Evaluation of the People and Plants Programme

An external evaluation of the People and Plants Initiative is about to start. The purposes of this are four-fold:

to determine progress against objectives
to see how aspects of the initiative might continue in other forms after the programme ends in 2005
to learn lessons about how conservation programmes should be structured
to ascertain the contributions of the programme to the Programme Partnership Agreement between WWF-UK and DFID (currently a principal funder of the programme).

There will be national-level evaluations in 3 countries in which the programme is currently especially active, that is Kenya, Nepal, and Pakistan. Other aspects of the programme will be assessed for global impact, including in terms of training young professionals, assistance for the development of NGOs and courses in ethnobotany, and in terms of the general development of applied ethnobotany (for instance, as encouraged through our publications, videos, and this website).

Publications

Plant Talk Article

An article about Chinese ethnobotany and its links with People and Plants will appear in the next issue of Plant Talk. This publication, the Bulletin of the National Tropical Botanical Garden, Kauai, Hawaii, supports plant conservation worldwide, and is also carrying a full-page advertisement about People and Plants, with details of our publications and website.
The article, illustrated by colour photographs, is part of our efforts to bring the message of People and Plants to a wider audience. It highlights the effective cooperation established between ethnobotanists in different parts of the world, united in their efforts to promote conservation consistent with sustainable traditional land-use practices.
Plant Talk carries eloquent, well-researched articles about plant conservation issues worldwide. It is also a valuable source of information about meetings, conferences and other events related to plant conservation. Full details are available at Plant Talk on-line, and People and Plants recommends anyone interested to take out a subscription.

People and Plants Books

Martin: Ethnobotany: a methods manual
This textbook, the first book to be published in our series, has long been out of print. We are delighted to announce that it is being re-issued by Earthscan, and will soon be available again, thus making the series complete once more.

Sarah Laird's splendid book, Biodiversity and Traditional Knowledge: equitable partnerships in practice, has now appeared in Spanish, with the following title:
Biodiversidad y conocimiento tradicional: participación equitativa en práctica
Review quotes:
'The primary aim of this outstanding book is to provide a broad overview, synthesis, and open discussion of practices and processes concerning fairness and equitable partnerships between north and south biodiversity research and bio-prospecting...
This book is eminently practical and succeeds in its intended purpose. It treats the subject matter with holism, with not-overly-specialized text, and with specific examples and case studies that make it interesting and informative....
Biodiversity and Traditional Knowledge is an excellent work that should be required reading for everyone involved in these fascinating and complex issues.'
JOURNAL OF ETHNOBIOLOGY
'Just recently published, Biodiversity and Traditional Knowledge is a spectacular contribution from the People and Plants Conservation Series. The authors and contributors, all 75 of them, are leaders in their fields of expertise. They bring a broad range of backgrounds to this complex topic, including law, ethnobotany, conservation and environmental sciences, and the perspective of local communities. This book also provides an invaluable directory of useful contacts and resources.'
HERBALGRAM

Chinese Editions of the following two titles are being prepared: