viewpoint Reshaping the future of ethnobiology research after the COVID-19 pandemic A geographically diverse group of 29 ethnobiologists addresses three common themes in response to the COVID-19 global health crisis: impact on local communities, future interactions between researchers and communities, and new (or renewed) conceptual and/or applied research priorities for ethnobiology. Ina Vandebroek, Andrea Pieroni, John Richard Stepp, Natalia Hanazaki, Ana Ladio, Rômulo Romeu Nóbrega Alves, David Picking, Rupika Delgoda, Alfred Maroyi, Tinde van Andel, Cassandra L. Quave, Narel Y. Paniagua-Zambrana, Rainer W. Bussmann, Guillaume Odonne, Arshad Mehmood Abbasi, Ulysses Paulino Albuquerque, Janelle Baker, Susan Kutz, Shrabya Timsina, Masayoshi Shigeta, Tacyana Pereira Ribeiro Oliveira, Julio A. Hurrell, Patricia M. Arenas, Jeremias P. Puentes, Jean Hugé, Yeter Yeşil, Laurent Jean Pierre, Temesgen Magule Olango and Farid Dahdouh-Guebas he public health crisis triggered and its likely impact. The swift response these perspectives will become critical, by SARS-CoV-2, the cause of the from many colleagues who provided their especially given the discipline’s stake in the COVID-19 disease, is teaching us that views reflects a shared sense of necessity and conservation of, and sustainable and ethical T 4,5 the world is no longer operating under the urgency to carry out this exercise. use of, biocultural diversity . assumption of ‘business as usual’. According We opted to keep reflections as individual to the online global tracker managed by viewpoints because they are informed Common theme 1: how the pandemic Johns Hopkins University1, as of the end of by local geographies that are shaped by will impact local communities, their May 2020, there are more than 5.8 million specific political, social, cultural and traditional knowledge, livelihoods confirmed cases of COVID-19 across 188 economic contexts. As such, they represent and use or management of natural countries and regions, a number that is still opportunities for understanding either resources increasing. Undoubtedly, this global health subtle or outspoken differences in scholarly crisis will also have a profound impact opinions related to post-COVID-19 John Richard Stepp: shutdown of on the discipline of ethnobiology that is ethnobiology around the world. Moreover, animal and insect markets. Clearly devoted to the interdisciplinary study of past ethnobiology’s broad mission includes a the world community is now going to and present relationships between humans, diversity of research topics that are fittingly view local ‘wet markets’ (markets that cultures and the biophysical environment, represented by these individual perspectives. sell live and dead animal products for with a focus on knowledge, cognition and However, regardless of geographical human consumption) with considerable the traditional use of plants and animals. and/or research-specific priorities, there are scepticism and even disdain, since the likely Ethnobiology is primarily a field-based recurrent themes that tie these reflections origin of SARS-CoV-2 is zoonotic and a enterprise that has scholars and students together: (1) how the pandemic will impact general public opinion has formed that ‘on the ground’ in diverse biological and local and indigenous communities, their the initial infection occurred in a market, cultural landscapes around the world. traditional knowledge, livelihoods and use although there is some evidence to the Ethnobiologists tend to travel frequently or management of natural resources; (2) how contrary6. These markets are rich sources for fieldwork, often to remote and relatively this crisis should guide future interactions of ethnobiological resources, knowledge isolated areas, interacting directly with between researchers and local communities; transmission and knowledge production7. local communities. and (3) what the new (conceptual and/or While government officials need to make Much ethnobiology research is relevant applied) priorities of the discipline should sure that markets are not a public health to the conservation of biological and cultural be. Inevitably, there exists some degree of nuisance, it is likely that overreactions diversity (‘biocultural diversity’)2, and directly overlap between these themes (Fig. 1). will lead to the wholesale termination and relates to sustainability; in fact, along with its The impacts from the COVID-19 destruction of markets in countries across sub-discipline of ethnobotany, ethnobiology pandemic reveal both the strengths and the globe. There will be significant network has been called the ‘science of survival’3. weaknesses of ethnobiology as a discipline. effects from these actions that reverberate Given the discipline’s long-standing Some reflections offered here are new, while both to consumers and also back to local concern for addressing environmental others (for example, empowering local and producers and communities. Consumers and cultural problems, a key question is: indigenous communities or developing will be forced into further engagement how will ethnobiology reshape itself in new plant-based medicines) have been with industrial food production systems, a post-COVID-19 world? Twenty-nine largely confined to the readership within while producers will lose income and the ethnobiologists from seventeen countries ethnobiology or its closely related fields. ability to sell their products. In China alone, reflect on how they envision the future of Now, with the pressure of the COVID-19 30–59% of the food supply is procured ethnobiology, addressing one major topic crisis in full force, the mainstreaming of in wet markets8, and this is true in many NATURE PLANTS | www.nature.com/natureplants viewpoint profession and age, and in the way they Post-COVID-19 opportunities Post-COVID-19 barriers use, need and influence ecosystems. 1 • Revitalized traditional, ‘alternative’ lifestyles • Shutdown of local animal markets 1 Adaptive co-management is built on short • Rural return migration, ‘back to the land’ • Data gathering barriers (especially on illegal feedback loops and requires dialogue • Sustainable local food movements, animal trade) and knowledge exchange to co-identify co-operatives • Endangered adaptive • Cultural heritage gardens co-management of ecosystems problems and co-produce visions and • Increased environmental • Credibility issues of actions that maintain the resilience of a awareness 1 traditional medicine Impact on SES in times of (global) change. However, 2 • Foster local and local communities • Increased social 2 live meetings, formal and informal indigenous (youth) distancing consultations and knowledge exchange, leaders • Fear and stigma decision-making processes and so on • Local research • Physical contact is facilitators life threatening to cannot easily be continued online in rural • Implement Nagoya Ethnobiology vulnerable groups areas or in traditional systems. Next to protocol (ethics and • Marginalized technical issues (for example, network rights) 2 3 communities • Amplify local voices Researcher– New • Lack of in-country coverage, maintenance and electric power • Support local networks community research funding and training reliability), institutions underpinning • Co-design ethnobiology interactions priorities informatics platforms adaptive co-management cannot simply be dematerialized and held online, at least not 3 • Sharpen audiovisual public • Spread of misinformation 3 in the short run. This prompts the question: communication skills • ‘Business as usual’ approach • New socio-environmental ethics • Limited transdisciplinary funding how adaptive is ‘adaptive co-management’, • Develop ‘green’, integrative medicine opportunities if vital co-management elements that occur • Study resilience of biocultural heritage • Limited international policy concern for existing • More socially engaged research health disparities, universal food security ‘live’ are halted by confinement measures in • Reconsider complexity of people–plant relationships and environmental health view of an overriding public health crisis? Next to impeding dialogue and face-to-face contact, strict confinement measures Fig. 1 | Schematic representation of three common themes in ethnobiology that were identified by a have an even greater impact on people geographically diverse group of 29 ethnobiologists from 17 countries in response to the COVID-19 whose livelihoods directly depend on daily global health crisis. (1) Impact on local communities, (2) future interactions between researchers and excursions to get water and food, such as local communities and (3) new (or renewed) research priorities for ethnobiology. For each of these people living in drylands, fishermen and common themes, there will likely exist opportunities after the COVID-19 pandemic, but also barriers. so on. We must find a way to ensure that adaptive co-management is also resilient in the face of unexpected global crises, such other countries as well. Animal and insect amendments. The legislation associated with as COVID-19. Inevitably, at some point, markets often coexist with markets for food, wildlife exploitation is a crucial driver of the trade-offs need to be made by individuals medicinal and ritual plants, so there is likely interactions between people and animals, left with the choice between respecting to be an impact on wild and cultivated local and may imply difficulties in gathering well-intentioned, top-down rules to protect food plant production systems as