Nature-Connectedness and Well-Being Experienced During Best and Worst Times of Life: A Case for Safeguarding Biocultural Diversity
- Authors: Møller, Valerie , Cocks, Michelle L , Vetter, Susanne
- Date: 2023
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/426516 , vital:72359 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-023-03063-3"
- Description: South Africa boasts some of the richest diversity of fauna and flora in the world; it also claims to be a world in one country given its cultural diversity. In a time of climate change, rapid population growth and urbanisation, the country’s natural resources as well as its cultural diversity are under threat. We report a multi-dimensional survey conducted among Xhosa-speaking people in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, that collected detailed information on indigenous knowledge of nature and its impact on cultural practices and well-being. Survey respondents included both rural and urban dwellers, a majority of whom professed to be Christians who also held traditional religious beliefs and acknowledged the ancestors. Survey respondents described their Best and Worst periods of life in line with Bernheim’s Anamnestic Comparative Self-Assessment, and indicated whether going into nature had contributed to their Best life experience and helped them to cope during their Worst one. Being in nature typically contributed to well-being across many of the Best social domains of life, such as celebrations with family, personal achievements and milestones in life, including traditional rites of passage to adulthood. Deaths in the family represented by far the most common Worst experience in life when going into nature often provided comfort and solace. Findings suggest that experience of the multiple benefits of being in nature may be universal across cultures and that many traditional Xhosa religious beliefs and cultural practices go hand in hand with access and exposure to nature that enhances well-being.
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- Date Issued: 2023
Attitudes and preferences towards elements of formal and informal public green spaces in two South African towns
- Authors: Manyani, Amanda , Shackleton, Charlie M , Cocks, Michelle L
- Date: 2021
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/402203 , vital:69830 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2021.104147"
- Description: Different types of public urban green spaces (PUGS) contain various natural (such as trees, pools, flowerbeds) and artificial elements (such as benches, play equipment, fountains) which contribute to the enjoyment and experience of users. However, which elements users most require, appreciate or notice has rarely been examined as the basis of their choice for specific PUGS, especially in poorer neighbourhoods and countries, where formal PUGS may be limited. The study was carried out in two towns in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa, both characterized by high poverty and unemployment levels, low literacy rates and many people living without basic infrastructure and services. To understand the meanings people, have for specific PUGS elements, formal and informal PUGS and peri-urban municipal commonages were assessed with respect to the natural and artificial elements present. A survey of 360 households was conducted across two towns by targeting PUGS users and households within 100 m from the designated PUGS. Approximately 63% of the respondents visited PUGS, with informal PUGS being the most frequented. However, they were strong negative feelings towards some natural elements because of their unkempt nature. Issues of safety, cultural restrictions and lack of recreational facilities were mentioned as some of the specific deterrents against visiting the closest PUGS among different user and age groups. Most respondents emphasized the need for PUGS that are well laid out with maintained lawns, recreational facilities and open vegetation. Thus, the current design and available features within the studied PUGS do not meet local preferences and needs and thus do not contribute to enjoyment as much as they could. Attention needs to be given to understand and incorporate the elements that invoke positive attitudes among urban residents.
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- Date Issued: 2021
Decolonisation of nature in towns and cities of South Africa:
- Authors: Cocks, Michelle L , Shackleton, Charlie M , Walsh, Lindsey S , Haynes, Duncan , Manyani, Amanda , Radebe, Dennis
- Date: 2020
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/175720 , vital:42618 , ISBN 9781000215182
- Description: Ways of conceptualising the world around us and being in this world are defined by an ontological understanding. Within a Eurocentric ideological understanding, nature is positioned to be opposite to culture, ie, nature is considered as “other” of which humans are not a part. Modernity is perceived as the antithesis of nature as processes of production, metabolism and expansion of modern cities represent attempts to tame and control nature. In turn, cities have become viewed as agents of development and change, promoting ideals of progress, thinking and innovation (Jayne 2005). Eurocentric ideals are framed as the forerunners of these processes and have come to influence international policies, global governance, alliances and networks which have in turn informed the design and governance of cities and influenced all aspects of urban liveability (Bouteligier 2011), including how urban natures are defined and constructed and the wellbeing benefits derived from them.
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- Date Issued: 2020
Situating biocultural relations in city and townscapes:
- Authors: Cocks, Michelle L , Shackleton, Charlie M
- Date: 2020
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/175733 , vital:42619 , ISBN 9781000215182
- Description: The different geographic regions represented in the book have brought to the fore the diversity of ways in which nature is conceptualised, which have in turn influenced the types of nature found in urban areas. Through processes of urbanisation, colonialism, immigration and migration a diversity of cultural groups now live in urban areas and consequently, biocultural relationships have been suppressed, reshaped or enriched. Accordingly, a diversity of uses, experiences, cosmologies, interactions and engagement with the nature are now found which, for many, offer opportunities to strengthen a sense of wellbeing and belonging. Within these diversities of ontological framings of nature and ways of being, conflicting tensions emerge which are further impacted upon by micro and macro social, economic and political processes.
