The 14th ISE Congress was held in June 2014 in Bumthang, Bhutan
The Congress theme was Regenerating biocultural ecosystem resilience and traditional knowledge
Sub-themes included: Living Well: Environment, Sacred Heritage and Livelihood; Protected Areas, Ecotourism and Community Involvement; Intergenerational Learning/Transmission of Knowledge; Ethnobiology and Ecosystem Services – Broadening the Conversation; Influencing Governance Policies (community-based natural resource management, gender, participation, citizen science…); Ethnobiology in Mountain Communities; and Mindfulness, Ethics and Mental Ecology.
Reports and photos coming soon! In the meantime, please refer to the Congress website for more information or contact the Organizers at: [email protected]
The 13th ISE Congress was held in May 2012 in Montpellier, France
The Congress theme was Cultural diversity and biological diversity for sustainable development: Exploring the past to build up the future.
Sub-themes included: Local products in changing rural/urban relationships; Agrodiversity: from domestication to contemporary practices in the global context; Land use legacies: excavating fossil knowledge and analyzing contemporary practices; Co-learning processes in ethnobiological research: how to build constructive interactions between research and local actors; and Sustainable development: Local knowledge in relation to environmental norms and policies.
The 13th ISE Congress resulted in a Montpellier Statement, which the Mayor of Montpellier France is bringing to Rio+20 on behalf of the ISE. Read the Montpellier Statement in English or French.
Reports and photos coming soon! In the meantime, please refer to the Congress website for more information or contact the Organizers at: [email protected]
The 12th ISE Congress was held in May 2010 in Tofino, BC, Canada
The overarching theme of this Congress was Hishuk-ish tsa’walk, a Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations phrase that embodies the concept of “everything is one,” the understanding that everything is connected and nothing is isolated from other aspects of life surrounding it and within it.
The sub-themes – Conserved and protected areas and people, Cultural transmission of knowledge in protecting and restoring biocultural diversity, and Traditional foods and food sovereignty – were selected for their global significance as well as their importance for local community members and the Indigenous Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations.
Reports and photos are available on the Tofino Congress website.
Past Congresses and Chairpersons
| 14th Congress 2014 | Bumthang, Bhutan | Chair: Sangay Wangchuk |
| 13th Congress 2012 | Montpellier, France | Chair: Edmond Dounias |
| 12th Congress 2010 | Tofino, BC, Canada | Chair: Josie Osborne |
| 11th Congress 2008 | Cusco, Peru | Chair: Alejandro Argumedo |
| 10th Congress 2006 | Chiang Rai, Thailand | Chair: Chayan Picheansoonthon |
| 9th Congress 2004 | Canterbury, Kent, UK | Chair: Roy Ellen |
| 8th Congress 2002 | Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | Chair: Fassil Kebebew |
| 7th Congress 2000 | Athens, USA | Chair: Elois Ann Berlin |
| 6th Congress 1998 | Whakatane, Aotearoa/New Zealand | Chair: Aroha Mead |
| 5th Congress 1996 | Nairobi, Kenya | Chair: Christine Kabuye |
| 4th Congress 1994 | Lucknow, India | Chair: Sudhanshu Kumar Jain |
| 3rd Congress 1992 | Mexico City, Mexico | Chair: Javier Caballero |
| 2nd Congress 1990 | Kunming, China | Chair: Pei Shengji |
| 1st Congress 1988 | Belem, Brazil | Chair: Darrell Posey |