DiGe
Ethnobotany of divided generations in the context of centralization

• Mattalia, G., Prakofjewa, J., Kalle, R., Prūse, B., Marozzi, M., Stryamets, N., ... & Sõukand, R. (2023). Centralization can jeopardize local wild plant-based food security. "NJAS: Impact in Agricultural and Life Sciences" , 95 (1), 2191798. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/27685241.2023.2191798
• Mattalia, G., Svanberg, I., Ståhlberg, S., Kuznetsova, N., Prūse, B., Kolosova, V., ... & Sõukand, R. (2023). Outdoor activities foster local plant knowledge in Karelia, NE Europe. "Scientific Reports" , 13 (1), 8627. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-35918-7
• Prakofjewa, J., Sartori, M., Šarka, P., Kalle, R., Pieroni, A., & Sõukand, R. (2023). Boundaries Are Blurred: Wild Food Plant Knowledge Circulation across the Polish-Lithuanian-Belarusian Borderland. "Biology" , 12 (4), 571. https://www.mdpi.com/2079-7737/12/4/571
• Sulaiman, N., Aziz, M. A., Stryamets, N., Mattalia, G., Zocchi, D. M., Ahmed, H. M., ... & Pieroni, A. (2023). The Importance of Becoming Tamed: Wild Food Plants as Possible Novel Crops in Selected Food-Insecure Regions. "Horticulturae" , 9 (2), 171. https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/9/2/171
• Zocchi, D. M., Mattalia, G., Aziz, M. A., Kalle, R., Fontefrancesco, M. F., Sõukand, R., & Pieroni, A. (2023). Searching for Germane Questions in the Ethnobiology of Food Scouting. "Journal of Ethnobiology" , 43 (1), 19-30. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/02780771231162197

• Raivo Kalle, Mare Mätas, Andrea Pieroni et Renata Sõukand, «Changements dans l’usage des plantes lors des rituels et des jours de fête sur l’île de Kihnu», "Études finno-ougriennes", 54 | 2022, 101-135. https://journals.openedition.org/efo/21789?lang=en
• Aziz, M.A., Mattalia, G., Sulaiman, N. et al. 2022. The nexus between traditional foraging and its sustainability: a qualitative assessment among a few selected Eurasian case studies. Environ Dev Sustain. Available at DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-022-02568-0
• Belichenko, O., Kolosova, V., Kalle, R., Sõukand, R. 2022. Green pharmacy at the tips of your toes: medicinal plants used by Setos and Russians of Pechorsky District, Pskov Oblast (NW Russia). J Ethnobiology Ethnomedicine 18, 46. Available at DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-022-00540-w
• Kass M, Viltrop A, Prakofjewa J, Sõukand R and Kalle R. 2022. Control of foot-and-mouth disease in a closed society: A case study of Soviet Estonia. Front. Vet. Sci. 9:828583. Available at DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2022.828583
• Kolosova, V., Pashkova, T., Muslimov, M., Sõukand, R. 2021. Historical Review of Ethnopharmacology in Karelia (1850s–2020s): Herbs and healers. Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 114565. Available at DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jep.2021.114565
• Prakofjewa, J.; Anegg, M.; Kalle, R.; Simanova, A.; Prūse, B.; Pieroni, A.; Sõukand, R. 2022. Diverse in Local, Overlapping in Official Medical Botany: Critical Analysis of Medicinal Plant Records from the Historic Regions of Livonia and Courland in Northeast Europe, 1829–1895. Plants, 11, 1065. Available at DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11081065
• Stryamets, N., Khomyn, I. ., Mattalia, G., Prakofjewa, J., Pieroni, A., & Sõukand, R. 2022. One more way to support Ukraine: Celebrating its endangered biocultural diversity. Ethnobotany Research and Applications, 23, 1–28. Available at: Ethnobotany journal
• Mattalia, G., Stryamets, N., Pieroni, A., Sõukand R. 2022. “Mushrooms (and a cow) are A Means of Survival for Us”: Dissimilar Ethnomycological Perspectives among Hutsuls and Romanians Living Across The Ukrainian-Romanian Border. Environmental Management. In press. Available at DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-022-01619-6
• Stryamets, N., Prakofjewa, J., Mattalia, G., Kalle, R., Pruse, B., Zocchi, D.M, Sõukand, R., Pieroni, A., Fontefrancesco, M.F. 2022.Why the ongoing occupation of Ukraine matters to ethnobiology. J Ethnobiology Ethnomedicine, 18, 21. Available at DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-022-00523-x
• Kalle, R.; Pieroni, A.; Svanberg, I.; Sõukand, R. 2022. Early Citizen Science Action in Ethnobotany: The Case of the Folk Medicine Collection of Dr. Mihkel Ostrov in the Territory of Present-Day Estonia, 1891–1893. Plants, 11, 274. Available at DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11030274
• Sõukand, R.,Kalle, R., Pieroni, A. 2022. Homogenisation of Biocultural Diversity: Plant Ethnomedicine and Its Diachronic Change in Setomaa and Võromaa, Estonia, in the Last Century. Biology, 11, 192. Available at DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/biology11020192
• Anegg, M., Prakofjewa, J., Kalle, R., Sõukand, R. 2022. Local ecological knowledge and folk medicine in historical Estonia, Livonia, Courland, and Galicia, 1805-1905 [version 1; peer review: 1 approved]. Open Res Europe, 2:30. Available at DOI: https://doi.org/10.12688/openreseurope.14406.1

• Mattalia, G., Stryamets, N., Balazsi, A. et al. 2021. Hutsuls' perceptions of forests and uses of forest resource in Ukrainian and Romanian Bukovina. International Forestry Review 23,3.
• Mattalia, G., Stryamets, N., Balazsi, A., Molnar, G., Gliga, A., Pieroni, A., Soukand, R., Reyes-Garcia, V. 2021. Hutsuls' perceptions of forests and uses of forest resource in Ukrainian and Romanian Bukovina. International Forestry Review, 23(3). www.researchgate.net/publication/352544092_Hutsuls'_perceptions_of_forests_and_uses_of_forest_resource_in_Ukrainian_and_Romanian_Bukovina 
• Mattalia, G., Belichenko, O., Kalle, R., Kolosova, V., Kuznetsova, N., Prakofyeva, Y., Stryamets, N., Pieroni, A., Volpato, G., Sõukand, R. 2021. Multifarious trajectories in plant-based ethnoveterinary knowledge in Northern and Southern Eastern Europe. Frontiers in Veterinary Science. DOI: doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2021.710019 
• Sõukand, R., Kalle, R., Fontefrancesco, M. F., and  Pieroni, A. (2021). Building a safety buffer for European food security: the role of small-scale food production and local ecological and gastronomic knowledge in light of COVID-19. Open Research Europe, 1:10. DOI: https://doi.org/10.12688/openreseurope.13138.1
• Belichenko, O., Kolosova, V., Melnikov, D., Kalle, R., Sõukand, R. 2021. Language of Administration as a Border: Wild Food Plants Used by Setos and Russians in Pechorsky District of Pskov Oblast, NW Russia. Foods, 8;10(2):367. DOI: doi.org/10.3390/foods10020367
• Stryamets, N., Fontefrancesco, M.F., Mattalia, G., Prakofjewa, J., Pieroni, A., Kalle, R., Stryamets, G., Sõukand, R. 2021. Just beautiful green herbs: use of plants in cultural practices in Bukovina and Roztochya, Western Ukraine. J Ethnobiology Ethnomedicine, 17, 12. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-021-00439-y
• Stryamets, N., Mattalia, G., Pieroni, A., Khomyn, I., Sõukand, R. (2021). Dining Tables Divided by a Border: The Effect of Socio-Political Scenarios on Local Ecological Knowledge of Romanians Living in Ukrainian and Romanian Bukovina. Foods, 10(1), 126. DOI: doi.org/10.3390/foods10010126
• Kalle, R. and Sõukand, R. (2020). The name to remember: Flexibility and contextuality of preliterate folk plant categorization from the 1830s, in Pernau, Livonia, historical region on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea. Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 264, 113254. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jep.2020.113254
• Mattalia, G., Stryamets, N., Grygorovych, A., Pieroni, A., & Sõukand, R. (2021). Borders as crossroads: the diverging routes of herbal knowledge of Romanians living on the Romanian and Ukrainian sides of Bukovina. Frontiers in Pharmacology, 11, 1839. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fphar.2020.598390

