Side Event
Development of an indicator for the direct measurement of the status and trends of indigenous and traditional knowledge
Organizer
Terralingua
Date and Time
23 January 2006 13:15 - 14:45
In accordance with Article 8j of the CBD, the 2010 Targets identify Focal Area 5, "Status of traditional knowledge, innovations, and practices" as one of the key areas for the development of indicators relevant to the goal to “achieve a significant reduction of the current rate of biodiversity loss at global, regional, and national levels as a contribution to poverty alleviation and to the benefit of all life on earth.” Headline indicator I in this Focal Area, "Status and trends of linguistic diversity and numbers of speakers of indigenous languages", has been agreed upon by the CBD. Headline indicator II, "Other indicator of the status and trends of indigenous and traditional knowledge", is instead still under discussion. This side event will present information on an effort currently underway to develop the methodology for the very first index that would directly measure key components of indigenous and traditional environmental knowledge, including ethnobiological knowledge and traditional resource procurement or processing skills. The method will be both sensitive to local distinctiveness and applicable at regional and global scales. This indicator would be highly relevant to the goals of the 2010 Targets and might be taken into consideration as a candidate for the "other" indicator of the status and trends of traditional knowledge, innovations, and practices under Focal Area 5.