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- Date Issued: 2020
Urban nature and biocultural realities:
- Authors: Shackleton, Charlie M , Cocks, Michelle L
- Date: 2020
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/175709 , vital:42617 , ISBN 9781000215182
- Description: There is no longer any doubt that an important component of and contributor to human wellbeing is the natural environment in which people live, work and relax (Summers et al. 2012). Whilst initial ideas of human wellbeing, early in the second half of the 20th century, focussed on objective measures that could be quantified and contribute to humans’ basic needs, they have evolved a great deal since, despite the lack of consensus on a precise definition of human wellbeing (Summers et al. 2012). Over the last five decades the conceptions of human wellbeing have become more complex and inclusive of the more subjective and less tangible components of human existence, including the natural environment (King et al. 2014).
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- Date Issued: 2020
Urban Nature: Enriching Belonging, Wellbeing and Bioculture
- Authors: Cocks, Michelle L , Shackleton, Charlie M
- Date: 2020
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/175698 , vital:42616 , ISBN 9781000215182
- Description: This book showcases the diversity of ways in which urban residents from varying cultural contexts view, interact, engage with and give meaning to urban nature, aiming to counterbalance the dominance of Western depictions and values of urban nature and design. Urban nature has up to now largely been defined, planned and managed in a way that is heavily dominated by Western understandings, values and appreciations, which has spread through colonialism and globalisation. As cities increasingly represent a diversity of cultures, and urban nature is being increasingly recognised as contributing to residents' wellbeing, belonging and overall quality of life, it is important to consider the numerous ways in which urban nature is understood and appreciated. This collection of case studies includes examples from Africa, Asia, Europe, North and South America, and reflects on the multi-dimensional aspects of engagements with urban nature through a biocultural diversity lens.
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- Date Issued: 2020
From universal to local: perspectives on cultural landscape heritage in South Africa
- Authors: Cocks, Michelle L , Vetter, Susan M , Wiersum, K Freerk
- Date: 2018
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141150 , vital:37948 , https://doi.org/10.1080/13527258.2017.1362573
- Description: The concept of cultural landscapes relates to the multifaceted links between people, place and identity. From a professional perspective, the concept refers to a category of designated conservation areas with specific biocultural heritage values. From a local perspective, it may refer to a landscape that is associated with the provision of a culturally-specific sense of identity and belonging. We explore these two perspectives through a comparative analysis of three cultural landscapes in South Africa, the ‘expert’ designated Mapungubwe Cultural Landscape and the Richtersveld Cultural and Botanical Landscape, and the local associative landscape of emaXhoseni, which is not formally recognised. We propose that a biocultural diversity perspective of heritage not only recognises the inextricable relationship between nature and culture, but it also gives prominence to the beliefs, values and practices of local people, and to strengthening their agency to safeguard their heritage in ways and forms that are relevant to them.
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- Date Issued: 2018
Ways of belonging: meanings of “Nature” among Xhosa-speaking township residents in South Africa
- Authors: Cocks, Michelle L , Alexander, Jamie K , Mogano, Lydia , Vetter, Susan M
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/66021 , vital:28877 , https://doi.org/10.2993/0278-0771-36.4.820
- Description: publisher version , The concept of biocultural diversity, originally used to describe indigenous people and their ways of using and managing natural resources, has more recently been applied within the urban context to understand the variability of interactions between humans and nature. Significant progress has been made internationally in acknowledging the need to preserve and maintain green spaces in urban environments. Current efforts to address the need for greening urban areas in South Africa primarily focus on the establishment and maintenance of botanical gardens and parks as well as various green belts within the urban landscape. South Africa's urban areas are overwhelmingly shaped by the historical segregation of space and stark disparities in wealth. The distribution, quality, and extent of urban green spaces reflect this. Many township dwellers do not have access to these amenities and their interactions with nature are thus usually constrained to access to municipal commonages. This article explores how areas of natural vegetation in municipal commonages on the outskirts of urban centers in South Africa continue to offer places of cultural, spiritual, and restorative importance to Xhosa-speaking township dwellers. A case study from Grahamstown, an urban center in the Eastern Cape with a population of around 80,000, illustrates how ability to access and move through such places contributes to people's well-being, identity formation, and shared heritage. A case is made for adopting a biocultural diversity approach to spatial planning and urban development within the South African context.
