New publication: What is local knowledge?
I'm pleased to share our newly published paper, What is local knowledge? A review of academic perspectives in relation to biodiversity and ecosystems, in Biological Conservation.
The paper examines how local knowledge is understood across different academic disciplines and research traditions, and why these conceptual differences matter for biodiversity research and governance. Rather than proposing a single definition, we develop a flexible analytical framework comprising seven questions to help researchers identify, characterise and critically reflect on different forms of local knowledge. The framework considers, among other things, who holds knowledge, how it develops and is transmitted, and how researchers' motivations and methodological choices shape what is recognised and represented.
An important contribution is the broader understanding of local knowledge, extending beyond Indigenous and traditional knowledge to include locally situated knowledge in non-Indigenous and highly industrialised contexts.
The paper is part of my Formas-funded project, The role of local knowledge in assessments of biodiversity loss and climate change impacts (2023–2027). The project investigates how scientific and local knowledge can be brought into environmental assessments, with empirical case studies focusing on hydropower-regulated rivers in Sweden. The paper provides an important conceptual foundation for this work.
I also recently discussed the research in an interview with SLU's Movium. The interview (in Swedish) explores why local knowledge deserves greater recognition in environmental decision-making and introduces the framework developed in the paper.
