such an engagement of the holders of tacit knowledge is not easy to achieve. It demands reconciling well-established scientific procedural standards with the implicit or explicit criteria of relevance that apply in civil society — a process that typically causes severe tensions and comes up against both habitual as well as institutional constraints. The difficulty of managing such tensions is amplified particularly in large integrated projects and represents a major challenge to project management. At the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research — UFZ, several integrated research projects have been conducted over the past years in which experience has been gained with these specific challenges. This paper presents some of the lessons learned from large integrated projects, with an emphasis on project design and management structure. At the centre of the present contribution are experiences gained in the coordination and management of LEGATO (LEGATO stands for Land-use intensity and Ecological EnGineering — Assessment Tools for risks and Opportunities in irrigated rice based production systems, see www.legato-project.net), an ongoing, large-scale, inter- and transdisciplinary research project dealing with the management of irrigated rice landscapes in Southeast Asia. In this project, local expertise on traditional production systems is absolutely crucial but needs to be integrated with natural and social science research to identify future-proof land management systems.     

The Construction of Social Meaning and Material Value: a Note on Trade in Melanesia

Marilyn Strathern has greatly refined the analysis of gift exchange, emphasizing that in gift exchange, units of value understood as metonymic extensions of their donors, are substituted for each other. However, the question still remains of how we should take into account the social meaning and material value of exchange processes usually called barter or trade; especially if we do not want simply to conceive of them as gift exchanges and nothing else. Drawing on fieldwork among the Kobon in the northern fringe of the Highlands of Papua New Guinea, this paper proposes to view barter/trade in Melanesia as a strategic and symbolic interaction that combines aspects of gift and commodity exchange.     

Political economy and social legislation in Germany,ca 1870–1890

Summary

This article examines the nature of academic political theory in Britain in the post-war period, examining in particular the degree to which theorists were able to mount normative theoretical arguments. Traditionally, commentators such as Brian Barry and Perry Anderson have argued that political theory in this period was largely dead between 1945 and 1970 due to the impact of positivism, but I argue this is mistaken for two main reasons. First, it fails to distinguish between the different forms that positivism took in the post-war era. Thus although it is true many theorists tended to claim that moral and political values could (or should) not be discussed rationally, their reasons for doing so varied considerably. For while theorists such as A. J. Ayer and T. D. Weldon justified their positions theoretically, with arguments drawn from behaviourist social science or innovations made in linguistic philosophy, others, such as Ralf Dahrendorf and Anthony Crosland, argued that it was the perceived success of post-war welfare states or the alleged failure of political ideologies that made traditional political theory irrelevant. Second, following on from this, I argue that delineating more accurately how positivism actually operated helps to explain how political theorists were able to pursue their discipline normatively—albeit that few reacted to all aspects of positivism. Thus if some (such as Karl Popper) were more concerned to insist that political philosophy had something to say in practice, others (such as Michael Oakeshott), reacted more strongly against the proposition that human behaviour can be understood purely causally. Finally, I examine the impact of ordinary language philosophy on post-war political theory, and argue that rather than simply damaging the cause of normative political theory by encouraging a myopic concentration on the linguistic analysis of particular moral and political concepts, over the longer term its effects were much more positive, since it helped to focus attention on the irreducibly normative dimension of political concepts.     

Hunter–Gatherer Cattle-Keepers of Early Neolithic El Adam Type from Nabta Playa: Latest Discoveries from Site E–06–1

Further Neolithic encampments and settlements have been explored by the Combined Prehistoric Expedition in the Nabta Playa Basin on the South–Western Desert border around 100 km west of the Nile Valley. The perfectly preserved stratigraphic setting of the new site, numerous hearths and traces of dwellings, rich cultural material including pottery, radiocarbon dates and presence of bone remains render site E–06–1 an exception on the map of settlements of El Adam communities.     

Beyond the grave: variability in Neolithic diets in Southern Germany?

Carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analyses were undertaken on human and faunal remains from two Neolithic sites in Southern Germany; the LBK settlement at Herxheim and the middle Neolithic cemetery at Trebur. Stable isotope data were used to reconstruct the diets of individuals buried at these sites and to look at dietary variation between groups classified by their sex, age, grave goods and cultural affiliation. Overall there was surprisingly little variation in the diet between the groups, as described by the stable isotope analysis, despite significant differences in the composition of grave goods. Also surprising, considering the archaeological evidence for extensive grain cultivation in this region during the Neolithic, was that the majority of individuals had δ¹⁵N values consistent with the consumption of significant amounts of animal protein.     

世界范围内的环境保护主义:在市民运动和政府决策之间

本文通过概述西方环境保护主义在市民与政府之间的发展历程,认识到环境保护主义在不同的时代有不同的讨论议题与内容,而不同的人群对于谁才是环境保护主义者的精英分子也有不同的看法。1970年前后是环境保护主义的转折点,从那时起,环境保护主义关注的议题由单一的要素转向一个综合的网络,并形成了全球范围的广泛联系,在大众运动和广泛的社会关注之下,环境保护主义的政治力量越来越多地显示出来。     

Short communication: Two additional Egyptian Neolithic burials exhibiting unusual mortuary treatment of teeth

In a prior report we described human remains from the Neolithic cemetery at Gebel Ramlah, Egypt, with evidence of purposeful tooth replacement. Two crania, which were apparently disturbed by later burials, were found to contain several teeth that had been incorrectly reinserted into the jaws. Such treatment was suggested to be unique. Recent work at the site revealed a similarly unusual find. Two adult male skeletons, evidently displaced in antiquity, also had several teeth loosened from their jaws; however, instead of attempting to reinsert them, the Neolithic gravedigger(s) placed the teeth into the right orbit of one cranium and the nasal aperture of the other. Such placement, as well as the general state of these burials, ruled out subsequent looting or taphonomic factors as causative agents. We previously speculated that tooth replacement represented an attention to detail while attempting to re‐inter the remains in as complete a state as possible. This assumption may hold true for the present situation, but there are other plausible interpretations; for example, it might indicate animosity toward the individuals, an attempt at humour, or perhaps something less purposeful (e.g. they provided convenient receptacles). Whichever the case, the cemetery continues to yield heretofore unknown, and valuable, information about mortuary and other data relating to these prehistoric desert peoples. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.