16/07/2022 - EuroScience Open Forum Leiden

SS3.21 Good Living: The Art of Preserving and Extending Eco-Centric Knowledges to Nurture a Sustainable World
Jackson, J., Prūse, B., Sõukand, R., Baron, D., Ward, J. 
About this session:
Anthropocene disconnection with the natural world has resulted in a devastating loss of Indigenous and Local Ecological Knowledge and loss of species as governments and business interests have increasingly sought to control and exploit natural resources putting all life at risk. However, all around the world communities are fighting back through grassroots popular education, gardening and research projects aimed at the recovery of knowledge and the promotion of a regenerative culture. Artists and cultural practitioners are at the heart of this movement.
‘Good Living’ brings together artists, researchers and activists to explore the creative practice of Indigenous artists in Europe and the Americas. Honoring the value of indigenous relationality in the time of ecological and climate crisis, the speakers will explore a sense of kinship that extends beyond human and individual relations to embrace more-than-human species of plants and other animals.
The session will explore how the unlearning of our separation from nature can illuminate our experience, and challenge western binary and human-centric thought.
Programme 16/07/2022

22/04/2022 - Convegno Internazionale SILENT SPRING: una Donna, una Storia, un Futuro

In search of the right questions in the context of biocultural diversity
Renata Sõukand
Recording 22/04/2022

Poster 22/04/2022 [ITA]

5.86 M

17/02/2022 - 80th International Scientific Conference of the University of Latvia

Perspectives of Cultural Heritage in Educational Sciences
Traditional and local ecological knowledge in preschool – the role of ethnobotanical studies in the development of educational materials
Simanova, A., Prūse, B., Jasjukeviča, G.S., Mežaka, I. 
Abstract:
Although plants contribute to the basis of the living planet i.e. 80% biomass, people often do not seem to appreciate the value plants bring to their life and for the overall development of the biosphere (Allen 2003). Researchers define this phenomena as plant blindness (Wandersee & Schussler 1999). Such detachment of nature for the child may affect their emotional and cognitive development and may even create biophobia - the fear of nature (Handler & Epstein 2010). Several studies emphasize that plant blindness is less visible in the cultures where the plants serve a great part within the culture of interest (Balding & Williams 2016). The experience gained while being in nature not only benefit the physical, emotional and intellectual development for the child (Klaar & Öhman 2007, Yanez et al. 2017) but also enhance the responsibility and interest over the nature while growing up (Witt & Kimple 2008). As emphasized by Tam et al. (2013) the application of anthropomorphized narratives as part of education builds empathy for plant species and meanwhile also its protection. In respect to the above, the authors want to bring attention to the potential of inclusion of local ecological knowledge (including ethnobotanical studies) in the educational materials for preschool children in Latvia. For the purpose of open discussion several examples have been viewed - the exhibition “Lauka pētījumi” (IES 2021), the materials gained during the ethnobotanical expeditions across Latvia (e.g. Simanova et al. 2020, Prūse et al. 2021) and Estonia (Kalle et al. 2020), bordering Russia (Belichenko et al. 2021) and from the Archives of Latvian Folklore. The above will be brought as examples how preschool level children may be introduced to the importance of local ecological knowledge and thus safeguard the awareness of Latvian flora and biocultural diversity in the long run.
Event 17/02/2022

8-10/09/2021 - New Challenges for Borderlands Studies: Regional, European and Global Perspectives (virtually in Opole, Poland)

"Divergent trajectories of local ecological knowledge among communities divided by a border: insights from Hutsuls and Romanians of Bukovina (Romania and Ukraine)"
Mattalia Giulia
Abstract: Bukovina is a historical region, united until 1940 and then split into the current territories of Romania and Ukraine dividing Hutsuls and Romanian communities. Those communities have evolved across the border adapting to the different socio-economic contexts. Thus, our main objective was to understand the implications of border creation for the dynamics of ethnobotanical knowledge. The 121 semi-structured interviews revealed that in Romania ethnobotanical knowledge is mainly orally transmitted within the same family, while in Ukraine interviewees reported several written sources. Knowledge from these sources could be a consequence of the policies implemented in the current Ukrainian Bukovina (but not on the Romanian side) during the Soviet era which may have hybridized the body of knowledge of the communities with foreign elements.

7-9/07/2021 - XIV Congress of Anthropologists and Ethnologists of Russia (virtually in Tomsk, Russian Federation)

"The potential of Russian ethnobotany in the field of highly rated publications"
Kolosova, V., Belichenko, O.
Abstract: Recent academy trends put forward requirements not only to the quality of publications, but also to the level of periodicals where they are published. In Russia, ethnobotany has not yet developed into an independent direction, so there are no professional journals or reviewers. Publishing abroad is one of possible decisions. The requirements of specialized ethnobotanical journals with a high citation index can be divided into:

1. formal;
2. meaningful;
3. search and analysis of a large number of materials in a short time;
4. quantitative and qualitative analysis;
5. visual representation of materials.

As a result, the cooperation of botanists, ethnographers, linguists, pharmacologists, statisticians is necessary. At the same time, Russian scientists have access to the field, where dozens of peoples with unique traditional culture live; huge archival data; the ability to interview informants in Russian and in the languages ​​of the peoples living in the Russian Federation.

"Divergent uses of wild food and medicinal plants by Hutsuls and Romanians living in the upper Suceava Valley, NE Romania"
Mattalia, G., Stryamets, N., Sõukand R. 
Abstract: Cross-cultural ethnobotany is a novel way to address the role of culture in shaping the evolution of ethnobotanical knowledge. As widely acknowledged, this knowledge is not static, but evolves according to several factors, including cultural values. However, the role of culture in shaping plant uses in different yet adjacent communities remains largely underexplored. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare plant-based food and medicinal uses among Romanians and Hutsuls living in the upper Suceava Valley, NE Romania. We conducted 59 semi-structured interviews with conveniently-selected Romanians and Hutsuls. We documented the use of 47 wild food plants of which 22 were found to be common to both communities of which the most cited was Rubus idaeus. We also recorded the use of 91 medicinal plan taxa of which 22 used only among Hutsuls, 32 taxa only among Romanians. The most common plant used by each community for medicinal purposes was Hypericum spp. We argue that wild food plants might be more shared among the two communities because of the more limited diversity of food taxa as well as the availability of cultivated/processed food products. On the contrary, plant medicinal knowledge appear to be slightly more divergent, probably due to wider uses and number of taxa.

21-15/06/2021 - Forum Carpaticum (virtually in Brno, Czech Republic)

"Countertrending local knowledge erosion: persistence of traditional cattle healing practices in the Bukovinian Carpathians"
Mattalia, G., Stryamets, N., Pieroni, A., Volpato, G., Sõukand R.
Abstract: Animal breeding plays a key role in rural communities especially those living in harsh environments where agriculture could not support their livelihoods throughout the year (van Zanten et al. 2016). In these contexts, animal breeding is crucial in sustaining the local food system. However, knowledge regarding veterinary practices was found to rapidly vanishing in several European regions (e.g. Gonzalez et al. 2020), including Eastern Europe (e.g. Kalle and Kass 2020).
Therefore, we aimed to document the plant-based ethnoveterinary knowledge of Romanians and Hutsuls, living in both Romanian and Ukrainian Bukovina, and to analyze possible drivers of ethnoveterinary knowledge persistence/erosion in the Carpathians. The 60 interviews carried out in the Romanian and Ukrainian Carpathians in summers 2018 and 2019 revealed that ethnoveterinary knowledge is still alive. Among the seven treated animals (including pig, cow, sheep, bees, turkey, goose, chicken), cattle is the most represented. Indeed we documented the use of 22 wild plants and 12 cultivated plants to treat cattle disorders. However, most of the reported remedies were addressing the digestive system, and particularly diarrhea and the reproductive system (especially as postpartum supplements).
Possible reasons for such persistence include the geographical remoteness of the Bukovinian Carpathians, the deep cultural and economic significance of cattle in the area.
Countertrending the findings of scholars working in the Eastern European context (e.g. Kalle and Kaas 2020 in Estonia; Soukand et al. 2017 in Belarus), our results revealed that Hutsuls and Romanian living in Bukovina still retain considerable knowledge regarding traditional remedies for treating cattle disorders. Further actions are needed to promote the persistence of such knowledge as a potential source of plant-based treatments for improving animal health and welfare.

12-14/05/2021 - Virtual Conference of the Society of Ethnobiology

"Peculiarities and convergence in edible mushroom foraging of Setos and Russians in Pechorsky District of Pskov Oblast, NW Russia"
Belichenko Olga
Abstract: The set of edible mushrooms within a culture can be quite conservative, as there is a risk of poisoning from unknown or poorly recognized mushrooms. Yet there are changes observed in mushroom collection throughout 20 century. Mushrooms constitute an integral part of the diet of Setos, a small indigenous people in the Russian-Estonian borderland. They speak a dialect of Estonian and practice Orthodox Christianity. Orthodox diet prescribes numerous fasts throughout the year and mushrooms are considered a common replacement for meat. In summer 2018-19 we interviewed 25 Setos and 34 Russians about the collected mushrooms and any changes in repertoire and preparation. The interviews were conducted upon an informed consent. While Setos revealed special preference for Russula spp., in recent decades they started to consume the same species of mushrooms as Russians, Macrolepiota sp. and Cortinarius sp.

