Landscape and biocultural diversity

Excerpt

With the convention on biological diversity (CBD) office in UNEP acting as global focal point for biodiversity, and UNESCO acting as global focal point for cultural diversity, the two institutions launched in 2010 the Joint Programme on the Links between Biological and Cultural Diversity (JP-BiCuD) to strengthen the linkages between biological and cultural diversity initiatives, and to enhance the synergies between interlinked provisions of conventions and programmes dealing with biological and cultural diversity at relevant scales. The first meeting for the implementation of the Joint Programme was held in Florence (Italy) in April 2014 and produced a declaration to promote the Joint Program in the European Continent. The scientific committee received 165 paper proposals. The selection operated by the Steering Committee accepted 63 papers considered highly relevant for the topic of the conference and also 11 posters, from 25 countries. The expert meeting for the drafting of the final declaration was attended by 42 experts from 14 countries and about 33 organizations, including FAO, ICOMOS, IUCN, and IUFRO among others. The Florence Declaration (UNESCO and SCBD 2014) was drafted taking into account the results of the conference works, and has not only produced political indications for the implementation on the Joint Programme, but also indicated some of the most important issues concerning research activities for the promotion of the concept of biocultural diversity: The Florence Declaration was presented to the Conference of the Parties of the CBD in Pyeongchang, Republic of Korea in October 2014, as well as during the ICOMOS general assembly,in Florence, in November 2014. The declaration presents a very strong reference to the concept of biocultural diversity. In terms of publications, since 1984, scientific articles have cited cultural and biological diversity, but it is only since the end of the 1990s that clear reference to “biocultural diversity” is found, with a peak of publications in 2012. Most of the publications refer to one or more of three main themes: the correlations between biodiversity and linguistic diversity, the tools for measuring the state of biocultural diversity, and the persistence and the loss of biocultural diversity (Loh and Harmon 2014).¹ However, these studies rarely take into consideration the results of the integration between nature and culture affecting the biodiversity in terms of species and habitats. There are also suggestions for the implementation of these approaches in terms of management and assessment of biodiversity in cultural landscapes and different conservation strategies. Additionally, there is a need for a deeper understanding of how these links have affected species and habitats, and for revision of the current tools for the protection and the management of resulting biocultural diversity. The Declaration indicated the landscape level as the most appropriate perspective for understanding and applying this concept, with a particular reference to the Europe. The rural landscape is predominantly a biocultural multi-functional landscape, providing a crucial platform for integrating biological and cultural diversity for human well-being. This approach provides the best basis for interpreting the relationships between cultural and biological diversity, considering landscape functions. …