Itzama project : sustainable indigenous development based on the ethnobotanical garden and traditional medicine concept; final report

Development in indigenous communities needs a culturally appropriate methodology and the full involvement of community elders. At the core of the project is the Belize Indigenous Training Institute (BITI) and Kekchi Healers Association (KHA), the Itzama Ethnobotanical Garden (IEG), Indian Creek, Belize and the Maya Mountains Ethnobotany and Ecology Project (MMEEP). In total, eighty-two species belonging to thirty-seven families were identified during the ethnobotanical interviews (Table 2). The three most important families used as immunomodulatory medicines were the Piperaceae (21 species), the Asteraceae (8 species), and the Rubiaceae (5 species). Inclusion of traditional medicine in modern medical care is now endorsed by WHO