Ethnobiology Letters

Ethnobiology Letters
Title	Ethnobiology Letters
Discipline	Ethnobiology

Ethnobiology Letters is a peer-reviewed journal that publishes short-format research and commentary at the intersection of biology, anthropology, ecology, conservation, and traditional knowledge—fields that intersect with work by figures and institutions such as Harvard University, Smithsonian Institution, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, University of California, Berkeley, London School of Economics, University of Oxford, Yale University, University of Cambridge, Max Planck Society, Smith College, Cornell University, University of Chicago, Princeton University, Columbia University, University of Toronto, McGill University, Australian National University, University of Queensland, University of São Paulo, University of British Columbia, University of Helsinki, University of Copenhagen, University of Cape Town, University of Nairobi, University of Delhi, Peking University, Zhejiang University, Kyoto University, Seoul National University, National University of Singapore, and University of Auckland. The journal emphasizes concise contributions by scholars, practitioners, and community researchers engaged with indigenous, local, and historical biological knowledge linked to organizations like UNESCO, IUCN, World Wildlife Fund, Greenpeace, Conservation International, The Nature Conservancy, International Union for Conservation of Nature, and World Health Organization.

Overview

Ethnobiology Letters publishes short articles, notes, and perspectives on human relationships with flora and fauna as documented by researchers affiliated with institutions such as Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Kew Gardens, Royal Society, National Geographic Society, Sloan Foundation, Gates Foundation, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Wellcome Trust, National Science Foundation, European Research Council, British Academy, American Philosophical Society, Royal Society of Biology, Society for Conservation Biology, International Society of Ethnobiology, American Anthropological Association, Society for Economic Botany, Ethnobotanical Society of India, and Agricultural Research Service. Articles often engage case studies from regions represented in research centers such as Amazonas Research, Smithsonian Institution Tropical Research Center, Australian Tropical Herbarium, Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, Royal Botanic Garden Sydney, Botanic Gardens Conservation International, Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia, Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, and National Museum of Natural History (France).

History and Development

The journal emerged amid intellectual currents associated with scholars and movements linked to Claude Lévi-Strauss, Alfred Russel Wallace, Charles Darwin, Alexander von Humboldt, Franz Boas, Bronisław Malinowski, Edward Sapir, Carl Linnaeus, Gregor Mendel, Nikolai Vavilov, Julian Huxley, Rachel Carson, E.O. Wilson, Margaret Mead, Claude Lévi-Strauss, Tim Ingold, Anna Tsing, Paul Sillitoe, Darrell Posey, Bruno Latour, Stuart Hall, James C. Scott, Vandana Shiva, Wade Davis, Kent Redford, Peter Raven, Patricia Alvarez, and institutions including Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Smithsonian Institution. Its format and editorial structure were influenced by publishing practices at presses like Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, Routledge, Springer Nature, Taylor & Francis, Elsevier, and Wiley-Blackwell, and by editorial standards from societies including Royal Geographical Society and American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Scope and Focus

Contributions cover ethnobotany, ethnozoology, ethnoecology, traditional medicine, biocultural diversity, indigenous rights, resource management, and knowledge co-production. Topics intersect with legal, policy, and conservation frameworks found in documents and arenas associated with Convention on Biological Diversity, Nagoya Protocol, FAO, CITES, Cartagena Protocol, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Paris Agreement, Sustainable Development Goals, Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, and regional entities such as African Union, European Union, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Organization of American States, and Pacific Islands Forum.

Publication and Editorial Policies

The journal follows peer-review norms practiced by scholarly publishers like Nature Research, Science (journal), PLOS, eLife, PNAS, Frontiers, BMC, and BioMed Central. Editorial oversight often involves scholars with appointments at institutions such as University of Washington, Duke University, Brown University, University of Michigan, University of Minnesota, Rutgers University, Pennsylvania State University, University of Arizona, Arizona State University, University of Montana, University of Texas at Austin, University of New Mexico, Auckland University of Technology, University of Melbourne, Monash University, University of Otago, University of Helsinki, Lund University, Utrecht University, and University of Amsterdam. Policies address ethical research with indigenous communities and align with codes from International Society of Ethnobiology, American Anthropological Association, World Medical Association, Ethics Committee on Animal Research, and national research councils including National Institutes of Health and Medical Research Council (United Kingdom).

Abstracting and Indexing

Abstracting and indexing services relevant to the journal include databases and platforms such as Web of Science, Scopus, Google Scholar, JSTOR, PubMed, BIOSIS Previews, CAB Abstracts, EBSCOhost, ProQuest, DOAJ, CrossRef, OpenAIRE, Dimensions, WorldCat, ERIC, ResearchGate, SSRN, Academia.edu, ORCID, Scimago Journal Rank, SJR (Scimago) and aggregators connected to libraries such as Library of Congress, British Library, Bibliothèque nationale de France, German National Library, National Diet Library (Japan), National Library of Australia, Canadian National Library, National Library of China, Russian State Library, National Library of India, Biblioteca Nacional de España, and Biblioteca Nacional de México.

Reception and Impact

The journal's influence is discussed alongside contributions and debates involving researchers and activists such as Vandana Shiva, Wade Davis, Paul Farmer, Francesca Merlan, Tim Ingold, Anna Tsing, E.O. Wilson, Peter Raven, Darrell Posey, Deborah Bird Rose, Kay Milton, Rebecca Hardin, Brad Weiss, Nancy Turner, Charles Frake, Roy Ellen, Hugh Brody, Marilyn Strathern, James C. Scott, Arjun Appadurai, Philippe Descola, Eduardo Kohn, Clifford Geertz, Mary Douglas, Marianne Hirsch, Michel Foucault, Bruno Latour, Donna Haraway, Isabelle Stengers, Anna Lowenhaupt Tsing, Paul Sillitoe, William Cronon, Richard Rudgley, Richard Evans Schultes, Timothy Plowman, Jonathan Silvertown, Michael Pollan, and organizations like IUCN, UNESCO, and WHO. Its articles have been cited in policy briefs, conservation plans, ethnobotanical monographs, and interdisciplinary syntheses produced by World Bank, Inter-American Development Bank, Asian Development Bank, African Development Bank, OECD, and think tanks like Brookings Institution, Chatham House, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Council on Foreign Relations, Wilson Center, Center for Strategic and International Studies, RAND Corporation, and Cato Institute.

Related Organizations and Initiatives

The journal connects with societies, networks, and projects including International Society of Ethnobiology, Society for Economic Botany, Society for Conservation Biology, International Union for Conservation of Nature, Convention on Biological Diversity, Nagoya Protocol, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Global Environment Facility, World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF), Bioversity International, CGIAR, International Plant Protection Convention, Biodiversity Heritage Library, Global Biodiversity Information Facility, Indigenous Peoples' Biocultural Climate Change Assessment Initiative, Local Contexts, Cultural Survival, Terralingua, Kehati Foundation, Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT, Botanic Gardens Conservation International, Natural Inquiry Project, and university-based centers such as Center for International Forestry Research, Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, Center for Indigenous Knowledge Systems, and School of Oriental and African Studies.

Category:Ethnobiology