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Agriculture & Environment: Indigenous knowledge

News

Here is a list of the latest articles

Chinese rice farmer

China's farming calendar 'out of step' with global warming

Seasonal markers need to be revised to take account of climate change, a study suggests.

14 February 2012 | EN

Pearl millet developed by USDA-ARS and grown at Tifton, GA. Non-copyrightable image courtesy of the USDA-ARS. (From the English Wikipedia)

Tribal knowledge of millets proves superior

Tribal people in the hills of Tamil Nadu have better knowledge of millet varieties than taxonomists, a study shows.

13 February 2012 | EN

A fisherman in Kenya

Gaps in traps make for sustainable fisheries

Traps that let juvenile and small fish escape have increased the sustainability of fisheries — without affecting fishers' livelihoods.

23 January 2012 | EN | ES

Mina de oro 'Gowtu Bergi' en Langatabiki, al este de Surinam

Suriname’s indigenous people measure local pollution

With the help of scientists, indigenous communities of Suriname have discovered that mercury pollution affects 58% of their population.

19 January 2012 | ES

A date palm

Scientists find desert cure for date disease

Traditional Saharan plant-based medicines can destroy FOA, the fungus that plagues North African date palms, say Algerian scientists.

28 December 2011 | EN | FR

Bustard

Traditional farming 'can save threatened species'

A study reports that some birds in the developing world are dependent on traditional farming, raising debate on how to protect these habitats.

22 December 2011 | EN | FR

Elephants in Mudumulai wildlife sanctuary in Nilgiri biosphere/biodiversity reserve in southern India

Indian biodiversity hotspot under pressure

Man-made activity is contributing to pressures on an Indian biodiversity hotspots, says study.

19 December 2011 | EN

Cows

Pastoralists 'need capacity building more than technology'

Building capacity is more important than technology for pastoralists' food security in Ethiopia, a study argues.

15 December 2011 | EN

Eight countries get Climate Investment Funds

Climate change mitigation in vulnerable countries gets a boost with US$ 1 billion from Climate Investment Funds.

22 November 2011 | EN | ES | FR

Jars with medicinal herbs

Scientists pin down active chemicals in Chinese herbs

Researchers have created a database of the chemicals in 300 Chinese herbs used in traditional medicine.

31 October 2011 | EN | 中文

OLPC debuts 'new and improved' XO laptop

Minister criticises Peru's laptop scheme

Peru's One Laptop Per Child scheme is suffering because its teachers lack training and schools lack the Internet, a minister has said.

11 October 2011 | EN | ES

Selva ecuatoriana

Ecuador ready to regulate access to genetic resources

Ecuador's president has announced regulations governing access to its biodiversity, to protect its resources and knowledge.

19 September 2011 | ES

Traditional medicine seller

Botswana to develop policy to protect traditional knowledge

Botswana is developing a policy to document and safeguard traditional knowledge.

24 August 2011 | EN

India to patent tribal medicinal knowledge

India will help primitive tribes in the remote Andaman and Nicobar islands patent their traditional medicines.

12 August 2011 | EN

Fishermen in Honduras

Fish nurseries need more than mangroves, says study

Seagrass beds as well as mangroves are vital nurseries for fish and should be conserved as interlinked habitats, a study finds.

4 August 2011 | EN | ES

Cuatro Cienegas area in Mexico

Commercialising genes 'may help conserve Mexican oasis'

Local communities could help conserve a disappearing oasis, through incentives to sharing benefits from gene patents.

Source: Nature

4 August 2011 | EN | ES

Indigenous people in Namibia help draft biopiracy law

The bill has been more than a decade in the making and will prevent the exploitation of natural resources such as hoodia plants.

15 July 2011 | EN

Cowpea seedling

Disaster relief seeds 'should be more diverse'

Getting seeds from friends restores diversity better than getting them from relief programmes following natural disasters, says a study.

6 July 2011 | EN

Scientific awareness rising in India

Scientific awareness has been rising across literate and illiterate communities in India, says a study.

6 July 2011 | EN

Earthquake damage in Haiti

Award-winner shakes up design of earthquake-proof homes

Cheaper and safer house designs for the developing world that use local materials have won a US$100,000 award.

3 June 2011 | EN | ES | 中文