Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Bio-cultural Community Protocols in India

Kabir Bavikatte and Harry Jonas worked with two communities in India to develop bio-cultural community protocols in mid August. We worked with traditional healers in the Valli region of Rajasthan and with the Malayali Tribes in Tamil Nadu and their support organizations (Jagran Jan Vikas Samiti and the Foundation for Revitalization of Local HealthTraditions) to set out the natural resource base and bio-cultural foundations of their traditional knowledge. We developed protocols for each group to assist them and their support organizations to securetheir rights to access forest resources and to ensure that any use of their knowledge is in accordance with their bio-cultural values. The protocols are available on the website.

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

K2C Visit Proves Productive



Johanna von Braun and Harry Jonas attended a meeting at Vukuzenzele on the 23rd of July at which the Bushbuck Ridge Traditional Health Practitioners elected an executive committee. Subsequently, they convened a workshop on the 27th and 28th in partnership with the Biosphere Committee for the executive members plus ten others from the group to develop a biocultural community protocol.
They also visited a group of traditional health practitioners from the Venda community based on the North western boundary of the Kruger Park to discuss their progress towards establishing a medicinal plants conservation and development area (MPCDA)Natural Justice has been asked by the community to work with them towards a GEF grant to fund the MPCDA and to establish a project to grow African vegetables. The visit took place in July 2009, and forms part of ongoing work in this area.