Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • News & Views
  • Published:

Biodiversity

The benefits of traditional knowledge

Nature volume 518, pages 487–488 (2015)Cite this article

Subjects

A study of two Balkan ethnic groups living in close proximity finds that traditional knowledge about local plant resources helps communities to cope with periods of famine, and can promote the conservation of biodiversity.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Relevant articles

Open Access articles citing this article.

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Figure 1

Roger Smith/Getty

Notes

  1. See all news & views

References

  1. Schultes, R. E. & von Reis, S. Ethnobotany: Evolution of a Discipline (Chapman & Hall, 1995).

    Google Scholar 

  2. Reyes-García, V. et al. Evol. Hum. Behav. 34, 249–257 (2013).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Pardo-de-Santayana, M., Pieroni, A. & Puri, R. K. (eds) Ethnobotany in the New Europe: People, Health and Wild Plant Resources (Berghahn, 2010).

    Google Scholar 

  4. Quave, C. L. & Pieroni, A. Nature Plants 1, 14021 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Cámara-Leret, R., Paniagua-Zambrana, N., Svenning, J.-C., Balslev, H. & Macía, M. J. J. Ethnopharmacol. 158, 58–65 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Menendez-Baceta, G. et al. J. Ethnopharmacol. 161, 116–127 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Moerman, D. E. & Jonas, W. B. Ann. Intern. Med. 136, 471–476 (2002).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Johns, T. in Eating on the Wild Side (ed. Etkin, N. L.) 46–61 (Univ. Arizona Press, 2000).

    Google Scholar 

  9. Hunn, E. Ethnobiol. Lett. 5, 146–150 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Verschuuren, B., Wild, R., McNeely, J. & Oviedo, G. (eds) Sacred Natural Sites: Conserving Nature & Culture (Earthscan, 2010).

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Manuel Pardo-de-Santayana and Manuel J. Macía are in the Departamento de Biología (Botánica), Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, 28049 Madrid, Spain.,

    Manuel Pardo-de-Santayana & Manuel J. Macía

Authors
  1. Manuel Pardo-de-Santayana
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Manuel J. Macía
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Manuel Pardo-de-Santayana.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Pardo-de-Santayana, M., Macía, M. The benefits of traditional knowledge. Nature 518, 487–488 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/518487a

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/518487a

This article is cited by

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing