Place-based Foods: Theory, methods, and practices for conservation

Session Organizer and Chair: Kimberlee J. Chambers

Place-based foods are representative of distinct landscapes, peoples, and practices. Their uniqueness derives not only from their endemism, which may result from ecological niches and the ethnic or regional heritage of their stewards, but also the importance of these foods for sustaining cultures and providing nutritionally appropriate diets. The inherently interdisciplinary nature of ethnobiology research provides unique opportunities to contribute to the conservation of place-based foods and thus our understanding of cultural diversity and biodiversity at a time when both entities are facing unprecedented challenges. We invite scholars engaged in research that focuses on some aspect of the ethnobiology of place-based foods to submit papers for a session(s) focusing on empirical and theoretical work. Abstracts and presentations should address the relevance of their research to conservation.