"Divergent Patterns of Erosion of Ethnoveterinary Knowledge in Eastern European Borderlands (oral communication)"
Mattalia Giulia, Belichenko Olga,  Kalle Raivo, Kolosova Valeria, Kuznetsova  Natalia,  Prakofjewa Julia, Stryamets Nataliya, Pieroni Andrea, Volpato Gabriele, Sõukand Renata 
Abstract: In many societies, livestock significantly contributes to people’s food security. In the rural contexts of Eastern Europe, the health care of a family used to extend until recently also to that of their livestock. We investigated current and past ethnoveterinary practices in nine rural borderland areas of Eastern Europe and discussed what factors may have contributed to the persistence/erosion of ethnoveterinary knowledge in those contexts. Over 500 interviews conducted in eight countries revealed the use of over 90 plants for ethnoveterinary purposes, although, in most contexts, ethnoveterinary knowledge is quickly eroding mainly due to the decline in family farming following major socio-political changes and centralization/intensification of livestock husbandry. In contrast, in the Carpathian region, ethnoveterinary practices persist likely due to its geographical isolation. We conclude that such vanishing knowledge and practices can serve as a key as they have the potential to improve animal welfare while providing healthier animal products.
Recording on YouTube - "Multifarious trajectories of ethnoveterinary knowledge in Eastern Europe"

"Cosmetics and cosmeceuticals in Karelia, North-West Russia (oral communication)"
Kolosova Valeria
Abstract: The paper is focused on cosmetics, cosmeceuticals, and remedies for skin used in the Republic of Karelia. The material was collected in 2018 and 2019. According to the data, plants – wild, cultivated, or bought – take the leading part in this area (60 species, more than 300 plant uses), though animal, mineral, and magical remedies were used, too. The most popular among them are Urtica sp. (43 plant uses), Betula sp. (30), Matricaria chamomilla L. (24), Chelidonium majus L. (23), Bidens tripartita L. and Viburnum opulus L. (18). The problem annoying Karelia inhabitants the most is bathing babies with skin problems (miliaria, allergy, diathesis). The second place is taken by warts. Rinsing hair after washing with additions of various herbs also takes an important part in hygienic practices. At the same time, freckles or bad smell from mouth were not supposed to be problems drawing attention.
Recording on YouTube - "Cosmetics and Cosmeceuticals in Karelia, North-West Russia"

25/03/2021 - Speaking plants in the languages of Global and Chinese capitalism (virtually in Cambridge)

"Tradition without Roots: history and modern use of the Russian Ivan-chai (Epilobium angustifolium)"
Belichenko Olga, Kolosova Valeria
Abstract: The first food use of E. angustifolium on the territory of Russian Empire was mentioned by Stepan Krasheninnikov in the 18 century: the inner pith of its stalks was consumed by the Tungus people. However, the modern use of this plant in widely available infusions marketed as ‘traditional’ and ‘authentic’ is most likely dates back to the falsification of Kyakhta Chinese tea in Russia that was consumed locally as well as transported to the West. The leaves of the plant were burnt and mixed with clay in order to resemble the highly esteemed Chinese drink. After the ban on the use of E.angustifolium in tea mixtures, it transformed in a cheap tea surrogate the only drink available to the poorest tea consumers.In the presentation, we describe the radical transformation of the image of Ivan chai in Russia in recent years, the geography and the role of Chinese technologies its production.

5-6/10/2020. Global Mountain Sustainability Forum, Italy

28-30/09/2020. IUFRO WG 5.10.00 & Scandinavian Society of Forest Economics (SSFE), Online Conference

Security vs recreation: forest products for livelihoods in Ukraine and Romania. Stryamets Nataliya (Ca' Foscari University of Venice), Mattalia Giulia (Ca' Foscari University of Venice), Khomyn Ihor, Sõukand Renata (Ca' Foscari University of Venice). 
Abstract: Social demand for forest products and services especially from mountain forests is growing, putting pressure on maintaining the forest ecosystems. The use of forest resources for local livelihoods strategies has a different purpose, e.g. forest reliance is the use of forest products as economic insurance and poverty reduction. Aim of the study is to analyze the importance of contemporary use of non-wood forest products (NWFPs) for daily livelihoods in rural areas in the Carpathian Mountains comparing two ethnic groups Hutsuls and Romanians living in same natural conditions, having been once one historical region of Bukovina, but currently situating in different countries. We made 127 semi-structured face to face interviews in Romania and Ukraine, focusing on use of wild food, medicine and cultural practices. Our results demonstrate the difference in the number of plants used for food (50 species in Ukraine and 39 in Romania) mushrooms for food (23 and 13 species of mushrooms) and plants for medicine ( 101 and 88 species respectively). Livelihood strategies of rural forest-dependent communities in Ukraine and Romania include the current use of NWFPs. Rural residents in both areas of Bukovina use wild plants and mushrooms to supplement their diets, meet their medicinal needs and household income, and for cultural practices and ceremonies. In Ukrainian case studies, respondents explained that wild products have economic insurance and have poverty reduction functions, especially in remote mountain villages. However, in Romania, the NWFPs collection were valued more for recreational and cultural aspects. This project has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program (grant agreement No 714874). 
Scandinavian Forest Economics n. 49

15-17/09/2020. The 8th World Sustainability Forum (virtual), Switzerland

26-28/02/2020, St Petersburg, Russia. Russian Ethnographical Museum. The 8th Sjögren Readings. "North-West: Ethno-Confessional History and Historical-Cultural Landscape"

Karelian Banya in Ethnobotanical Context. Valeria Kolosova. Abstract: The report concerns using plants by people in Karelia in connection with banya. The data were collected during the field work in the framework of the project “Ethnobotany of Separated Generations in the Context of Centralization” in 2018 and 2019. A special “banya questionnaire” was used for conducting interviews. The following plant functions were identified: building material, firewood, washing utensils, material for banya brooms, as well as the use for washing and cosmetic purposes. Most respondents prefer to build banya of pine wood while inner parts and most utensils were made of aspen. As caulking material, moss is used. The preferred type of firewood is birch, as well as banya brooms, with specific rules of preparing them; still, a number of other plants are used for banya brooms, both for healing (juniper, nettle) and for pleasure (oak, willow herb, eucalyptus, spiraea). The paper also concerns solutions, decoctions and infusions of plants used for pouring onto stove, washing body and hair, dying hair, skin care, as well as preferred drinks after banya. The interview materials demonstrate that using banya in Karelian culture is very sustainable, and changes are minimal.
http://www.museum.ru/N74609

21-22/11/2019 - Sofia, Bulgaria Plant Diversity Towards Society 2019 - International Scientific Conference Plant Diversity: sociocultural dimensions and interdisciplinary projections

Abstract: Karelian Folk Medicine: Potentilla Erecta (L.) Rauesch. Valeria Kolosova.
The paper is based on the field materials collected in the summer of 2018 in the Republic of Karelia, Russian Federation. Most respondents mentioned the root of the plant called in Russain калган ‘(common) tormentil Potentilla erecta (L.) Raeusch’ as a widely-used medicine. The paper contains analysis of field data about Potentilla erecta. The respondents mentioned it as a remedy for a wide variety of diseases: diarrhea and stomach disorders in general, radiculitis, pain in joints, skin problems, and even dysentery and staphylococcus. They also described details of collecting, preparing, and storage of the plant, as well as the peculiarities of its use for adult patients and for children. Another sphere of plant use is folk veterinary. It is especially interesting that among the users of the plant there are professional medical workers who both use it themselves and advise to their patients. Many of our respondents spent their early years in remote villages, where state medicine and veterinary were not easily accessible, and medicinal plants played an important role in maintaining health. Still, many people continued to use medicinal herbs during the Soviet period and have been doing it nowadays. The reason may lay in the habit to rely mostly on one’s own resources as well as in the abrupt decrease of the medical care availability after the collapse of the Soviet Union, with the supporting role of the modern turn to natural remedies as a part of bio- and eco- life style.
http://iefem.bas.bg/en/call-for-papers-plant-diversity-sociocultural-dimensions-and-interdisciplinary-projections.html

6-8/11/2019 - “Sustainable Beekeeping in Ukraine” Yuriy Fedkovych Chernivtsi National University Chernivtsi (Ukraine) 

