BIO-PROSPECTING VS. BIO-RESPECTING : Seeing Forests as Culturally Embedded Spaces

The concept of ‘bio-prospecting’ refers to the activities of utilising planetary biodiversity for commercial purposes. Bio-prospecting itself has been frowned upon in (developing) countries and contexts where impoverished regulation, and both policy and ‘policing’ mechanisms are vulnerable to commer...

Full description

Saved in:  
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Naidu, Dr Maheshvari (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Check availability: HBZ Gateway
Journals Online & Print:
Drawer...
Fernleihe:Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste
Published: Dharmaram College 2014
In: Journal of Dharma
Year: 2014, Volume: 39, Issue: 4, Pages: 369-388
Further subjects:B Bio-prospecting
B Sangoma
B Diversity
B Ecology
B Resources
B Bio-respecting
Online Access: Volltext (kostenfrei)
Description
Summary:The concept of ‘bio-prospecting’ refers to the activities of utilising planetary biodiversity for commercial purposes. Bio-prospecting itself has been frowned upon in (developing) countries and contexts where impoverished regulation, and both policy and ‘policing’ mechanisms are vulnerable to commercial, corporate and sometimes even, governmental manipulation. The idea of ‘selling nature to save it’ is in conflict with many communities who believe in having a more harmonious kinship with the bio-diverse natural world, through a relationship of respect and reciprocity. This essay focuses on one such community; that of traditional African diviners or sangomas and reveals their perspective of ‘bio-respecting’. The essay is positioned through the narrativised lens of the sangomas’ culturally embedded understanding of respectful harmony and represents a perspective of mutually beneficial ‘bio-respecting’.
ISSN:0253-7222
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal of Dharma