Ethnobiology at a Crossroads: Forecasting Futures for Nature and Health
Published in Social Sciences and Ecology & Evolution
As the global community prepares to mark World Nature Conservation Day (and World Hepatitis Day too) on July 28, a forward-looking editorial by Andrea Pieroni, Mousaab Alrhmoun, and Naji Sulaiman offers a timely and critical reflection on the future of ethnobiology and ethnomedicine. Titled “Plural and Commoning? Forecasting Four Scenarios for Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine by 2035”, the piece explores how local ecological knowledge systems—long central to both environmental stewardship and community health—may evolve amid accelerating global change. The editorial’s insights are particularly resonant on a day that celebrates both biodiversity and human health.
Four Scenarios for the Evolution of Ethnobiology
Indigenous Ecologies and Agroecology
In select regions of the Global South, local ecological knowledge will remain integral to domestic healthcare strategies, food sovereignty, and ecological resilience. Ethnobiologists are called to act as co-creators in transdisciplinary platforms, supporting grassroots revitalization efforts. However, these systems face mounting threats from climate change, land degradation, and youth outmigration.
Digital Documentation and Memory Ethnosciences
As local ecological knowledge becomes increasingly fragmented in post-traditional societies, ethnobiology may pivot toward digital archiving and the study of cultural memory. This scenario emphasizes the affective dimensions of knowledge loss and the emergence of “local ecological knowledge nostalgia” as a research focus.
Post-Traditional, Cosmopolitan Hybridities
Urban ethnobiology will expand through migrant-led practices, DIY herbalism, and digital wellness cultures. While these hybrid forms offer new avenues for engagement, they also raise concerns about epistemic dilution and the commodification of traditional knowledge.
Big Data and Molecular Techno-Ethnobiology
AI and omics technologies will enable large-scale analysis of ethnobotanical data, integrating LEK into pharmacological and nutraceutical R&D pipelines. This scenario highlights both the promise of innovation and the ethical challenges of data sovereignty, benefit-sharing, and digital bio-neocolonialism.
A Call for Reflexivity and Reconnection
The authors conclude with a call to regenerate embodied, experiential learning with nature—a foundational step toward revitalizing ethnobiology as a discipline that is not only scientifically rigorous but also socially and ecologically grounded.
I am an Executive Publisher for the BMC Academic Journals at Springer Nature. A linguist by background, I am an expert in academic publishing and an Open Access advocate. I am a fan of knowledge making us more open and more human.
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Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine
This journal publishes original research focusing on cultural perceptions of nature and of human and animal health. It invites research articles, reviews and commentaries concerning the investigations of the inextricable links between human societies and nature, food, and health.
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Living Food Heritage: Ethnobiological Perspectives on Local Foods Across Cultures and Time
This Collection is dedicated to the memory of Dauro Mattia Zocchi (1990–2026), a researcher in food heritage at the University of Bergamo and the University of Pollenzo (Italy), whose work advanced critical perspectives on food heritage and processes of heritagization.
The Collection explores the evolving concept of food heritage through the lens of local foods, with particular attention to cross-cultural interpretation and temporal dynamics. Local foods are not treated as static artefacts rooted solely in place-based ecological knowledge or artisanal skills; rather, they are understood as living systems continuously reshaped by migration, globalization, environmental pressures, and socio-economic transformations.
Bringing together interdisciplinary perspectives, the Collection examines how local knowledge and food practices are interpreted, valued, and transformed across cultural contexts. It highlights how communities negotiate authenticity, identity, and sustainability while adapting culinary traditions to contemporary realities. Cross-cultural analyses reveal both shared dynamics and context-specific trajectories in the production, perception, and use of local foods.
A central focus is the temporal dimension of food heritage: how recipes, ingredients, techniques, and meanings evolve over time while maintaining connections to the past. The notion of dynamic continuity is proposed to capture how heritage persists not through static preservation, but through ongoing processes of adaptation, reinterpretation, and renewal.
Moreover, the Collection addresses how ethnobiological research on food heritage can be applied to concrete projects and initiatives aimed at improving the well-being of local and rural communities. Contributions engage with applied perspectives, highlighting the potential of local foods to support livelihoods, cultural resilience, and sustainable development.
In honoring Dauro Zocchi’s legacy, this Collection emphasizes the need to approach food heritage as a process rather than a fixed category. It calls for innovative methodological frameworks that integrate ethnobiological, cultural, historical, and ecological perspectives in order to better understand—and responsibly engage with—the role of local foods in a rapidly changing world.
All submissions in this Collection undergo the journal’s standard peer review process, and all manuscripts authored by a Guest Editor(s) are handled by the Editor-in-Chief. As an open access publication, this journal levies an article processing fee (details here). We recognize that many key stakeholders may not have access to such resources and are committed to supporting participation in this issue wherever resources are a barrier. For more information about what support may be available, please visit OA funding and support, or email OAfundingpolicy@springernature.com or the Editor-in-Chief.
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Ethnobiological Research in South and South East Asia
This collection seeks to advance ethnobiological research across South Asia and South East Asia—two regions rich in cultural and biological diversity yet underrepresented in global scholarship. By bringing together scientists from countries such as India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, and the Maldives (South Asia), as well as Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Brunei, the Philippines, and Timor‑Leste (South East Asia), the collection aims to fill a critical gap in the literature while fostering collaborative networks that transcend political and social boundaries.
We invite contributions that explore:
- Traditional ecological knowledge
- Human–nature interactions
- The role of ethnobiology in addressing contemporary challenges, such as biodiversity conservation
- Ethnobiological perspectives on sustainable livelihoods
- Cultural heritage preservation in diverse and rapidly changing environments
Beyond advancing science, this collection aspires to serve as a bridge—supporting dialogue and cooperation among researchers in regions where collaboration is often difficult but deeply needed.
All submissions in this Collection undergo the journal’s standard peer review process, and all manuscripts authored by a Guest Editor(s) are handled by the Editor-in-Chief. As an open access publication, this journal levies an article processing fee (details here). We recognize that many key stakeholders may not have access to such resources and are committed to supporting participation in this issue wherever resources are a barrier. For more information about what support may be available, please visit OA funding and support, or email OAfundingpolicy@springernature.com or the Editor-in-Chief.
Publishing Model: Open Access
Deadline: Nov 27, 2026