Cultural salience of bee products in the folk medicine of Bukovinian Hutsuls (Chernivtsi oblast, Ukraine), Mattalia, G., Stryamets, N., Sõukand R. 
Abstract: Humankind greatly depends on biodiversity for the provision of raw materials for food and medicinal products. Indeed, human health often relies on the surrounding environment and its resources especially in the context of indigenous communities. The diversity of flora and fauna of the Carpathians and century-old adaptation of Hutsul communities to mountain conditions make the Bukovina area an interesting area for the study of ethno-medicine. Indeed, the harsh mountain conditions of the Bukovinian Carpathians do not allow local inhabitants to rely exclusively on the few crops who can grow in that climate, but instead Hutsuls diversified their food and medicinal sources by breeding animals such as cows, sheep and bees.
While plant-based traditional medicine has received attentions all over the world, animal-based ethno-medicine have been little investigated (Alves et al. 2007). Few recent ethnobotanical studies conducted in Eastern Europe also mentioned few animal-based ethno-medicine (Soukand et al. 2017 in Belarus; Soukand and Pieroni 2016 in Ukraine and Romania; Papp et al. 2014 among Hungarian speaker communities of Romania).
The aim of this study was to discuss the relevancy of animal-based ethnomedicine among Hutsul communities of Romanian and Ukrainian Bukovina. Particularly specific objectives were to document past and current animal-based ethno-medicine and to discuss the cultural salience of relevant animal-based ethnomedical uses.
We conducted an extensive fieldwork in Northern and Southern Bukovina respectively in summers 2018 and 2019. We gathered respectively XX and 30 semi-structured interviews among Ukrainian and Romanian Hutsuls.
Our results show a persistency of animal-based ethno-medicine among Hutsuls living in Northern Bukovina, Ukraine, while this does not occur in the Suceava valley of Southern Bukovina. Indeed, 117 detailed-use report mentioned the use of products from 12 animal taxa, of which the most important were sheep and bees. However, bees were the animal providing the highest number of medicinal products including honey, propolis, bee pollen, wax, venom and the dead insect.
Indeed honey is often used for treating flu, cough, cold, joint pain sore throat and it is generally considered a healthy product and largely employed in the preparation of traditional Kutya at Christmas. Propolis was reported to be useful for cough, venom for cancer, wax applied on a cotton textile for earache, tincture of dead bees for cancer and joints pain.
We conclude that bees are especially important not only as providers of invaluable ecosystem services but also as ingredients of traditional medicine. Yet, further studies should deepen the role of bees in Hutsul societies of Bukovina and the current challenges of such endangered species in the Carpathian context.
This project has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovative programme (grant agreement No 714874).

24-25/10/2019, Petrozavodsk, Russia. International Scientific and Practical Conference "Indigenous Peoples of Karelia: History and Modernity"

Using plants by Karelians and Russians of Karelia: Past and Present. Valeria Kolosova
Abstract: The report concerns the relations of people in Karelia with the plant world. The data were collected during the field work in the framework of the project “Ethnobotany of Separated Generations in the Context of Centralization” in 2018 and 2019. The interaction between various actors – the local population, state institutions, private entrepreneurs – based on the use of wild plants in cooking, traditional medicine, veterinary medicine, cosmetics, crafts, and other areas of life, is considered. The list of plants used is determined, as well as the role of each of them in the region. The statistical approach allowed identifying the most significant (pine, cowberry) and peripheral (wild rosemary, oak) plants, the ones with narrow use (common tormentil, plantain, willow) and with a wide range of applications (birch, nettle), etc. There are “statistical disturbances” caused by enthusiasts searching for information about plants in the reference literature, actively using them in their practice and sharing knowledge in their circle of friends, or producing plant products for sale. Special attention is paid to changes having occurred in the assortment of plants and their use (methods of processing and storage of products, insecticidal treatment of homes and clothes, treatment of livestock, etc.) from the 1930ies to date. Recently, the use of such exotic plants for Karelia as eucalyptus, moringa, and others has been noted. The most resistant to changes turned out to be such spheres as the ritual use of plants in calendar rites, the banya procedure; most subject to changes are folk veterinary medicine, cosmetics, tea substitutes. Traditional medicine is a complex structure in which some plants have retained their function, while others have changed it over time; a number of plants is for many diseases; others are called extremely rarely. In conclusion, the opinions of informants about changes in the ecology of the region, their impact on the plant world and everyday life of the population of the republic are given.

16-19/10/2019, "Challenges and perspectives for the coming years" VII International Congress of Ethnobotany, Recife (Brazil)

Commonalities and differences in the use of wild food and medicinal plants among authoctonous Hutsuls and Romanian speakers living in the Carpathian area of northern Bukovina, Ukraine. Mattalia, G., Stryamets, N., Sõukand R.  
Abstract: The region of Bukovina, since 1945 split between Romania and Ukraine, is a very multicultural area in which lives of people with different linguistic, ethnic and religious backgrounds has been intertwined for centuries. As part of a research project focused on the effect of knowledge centralization in Eastern Europe, we carried out an extensive ethnobotanical fieldwork in the borderland area of Ukrainian Bukovina. The main objective of the research was to investigate commonalities and differences between two indigenous groups: Hutsuls, an ethnic and linguistic group who have been living in the Carpathian highlands for centuries, and Romanian speakers living in a hilly area at the edge of the Ukrainian Carpathians. These two groups are characterized by a different lifestyle, culture and environment surroundings, yet sharing social and political scenarios for the last 75 years.
The results of the 60 semi-structured interviews gathered during summer 2018, show that regardless the linguistic, ecological and cultural differences, most of the plant taxa are common to both the groups. The most popular plants mentioned in both communities were Rubus idaeus, Urtica dioica, Matricaria chamomilla, Armoracia rusticana, Achillea millefolium and Hypericum spp.. However, Hutsuls reported twice more medicinal uses than Romanians, while food uses were quantitatively comparable, excluding Vaccinium myrtillus, which is a crucial species for Hutsuls, but was not mentioned among Romanians who do not live in the immediate closeness to the forest. In addition, plant-based medicinal preparations involving alcohol were rarely reported by Romanian speakers while they were often mentioned by Hutsuls, especially as tincture. We argue that recently developed local economy based on remittances and the availability of medicines sent by the relatives from abroad occurring among Romanians may have contributed to the erosion of TEK related to medicinal preparations from wild plants. This project has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement No 714874).

29/09-5/10/2019, "Forest Research and Cooperation for Sustainable Development". XXV IUFRO World Congress, Curitiba (Brazil)

Shift in the use of forest and consequences on traditional ecological knowledge among Hutsuls in the Carpathians, Western Ukraine. Mattalia, G., Stryamets, N., Sõukand R. 
Abstract: In the Carpathian Mountains, lives of local dwellers and forests are deeply interweaved. This is especially evident for minority groups such as the Hutsuls, a population living in the Carpathian Mountains. For many centuries, Hutsuls had been working in forest-related activities. However, the economic crises occurred at the end of the XX century caused a sudden abandonment of these forestry activities. This led to a strong emigration and urbanization, but also to an overexploitation of local natural resources. In this study, we aimed at discussing how this economic and social phenomenon affected the knowledge related to use of provisioning ecosystem services among Ukrainian Hutsuls. Specifically, we studied the use of wild taxa gathered in the forest to address the consequences of such a social and economic shift on traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) and local ecological practices (LEP). In summer 2018, we gathered 45 in-depth, semi-structured interviews among Hutsuls regarding the current and past uses of mushroom and plant taxa collected in the forest. We found that TEK and LEP are undergoing a process of erosion due to several factors including traditional livestock breeding abandonment, loss of unintentional contact with natural resources and the commoditization and specialization to few taxa such as Vaccinium myrtillus and Boletus edulis, which are economically valuable. We discuss that this may lead to severe loss of diversity of the local ecological resources used, which would affect negatively the sustainability and resilience of the local community in case of severe food shortage.

2-4/09/2019, Lviv, Ukraine - Temperate and boreal primeval forests in the face of global change

Attended 130 participants
Oral presentation: Stryamets N., Mattalia G., Sõukand R., Stryamets, S. Beech forests for livelihoods: cases from Western Ukraine. Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, 2019: Temperate and boreal primeval forests in the face of global change Conference, 2-4 September 2019, Lviv (Ukraine). Birmensdorf, Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL, 139 pp.
Temperate and boreal primeval forests in the face of global change

4/06/2019, Cincinnati, OH, USA - The future of forests: perspectives from indigenous people, traditional practices and conservation

Guilia Mattalia attended, 150 participants, organized by the Society for Economic Botany

