Conservation of Biological Diversity and Indigenous Traditional Knowledge as Exemplified by the Cases of Asia and Africa

Tropical countries are rich in biodiversity. For centuries, local/indigenous populations have used biodiversity as food, medicines, building materials and for other purposes. Traditional knowledge has been practised and passed on from one generation to another, and is intertwined with cultural and spiritual values. However, there is an imminent danger that valuable biodiversity and traditional knowledge will be lost forever, for example due to pollution, industrialisation and destruction of forests. Privatisation of biodiversity may also have negative welfare effects in tropical countries, not least by excluding local/indigenous peoples from some of their most valuable resources. Therefore, it is important to develop mechanisms that will help to protect biodiversity and traditional knowledge for the benefit of future generations. (Indilinga: African Journal of Indigenous Knowledge Systems: 2002 1: 37-48