he WLBC Ethnobotany Program was founded on the premise that working with local people is the most effective way to conserve biodiversity-rich areas sustainably. The WLBC integrates indigenous people’s traditional plant use into plans designed to protect and replenish endangered ecosystems while respecting the cultural practices of the people who live nearby.

The WLBC Ethnobotany Program has four main components:

• Capacity Building

• Conservation

• Scientific Research

• Improvement in the Quality of Life

The WLBC works with local people to determine how they can best use their natural resources sustainably, for they are the stewards of their environment. The WLBC helps communities develop conservation plans that are both ecologically beneficial and culturally appropriate. The Center also promotes the preservation of traditional knowledge as an essential aspect of both conservation and sustainability.

Ethnobotanical research and floristic inventories add to our knowledge and understanding of the plants in the areas where we work. WLBC research is scientifically rigorous and actively shared with the global community through scientific publications. The WLBC currently has ethnobotany projects underway in

• Madagascar

• The Andes

• The Great Plains