• https://www.econbot.org/index.php?module=content&type=user&func=view&pid=132

Abstract: "The emotional tie to the forest: contrasting perspectives from Carpathians mountains (SW Ukraine) and Apennines mountains (Central Italy). Giulia Mattalia, Nataliya Stryamets, Andrea Pieroni, Renata Soukand." In many mountain areas of Europe, lives of local dwellers and forests have been deeply interweaved for centuries. For long time, local inhabitants of Hutsulshchyna (SW Ukraine) and Casentino (Central Italy) had been working in forest-related activities. However, economic and social shifts occurred in both areas in the XX century caused a sudden abandonment of these forestry activities. This led to a strong depopulation of both the studied rural areas. In this study, we aimed at discussing the current perceptions and legacy toward the forest of both Ukrainian and Italian local communities. Specifically, we studied the current and past uses of wild plant and mushroom taxa gathered in the forest to analyse the perception of the ecological consequences of such economic and ecologic shifts. Between 2017 and 2018, we gathered respectively 30 and 45 interviews in Casentino and Hutsulshchyna.  The semi-structured interviews pointed out different aptitudes. The Ukrainian communities recognized the unicity of their local ecological practices regarding forest management and highlighted their emotional tie and deep identification between themselves and the forest that provided economic valuable products such as Vaccinium myrtillus and Boletus edulis. This occurs despite abrupt socio-ecological changes including abandonment of pastoral activity and deforestation. Conversely, inhabitants of the Casentino forests, showed relevant emotional distance to the forest, mainly due to the bureaucracy caused by the institution of a national park in 1993 and the full abandonment of traditional forest-related activities. These factors contributed to creating a deep gap between forest and local communities that feel overwhelmed by conservation measures and complain the overgrowing of the forest and the disappearance of undergrowth berries such as "Rubus ideaus" and "Fragaria vesca".  We discuss that these different aptitudes are crucial to develop local strategies for achieving overall ecological, economic and social sustainability to preserve the whole ecosystem. This project has received funding from ERC, grant agreement No 714874 and PRIN 2015P8524C.

2-6/06/2019 Kazanj, Russia. XIII Congress of Anthropologists and Ethnologists of Russia

Digital ethnobotany": computer programs in ethnobotanical researches. Valeria Kolosova, Olga Belichenko, Kira Kovalenko
Abstract: The report discusses software products used in ethnobotanical studies at different stages. An overview of the programs used in the project DiGe - Ethnobotany of divided generations in the context of centralization (Ca’ Foscari University, Venice) is given. At the stage of decoding the interviews, the F4 program is used, which allows managing the audio recording and the text file simultaneously without switching between windows, setting the time of the recorded segments automatically, etc. The transcribed materials are entered into the Excel program with information about the informant and the plant being described. Then, data is processed by the ANTHROPAC program, which is designed to analyze cultural domain data. It allows analysing structured qualitative and quantitative data, conducting paired comparisons, building ratings, etc. At the stage of writing scientific articles, the Mendeley program is used, which allows searching by authors and keywords within the texts of articles, as well as automating the compilation of a bibliography, making it in accordance with the requirements of various scientific journals. Similar functions can be performed by Zotero. http://iea-ras.ru/index.php?go=Ethno&in=view&id=112 

29/05 – 2/06/2019,  Renmin University of China, Beijing, China  - The Nature of Health, the Health of Nature: Perspectives from History and the Humanities

Cosponsored by the Rachel Carson Center, Munich, and the Center for Ecological History, Renmin University of China, Beijing. Number of participants – 61.

• https://www.carsoncenter.uni-muenchen.de/events_conf_seminars/event_history/2019-events-history/conferences2019/190530_nature-health/index.html  

Abstract: "Perceptions of health and medications on the border: crossing barriers, transferring contents. Julia Prakofjewa." Nowadays borders are not only physical or mental barriers but often also opportunities. It produces various forms of people interactions, relations and activities across them which would not exist without the border. In this context, the modern Belarusian-Lithuanian borderland is an interesting case study of the perceptions of health and medications after the collapse of the Soviet Union in the completely different political, social, educational, medical systems. Reflecting on 162 semi-structured interviews with local residents, collected in Hrodna region (Belarus) and Vilnius region (Lithuania) in June - August 2018, I discussed the local health practices and use of healthcare services among the Lithuanians, Poles, Belarusians and Russians living on the borderland. I examined perceptions of current health interventions, accessibility to health care, prioritisation of health problems, and their perceptions regarding the national health systems. The results revealed the gross importance of self-medication and especially significant role played by plants in the health care systems of the inhabitants in the borderland region, which is relatively distant from academic health. An important element reinforcing self-medication and especially the use of plants is the popular literature, which easily penetrates the borders, providing thus a potent external influence that may, or more often may not correspond to local environmental conditions.

6-7/05/2019, Paris, France - Indigenous and local knowledge dialogue workshop for the IPBES assessment on sustainable use of wild species workshop Paris

35 experts from all over the globe discussed the question concerning the use of wild species by local communities. Nataliya Stryamets took part in round tables discussion and workshop.

https://www.ipbes.net/event/ilk-dialogue-workshop-ipbes-assessment-sustainable-use-wild-species

28/04 – 4/05/2019, Gülnar, Mersin, Turkey - Land-sparing vs. land-sharing for functional green infrastructure that sustains biodiversity and ecosystem services? – European landscape approach initiatives provide regionally adapted solutions

16 Participants from 7 countries were describing their study sites and the activities within their project connected to natural resource uses. Nataliya Stryamets was presenting Ukrainian part of the Bukovina area and the ethnobotanical uses of wild plants within the region.
Abstract: "Ethnobotany of Ukrainian and Romanian Border. Nataliya Stryamets." Forests provide a diversity of tangible and intangible benefits for sustaining local rural livelihoods. The analysis of the intangible benefits provided by forest landscapes have been highlighted as significant research question recently. Within the framework of intimate human-nature interaction, the aim of our research was to analyze the role of non-wood forest products (NWFPs) as cultural and provisioning ecosystem services for rural residents in the Western Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania. We conducted seventy-two in-depth semi-structured interviews with local rural residents during summer 2018 in Bukovina region in Ukraine to understand the role of forest resources as cultural and provisioning ecosystem services, focusing on spiritual uses of different wild and semi-domesticated plant taxa. We conclude that the role of NTFPs as cultural and provisioning ecosystem services for local livelihoods is crucial. This research was supported by the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation programme (grant agreement No 714874).

http://www.turkishoaks.org/#gallery[photonic-google-album-2]/AJYn0iEyqLMbsLRmVqUmE-pu1i2EYQgKC06vQL63Vj6uRP7z-t58w5DP_39XwGBdvFpgO07eGLeK_WVfn1Wbj2DcRC8G2KhGxg/

1-5/04/2019, Freie Universität Berlin, Germany. UAS Spring Campus - The Future is Now: Driving Sustainable Development

Olga Belichenko presentation title: “The invention of organic: rosebay willowherb (Epilobium angustifolium) in Post-Soviet Russian culture”. 

https://www.fu-berlin.de/en/sites/spring-campus/041_Documentation/Spring-Campus-Conference-2019/index.html

13/03/2019, University of Gastronomic Sciences, Pollenzo, Italy - UNISG 2019 Research Day

Abstract: Research and Narrative of Local Gastronomic Knowledge. Renata Soukand. Until recently, a narrative has been perceived as storytelling that, before the development of writing, was the only way of communicating events from one generation to the next. Although mainly regarded as an exclusive research subject of cultural studies, it is now entering other spheres of research and education. Inspired by the idea of narrative economics proposed by Nobel Laureate Robert J. Shiller in 2017, and relying on the first research results of our ethnobotanical project funded by the European Research Council (ERC grant agreement No 714874), I discuss the various types of narrative currently influencing research on Local Gastronomic Knowledge (LGK). In the light of the success of the Slow Food movement and the enthusiasm of young environmental activists inspired by Greta Thunberg, there is a hope that academia as a research institution has the power to create and “implant” the “great narrative” that supports the importance of LGK as a means of sustainability. If properly harmonized with the personal narratives of individuals, it has the potential to eventually change the ways people think and act, which may give us, as well as many other species, a greater chance of survival

https://www.unisg.it/eventi/2019-research-day/

21-22/09/2018, Turin, Italy. Diffused University Project by the University of Gastronomic Sciences in Pollenzo – Terra Madre.

Participation in round tables and workshops. Partisipants from the group: Renata Soukand, Giulia Mattalia, Olga Belichenko, Natalia Kuznetsova, Julia Prakofjewa, Valeria Kolosova.

Salone del gusto [ITA]

20/05/2022 - IXth European Botanic Garden Congress

Peer-to-peer learning: citizen science and community engagement at botanical gardens

Baiba Pruse, Suzanne Sharrock, Justyna Wiland-Szymanska, Monika Suskevics, Tsipe Aavik

The team foresee the European Botanic Garden Congress as the perfect platform to discuss and share best practices of the following themes:

• where/how citizen science has been integrated across botanical gardens?
• where/how local community knowledge has been involved in the development of botanical gardens e.g. first initiators of the botanical gardens, the uses of plants.

Cost Action 18201 ConservePlants Working group on human dimensions in cooperation with DiGe project team aims to provide the ground for peer-to-peer learning where the examples are brought by the workshop participants. The success of the workshop will be based on the diversity of examples shared by the participants. Based on the questions of interest initial case studies will be presented by the organising team before opening the floor to open discussion i.e., example of Looking for Cowslips, histories of local women group initiating botanical gardens e.g. Iceland. The organizing team aims to combine the examples and outline them at ConservePlants web page as well as sees the potential to publish workshop output. 

For the workshop several tools will be employed including but not limited to safe place policy and Science Cafe principles. 

30/03/2022 - Participation at TNOC (online)

Giulia Mattalia, Baiba Pruse, Nataliya Stryamets - presenting at the session Good Living - unlearning our separation from nature as part of The Nature of Cities Festival.

TNOC programme

21/10/2021 - Nom-inates of disappearing species / breeds / products for the atlas "The ark of taste of Ukraine"

Workshop on Zoom
Languages: Ukrainian, English

21/10/2021 - Poster

513 K

14/10/2021 - Guest speakers at Cost Action CA18201 ConservePlants MC meeting, Bologna, Italy

Renata Sõukand and Julia Prakofjewa
"The role of a human in plant conservation: the example from Polish/ Belarus/Lithuanian borderland"
More: www.conserveplants.eu/en/news

12/05/2021 - Beyond data: peer-to-peer learning

The workshop team foresees the Conference of the Society of Ethnobiology as the perfect platform to bring discussion on how to go beyond the recommendations mentioned in the academic study to implementation particularly while discussing local ecological knowledge (e.g. LEK and water&food security). Several examples exist where researchers propose future research and/or propose the need for developing actions. Thus this workshop aims to serve as a peer-to-peer learning and working ground where participants bring their study and share success stories/strategies used on how their academic advice was brought into policy/action/art and/or list challenges experienced and/or requests advice from the peers on the steps to be taken. The workshop will use the approach of Science Cafe and CLIPS tools with emphasis on open discussion. Prior to the workshop the participants will be requested to propose academic studies they would like to be discussed during the workshop. The discussion of the workshop will be compiled in a report with a potential for publishing.
Link to Case Study Submission 

More information: see this webpage, the Society of ethnobiology site or ask Baiba ( baiba.pruse@unive.it). 

28-29/04/2021 - Biological and Cultural Diversity in the Context of European Vulnerable Ecosystems

This two-day international workshop aims to discuss different aspects of the human-nature interaction in the contextofEuropeanvulnerableecosystems.Particularly, it would address the crucial importance of biological and cultural diversity for the sustainability and resilience of our European wetlands and mountain areas in several countries of Western and Eastern Europe. Several scholars will present their current research and together we will discuss the importance of a holistic perspective in ecosystem management. Indeed, we will bring together knowledge from different disciplines including environmental sciences, biology, anthropology, and ecology. Scholars at any stage of their careers and graduate students are welcome to join this workshop to discuss together the importance of a holistic perspective in managing fragile ecosystems across Europe. We will exchange experiences and know-how, and virtually visit some hidden natural pearls of the Venice Lagoon and the Dolomiti Bellunesi National Park with their heads of research. Scientific organizing committee: Olga Belichenko, Marco Calvi, Virginia Cazzagon, Mirko Liuzzo, Giulia Mattalia, Arianna Spada The workshop event is co-founded by the Institut Français and the Ca’ Foscari University of Venice – Dept. of Environmental Sciences, Informatics and Statistics under the Bando Cassini agreement

More information: Giulia ( giulia.mattalia@unive.it)

28-29/04/2021 - Poster

2.86 M

17/03/2021 - Dr Kolosova and Dr Stryamets present their work

On behalf of Prof. Renata Sõukand and rest of the DiGe project team, we welcome each and everyone to join the seminar as we will "travel" to the lands across Karelia, Ukraine and Romania. 
As part of the DiGe project two members of the team are going to present their work on 17ths of March (2021) at 10:30 CET - 12:00 CET.

Dr Valeria Kolosova will introduce us to: "Ethnobotany of Karelians and Russians in Karelia: Fieldwork and Ethnographic Data".
Dr Kolosova will talk about her experience during the expeditions to Karelian Republic in Russia, work in archives and libraries. She will especially underline the difference between the official point of view on medicinal and edible wild plants of the region and the local people's opinions and practices.

And Dr Nataliya Stryamets will introduce us to: "Ethnobotany of Bukovina: cases from Carpathian mountains in Ukraine and Romania". 
Dr Stryamets will talk about the ethnobotanical study she conducted among two ethnic groups, both divided by a border, discuss the influence of social-political scenarios on use of wild plants and mushrooms for various reasons e.g. food, medicine, ethnoveterinary and cultural etc. The results demonstrate both qualitative and quantitative differences in plant use among groups divided by the border.

The seminar will take place in zoom platform and the entrance link will be sent to the registered participants on 16ths of March.

For any questions please, come back to: Baiba Pruse ( baiba.pruse@unive.it) or Cristina Flora ( 857854@stud.unive.it).

17/03/2021 - Poster

288 K

24-25/02/2021 - Plant Food-Medicines

On behalf of Prof. Renata Sõukand and Prof. Andrea Pieroni, the DiGe team and members of COST Action ConservePlants Working Group 4 (CA18201) welcome each and every one to join two day workshop on Special Issue “Plant Food-Medicines: Perceptions, Traditional Uses and Health Benefits of Food Botanicals, Mushrooms, and Herbal Teas” on 24th (10:30 - 12:30 CET) and 25th (10:30 - 17:00 CET) of February. More about the workshop in the attached file.

For any questions please, come back to:

• Cristina Flora ( 857854@stud.unive.it)
• Baiba Pruse ( baiba.pruse@unive.it)

24-25/02/2021 - Poster

1.78 M

22/02/2021 - Co-Creating Sustainability: Integration of Local Ecological Knowledge in Art Works

On behalf of Prof. Renata Sõukand, Prof. Andrea Pieroni and workshop organizing team we welcome each and everyone to join a session as part of The Nature of Cities Festival about “Co-Creating Sustainability: Integration of Local Ecological Knowledge in Art Works” on 22nd of February.

The workshop team believes that in order to build cities for tomorrow Local practice and Art serves a great deal in such discussions. Based on the number of participants, the workshop members will be requested to work in groups and provide insights of where and how LEK appears in urban environments through art works and/or as integrated part in art works. 
The success of the workshop will very much depend on the case studies brought by the participants. 

For more info, see the poster of 22/02/2021 or ask  baiba.pruse@unive.it.

	22/02/2021 - Poster	12.65 M
	22/02/2021 - Information	88 K

26/09/2022 - Ethnobotany & Outreach

Giulia Mattalia and Baiba Pruse; Shortly outline of their research activities during DiGe project in respect to ethnobotany and science communication; Online and live (ca 20 participants)

20/05/2022 - IXth European Botanic Garden Congress

Peer-to-peer learning: citizen science and community engagement at botanical gardens
Baiba Pruse, Suzanne Sharrock, Justyna Wiland-Szymanska, Monika Suskevics, Tsipe Aavik; Seminar foresee the European Botanic Garden Congress as the perfect platform to discuss and share best practices of the following themes:

• where/how citizen science has been integrated across botanical gardens?
• where/how local community knowledge has been involved in the development of botanical gardens e.g. first initiators of the botanical gardens, the uses of plants.

Cost Action 18201 ConservePlants Working group on human dimensions in cooperation with DiGe project team.

21/09/2021 - Nominates of disappearing species / breeds / products for the atlas "The ark of taste of Ukraine"

Live event in Kyiv and online (ca 50 participants)

17/03/2021 - Dr Kolosova and Dr Stryamets present their work 10:30 CET - 12:00 CET

Valeria Kolosova: "Ethnobotany of Karelians and Russians in Karelia: Fieldwork and Ethnographic Data". The results especially underline the difference between the official point of view on medicinal and edible wild plants of the region and the local people's opinions and practices.
Nataliya Stryamets: "Ethnobotany of Bukovina: cases from Carpathian mountains in Ukraine and Romania".  The results demonstrate both qualitative and quantitative differences in plant use among groups divided by the border.
Online event (ca 20 participants)

24-25/02/2021 - Plant Food-Medicines

Two day workshop “Plant Food-Medicines: Perceptions, Traditional Uses and Health Benefits of Food Botanicals, Mushrooms, and Herbal Teas” on 24th (10:30 - 12:30 CET) and 25th (10:30 - 17:00 CET) of February.
Fully online event (ca 30 participants)

22/02/2021 - Co-Creating Sustainability: Integration of Local Ecological Knowledge in Art Works

The workshop team believes that in order to build cities for tomorrow Local Practice and Art serves a great deal in such discussions. Based on the number of participants, the workshop members will be requested to work in groups and provide insights of where and how LEK appears in urban environments through art works and/or as integrated part in art works. 
The success of the workshop will very much depend on the case studies brought by the participants.
Online event (ca 20 participants)

15/06/2022 Ilaria Marcatelli – architect and exhibition organizer, Maker Mile
Ilaria introduced to the DiGe team her project Maker Mile, which was born with the goal of promoting and valorizing the different crafts that contribute in defining the identity of a place. Not only Maker Mile seeks to enhance the knowledge and techniques of the craft activities, but also to reactivate and put them in contact with the current realities related to design, architecture, branding, digitization and much more.

