Biocultural diversity conservation is an approach to conservation that centers the deep relationships between human cultures and the natural world. Contained within the world’s diversity of languages, systems of medicine, ritual traditions, and artistic expressions is culturally-specific knowledge about the natural world and its stewardship. Many cultural practices are dependent upon a diversity of biological species, and the continued practice or revitalization of practices maintains the cultural value of nature, and promotes the conservation of biological diversity. A global shift toward a biocultural approach to conservation is vital for biological and cultural diversity, and the health of both humans and ecosystems.

During this talk, Mr. Arvis Boughman will discuss plants and herbal remedies, including those of the longleaf pine ecosystem, that members of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina have used for centuries in the coastal plain of North Carolina and continue to use today.