20/04/2022 Ragnhildur (Raga) Sigurdardottir researcher at Reykjavik Academy, Reykjavík, Iceland
Raga brought the team of DiGe into the topic of citizen science and Lyndgbye's sedge in Icelandic Wetlands and her current research results in conservation biology, policy, natural resource management and on the interaction of humans and nature and the sustainability of human land-uses on current and historical time scales. 

13/04/2022 Abdullah Faiz – Porefessor at University of Herat, Afghanistan
Abdullah reflected on the biological and cultural diversity in Afghanistan and his experience with Slow Food network.

16/12/2021 latvian artists: Linda Boļšakova, Alexey Koshkin, Guna Datava
Three artists working at the intersection of art, human and nature presented their recent works and discussed the possibilities of implementation of the ideas generated during the seminar in their future works.

06/10/2021 Frank Becker – Science Shop kubus, Technische Universität Berlin
Frank presented on the benefit of intermediaries in dialogues between science and society. He emphasized on the concerns of citizens in everyday life regarding climate change. Citizens are interested in improving their lives while scientists are interested in creating knowledge in order to make profits.

29/09/2021 Matteo Sartori – PhD student of history at Universidad de Concepción, Chile
Matteo talked about spread of knowledge or evolution of herbal landscape between Chile and Europe, highlighting the link between perceptions and knowledge with geographical approach about medicinal plants. His research focuses on clarifying knowledge trajectories, limits, and social relevance of each plant in various societies to become public knowledge. The joint interests discovered during the meeting eventually resulted in internship year spent with DiGe team in 2022-23.

22/09/2021 Anna Pellizzaro – creative designer
Anna introduced the team to her project “Floating Flowers”. She highlighted why Venice is not a green city for many reasons and projected how floating flowers introduced for the water buses, boats and ferries will help sustain the greens in Venice.

15/09/2021 Gunta Kalvane – University of Latvia
Gunta presented her project on Environmental Education involving school children in becoming future leaders. The project included growing crops in vegetable gardens and a greenhouse. Another project her research group was embarking on is collection of seeds with school children, involving kids in a circular economy.

01/09/2021 Sabrina Minuzzi – reserach fellow in Early Modern History at Ca' Foscari and at Brown University (Providence)
Sabrina introduced her Marie Skłodowska-Curie Global Fellowship project The Transforming Knowledge of Healing Plants, which studies the circulation of medical-scientific knowledge through the books. She participated in DiGe works contributing to the medical story of the Epilobium article.

18/08/2021 Chris Clark – Nethergills, UK
Chris introduced the team to the Economics Behind Organic Farming. He emphasized on resilient farming in food security. “He quoted “when farming is at maximum profitability, nature is at Maximum Value”.

26/05/2021 Agostino Letardi – entomologist, Sapienza University of Rome and Eleonora Dago – cultural anthropologist
Agostino works in a research institution on ecotoxicology, but has recently started a journey in practices and approaches less common in established science, such as organic agriculture and citizen science, to explore the social role of scientists. Eleonora is developing her postgraduate research studying the “re-enchantment” of the world through the lens of storytelling, museology, dissemination and education.

19/05/2021 Matteo Berzi – Coordinator for the Development of the Mediterranean Corridor in Spain
Matteo introduced his cross-border research in Geography and current work at private company which is coordinating the development of cross-border corridor dedicated to better services for local communities.

12/05/2021 Erica Villa – Director of Science Gallery and Jamie Jackson - artist, England
Erica and Jamie brought a real art-and-science collision. As a “biophilic digital and relational artist”, Jamie explores the gap between humans and nature in the contemporary world through digital technologies, while Erica, from the headquarters of Science Gallery Venice, organize public engagement activities between art and science, especially for young people.

14/04/2021 Vera Costantini Associate Professor in Turkish and Ottoman Studies at Ca’ Foscari
Vera tries to reconstruct the history of the Venice Republic through the lens of the Ottoman empire during the 16th and 17th century. Currently she is interested in plants used in both Turkey and Italy.

07/04/2021 Mariia Ermilova – Post-doctoral researcher at Chiba University, Japan
Mariia Ermilova spoke about her art-based approach to the ethnobotany and her ideas for designing urban food landscape by introducing edible trees in parks. We also discussed the Ivan-chaj subject, as Mariia recently published an article about it.

31/03/2021 Ripu Kunwar – Postdoctoral researcher at Ilia State University, Tbilisi, Georgia
Ripu introduced his ethnobotanical research on in Nepal Himalaya, referring also to the history of the region. He also talks about the interconnection among culture, plants and peoples and the part of his research focused on collections of voucher specimens, herbarium preparation, and deposition of voucher codes for publishing.

24/03/2021 Cosmin Ivascu – West University of Timișoara
Cosmin talked about traditional ecological knowledge and ethnobiology in the Romanian Carpathians in Maramures and his fieldworks in the region. The seminar participants highlighted the overlaps and differences in the results with our studies and discussed future collaboration perspectives.

10/03/2021 Jane de Mosto – We are here Venice
Jane introduced the group to “We are Venice”, a think tank and activist platform raising awareness on climate change as a threat to Venice and its lagoon, examined as one single socio-environmental system, and denouncing its abandonment from local and national institutions.

03/02/2021 Bram Alkema – high-level professional in disinformation intervention
Bram made a point stating that politicians and policy makers tend to go for censorship like fact checking to deny media truth which contributes to the failure of production of truth.

27/01/2021 Timo Maran – biosemiotician and poet, head of the Department of Semiotics, University of Tartu
Timo presented his last book, “Ecosemiotics”. His work explores how semiotic processes are relevant to understand ecological cultures, stating their central role in shaping ecological dynamics from the individual to the ecosystem level.

20/01/2021 Mikelis Grivins – sociologist at the Baltic Studies Center
Mikelis introduced his recent activities focused on increasing the resilience of farmers communities towards a more sustainable agriculture.

09/12/2020 Valentina Bonifacio – anthropology Professor at Ca’ Foscari University
Valentina introduced her research in social anthropology and visual media, which gave rise to the project Rewilding Venice, exploring the presence of natural areas on the island.

02/12/2020 Lorenzo Barbasetti di Prun - chef, designer and creator of Prometheus Open Food Lab
Lorenzo shared with us his aims to “collect, generate and (re)distribute knowledge” about food, sustainability and ethics of eating in relation to the environment.

18/11/2020 Alexandra Czeglédi – coordinates EU citizen science activities in Hungary
Alexandra briefed the team on a citizen science initiative in Hungary that asks local people to report about urban and district problems like potholes, damaged streets and develop neighborhoods through citizen activism and citizen science intervention platforms.

11/11/2020 Kaspars Goba – Latvian filmmaker
Kaspars shared his experience and background in storytelling and making environmental documentary film, he gave suggestions to the team on how to bring ideas in pitching a film, firstly what the film is about, the main audience, the main protagonist and lastly putting together the ideas and narrowing them down to frame the film. The joint interaction points found during the meeting resulted in a semester of Erasmus internship with DiGe team.

14/10/2020 Joaquin Gomez – ONA Short Film festival organizer
Joaquin shared with the team on how to get some grants for the film making project of the team, he suggested more external support like brands, universities and ministries who might be interested in the topic should be approached with a pitch explaining the research, analysis and the impact of the project.

07/10/2020 Celine Huart – creator of the Empathy Tank Baltic
Celine is passionate about citizen science and co-creation methods. With her DiGe discovered the Six Thinking Hats, a brainstorming method aimed at facilitating co-creation of ideas.

23/09/2020 Sasha Gora – cultural historian and research fellow at Ca’ Foscari
Sasha, who shared her experience with indigenous food tradition in Canada, especially regarding beaver hunt and consumption, and her current research about culinary reactions to climate change.

25/06/2022 - Festival GIUNGLA at Orto Botanico di Lucca, Italy

Ci sono piante sulla luna?
Sõukand, R., Pieroni, A.
More information at ortobotanicodilucca.it [ITA] and Instagram

19/05/2022 - Environments, Societies, and Histories in East Asia Lecture series

David Fedman: Seeds of Control: Japan’s Empire of Forestry in Colonial Korea
Renata Sõukand

21/04/2022 - ECC-ITALY - Venice Biennial - "PERSONAL STRUCTURES" 2022

The team of DiGe project (ERC No 714874) participates in the exhibition. 
Catalogue (page 264)

19/11/2021 - Being Human Festival (online)

"Plant - Human - Relationship. The experience of DiGe project"
Renata Soukand, Olga Belichenko, Julia Prakofjewa, Nataliya Stryamets, Baiba Pruse

19/11/2021 - Recording on YouTube
19/11/2021 - More about the event

27/10/2021 - Global Ethnobotany Research Webinar Series (online, India)

Ethnobotany at the borders
Renata Soukand, Valeria Kolosova, Olga Belichenko, Julia Prakofjewa, Nataliya Stryamets, Giulia Mattalia, Baiba Pruse

27/10/2021 - Recording on YouTube

27/10/2021 - Poster of the event

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• 15/12/2022 - Exploring Indigenous environmental science through short-term study
  Interview to: University of Guelph news; Interviewee: Giulia Mattalia; Media: online; Language: English
• 29/09/2022 - Preservation of Ukraine's Gastronomic Heritage: the challenges and opportunities for traditional and GI products
  Workshop at: University of Camerino, School of Law; Speakers: Renata Sõukand, Olena Motuzenko, Dauro Mattia Zocchi; Online and live event (ca 30 participants); Languages: Italian, English
• 25/09/2022 - Presentation of Ark of Taste of Ukraine and Ark of Taste of Estonia with degustation of local products
  Workshop at: Terra Madre, Salone del Gusto, Torino, Italia; Speakers: Renata Sõukand, Olena Motuzenko, Raivo Kalle, Dauro Mattia Zocchi; Live event (ca 30 participants); Languages: English, Italian, Ukrainian, Estonian
• 24/09/2022 - Healing in old times, including Soviet occupation
  Interview to: Uudishimu Tippkeskus [EST], Estonian TV, Tallinn, Estonia; Interviewee: Renata Sõukand; Media: online and broadcasted on national TV; Language: Estonian
• 14/09/2022 - Calling out the climate crisis through the prism of art
  Reflected on: In focus exhibition; Author: ECC; Photo by Julia Prakofjewa
• 25/08/2022 - Biokultuurilisest mitmekesisusest jagatud põlvkondade kontekstis
  Talk at monthly event: Ideedest ideoloogiateta, Wabakohvik, Paide, Estonia; Speakers: Renata Sõukand and Raivo Kalle; Live event (ca 10 participants); Language: Estonian
• 20/08/2022 - Rahvameditsiini muutustest viimase sajandi jooksul. Eesti Maitselaegas kui toidukultuuri varamu. Umbusi külapäev, Umbusi külaselts, Umbusi, Estonia
  Presenters: Renata Sõukand and Raivo Kalle; Live event (village day, ca 30 participants); Language: Estonia
• 10/08/2022 - Ravimtaimede kasutus Eestis, Lõuna-Eesti rahvameditsiin - etnobotaaniku vaade
  Educational seminar for general public Hundiallika Retriidi- ja koolituskeskus, Laiuse, Võrumaa, Estonia; Educators: Raivo Kalle and Renata Sõukand; Live event: (ca 40 persons); Language: Estonian
• 14/07/2022 - Looduslik Viagra ja imeravim ivantšai osutus Vene propagandarelvaks [EST]
  Interview to: Maaleht. Estonian weekly newspaper with national-wide distribution; Author: Rein Sikk; Interviewees: Raivo Kalle and Renata Sõukand; Media: online and printed; Language: Estonian
• 25/06/2022 - Ci sono piante sulla luna?
  Public discussion at: Festival GIUNGLA [ITA] at Orto Botanico di Lucca, Italy; Discuttants: Andrea Pieroni and Renata Sõukand; Live, ca 20 participants; Language: Italian
• 23/06/2022 - Pace fatta
  Podcast Radio Ca’ Foscari; Interveiwee: Giulia Mattalia; Media: Online, broadcasted on local radio; Language: Italian
• 25/05/2022 - Laboratories with elementary school children
  Kids University [ITA]; Live event (ca 60 children); Langage: Italian
• 22/05/2022 - Põdrakanep propaganda rakes [ITA]
  Interview to: Labor. A weekly science popularization program by Estonian National Radio; Author: Priit Ennet; Interviewees: Raivo Kalle and Renata Sõukand; Media: online and broadcasted repeatedly on national level; Language: Estonian
• 19/05/2022 - David Fedman: Seeds of Control: Japan’s Empire of Forestry in Colonial Korea
  Environments, Societies, and Histories in East Asia Lecture series; Discussant: Renata Sõukand; Online, ca 50 participants
• 21/04-27/11/2022 - Venice Biennial 2022 "Personal Strucutres" ECC-ITALY
  The team of DiGe exhibition; Catalogue (page 264); Photos: Julia Prakofjewa and Olga Belichenko
• 29/03/2022 - Divergent trajectories of local ecological knowledge among divided communities: insights from Hutsuls and Romanians of Bukovina (Romania and Ukraine)
  Interview to: LICCI website; Interviewee: Giulia Mattalia; Media: online; Language: English
• 4/03/2022 - L’impegno delle etnobotaniche di Ca’ Foscari per supportare il popolo ucraino [ITA]
  Interviw to: Altreconomia. Independent monthly newsletter dedicated to economy; Author: Chiara Spadaro; Interveiwees: Giulia Mattalia and Renata Sõukand; Media: online; Language: Italian
• 24/02/2022 - Putin e la “russificazione” grazie al Tè Ivan lo studio della prof che teme l’invasione
  (Symbolically, the title of the interview, published on the day of full-scale aggression started, was still referring to the “fear” of the invasion); Interview to: La Nuova Venezia, daily regional newspaper; Author: Vera Mantengoli; Interviewee: Renata Sõukand; Language: Italian
• 18/02/2022 - Kas oled neid toite üldse söönud? Need toidud kuuluvad Eesti toidupärandisse! [EST]
  Interview to: Toidujutud. A food-related podcast of Oma Maitse; Interviewees: Raivo Kalle; Media: online; Language: Estonian
• 06/02/2022 - Eesti ravimatimede ajaloost [EST]
  Interview to: Labor. A weekly science popularization program by Estonian National Radio; Author: Priit Ennet; Interviewees: Raivo Kalle and Renata Sõukand; Media: online and broadcasted repeatedly on national level; Language: Estonian

• 19/11/2021 - "Plant - Human - Relationship. The experience of DiGe project"
  At: Being Human Festival; Renata Soukand, Olga Belichenko, Julia Prakofjewa, Nataliya Stryamets, Baiba Pruse; Online event (ca 30 participants); Language: English
• 27/10/2021 - Ethnobotany at the borders
  At: Global Ethnobotany Research Webinar Series, India; Presenters: Renata Soukand, Valeria Kolosova, Olga Belichenko, Julia Prakofjewa, Nataliya Stryamets, Giulia Mattalia, Baiba Pruse; Online event (ca 40 participants + ca 200 views online); Language: English
• 10/09/2021 - Plants and poetry
  Public live workshop at: ONA Short Film Festival, Italy; Organizer: Baiba Pruse; Participants: Renata Soukand, Julia Prakofjewa; Live event (ca 20 participants); Language: English, Italian
• 17/08/2021 - Eesti Maitselaegas
  Presentation at: Suur Põllupäev 2021, Jõgeva, Estonia; Presenter: Raivo Kalle; Live event (ca 100 participants); Language: Estonian
• 07/08/2021 - How I got there
  Interview to: Society for Economic Botany Student Blog; Author: Kim Walker; Interviewee: Renata Sõukand; Media: online; Language: English
• 1/04/2021 - False History: The Reimagining of Ivan-Chaj Tea
  Presentation at Black Boxing session organized by Adtac; Presenters: Renata Sõukand and Julia Prakofjewa; Language: English 

• 27/11/2020 - "Back To The Roots: Ethnobotany of Divided Generations"
  Interview to: Venetonight Researchers' Night, Italy; Interviewees: Renata Soukand, Julia Prakofjewa, Giulia Mattalia; Media: online; Language: English
• 07/08/2020 - Taimed keelel ja meelel
  Educational meeting with tea degustation in Tõrva Kammersaal [EST], Tõrva, Estonia; Lecturers: Raivo Kalle and Renata Soukand; Live event (ca 20 participants); Language: Estonian
• 18/05/2020 - Metsaandide toiduks korjamise tavasid mõjutab nii traditsiooni hääbumine kui metsade mahavõtt [EST]
  Interview to: Labor. A weekly science popularization program by Estonian National Radio; Author: Priit Ennet; Interviewees: Raivo Kalle; Media: online and broadcasted repeatedly on national level; Language: Estonian

• 1/08/2018 - Renata Sõukand per #ricercaèdonna: studiamo l’uso delle piante per capire gli umani [ITA], cafoscariNEWS
• 18/05/2018 - Nature and Humanity: a revival of the fittest, European Research Council
• 4/04/2018 - "Safeguarding local ecological practices is saving our future", Università di Scienze Gastronomiche di Pollenzo