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- Date Issued: 2016
The landscape of childhood: play and place as tools to understanding children’s enviromental use and perceptions
- Authors: Alexander, Jamie K , Cocks, Michelle L , Shackleton, Charlie M
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141165 , vital:37949 , DOI: 10.1007/s10745-015-9755-z
- Description: Research has shown that children are the greatest users of natural areas and that childhood experiences strongly shape adults’ environmental values. This project was designed to ascertain children’s environmental uses and perceptions in two rural villages in the Eastern Cape, South Africa, utilising children’s use of the environment for play and their sense of place as key focus areas. Several factors influenced children’s environmental use, including safety fears, increased consumption of western media and environmental restrictions imposed by the state, revealing how South Africa’s high level of violence against women and children contributes to gendered environmental use and knowledge, and bringing about concern for children’s cultural identity in an increasingly westernised world.
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- Date Issued: 2015
Reappraising the concept of biocultural diversity: a perspective from South Africa
- Authors: Cocks, Michelle L , Wiersum, K Freerk
- Date: 2014
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141176 , vital:37950 , DOI: 10.1007/s10745-014-9681-5
- Description: Biocultural diversity has been conceptualised as the sum of the world’s differences regarding biological diversity at all levels and cultural diversity in all its manifestations, and their interactions. The concept is often framed in the context of conservation as a retention versus loss model by emphasizing the religious and spiritual values of the natural environment and the positive interactions between traditional indigenous people and conservation of natural ecosystems and indigenous species. On the basis of our research amongst the ‘non-traditional’ amaXhosa in South Africa, we argue that this interpretation is too narrow and that the concept needs to be reappraised in order to capture the dynamic, complex and relational nature of bio-cultural diversity relations. We conclude that the concept involves a complex of human values and practices related to the three main dimensions of biodiversity at landscapes, species and genetic levels.
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- Date Issued: 2014
Inkcubeko Nendalo: a bio-cultural diversity schools education project in South Africa and its implications for inclusive Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS) Sustainability.
- Authors: Cocks, Michelle L , Alexander, Jamie K , Dold, Anthony P
- Date: 2013
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141187 , vital:37951 , DOI: 10.1177/0973408212475232
- Description: South Africa is currently the world’s third most biodiverse country, with one of the highest concentrations of threatened biodiversity in the world. Emerging research reveals the increasing pressure on this biodiversity with many wild resources continuing to be utilised for livelihood purposes even within urban environments. The Rio conventions, particularly the CBD, call for an integrated approach to conservation that incorporates local environmental knowledge and practices. In a bid to market itself as globally competitive, South Africa’s Curriculum 2005 (C 2005) is primarily focused on Western-based scientific knowledge, which sidelines the contribution of indigenous knowledge systems (IKS) and ignores the holistic nature of indigenous worldviews. The Inkcubeko Nendalo programme is designed to revitalise cultural identity, showing children the value of local indigenous knowledge and cultural environmental values.
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- Date Issued: 2013
'God is my forest': Xhosa cultural values provide untapped opportunities for conservation
- Authors: Cocks, Michelle L , Dold, Anthony P , Vetter, Susan M
- Date: 2012
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141198 , vital:37952 , DOI: 10.4102/sajs.v108i5/6.880
- Description: In South Africa conservation is still largely framed in terms of Western scientific values, with a focus on material benefits to local communities, whilst little is known about the intangible values local people attach to nature and biodiversity. We explored the cultural, spiritual and emotional relationships with nature expressed by Xhosa people, within the MaputalandPondoland-Albany Hotspot, as well as the activities that mediate this relationship. A descriptive research approach was applied to document the emotions, meanings and values associated with landscape elements. This approach included group and individual interviews and ‘walk-in-the-woods’ interviews and participatory mapping exercises. Respondents portrayed a strong, although not always easily articulated, appreciation for nature, especially ihlathi lesiXhosa (‘Xhosa forest’, vegetation types within the Thicket Biome).
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2012
A new broom sweeps clean: the economic and cultural value of grass brooms in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa
- Authors: Cocks, Michelle L , Dold, Anthony P
- Date: 2012
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141382 , vital:37967 , DOI: 10.1080/14728028.2004.9752477
- Description: In southern Africa over the last twenty years, much attention has been given to the importance of NTFPs for rural livelihoods through their household consumption and sale. They have been classified as having either subsistence consumption or commercial values. These values are mostly related to their utilitarian functions, but recent studies show that NTFPs also hold strong cultural functions. Such cultural functions can play a role in both rural and urban livelihoods; consequently the values of NTFPs may be related to both utilitarian and cultural functions. This paper demonstrates the cultural functions of grass brooms in urban areas in South Africa and the impact of their trade on income generation in rural areas, and discusses the concept of culture as a significant factor in the understanding of the role of NTFPs in livelihoods, and their values.
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- Date Issued: 2012
Perceptions and values of local landscapes: implications for the conservation of biocultural diversity and intangible heritage
- Authors: Cocks, Michelle L , Dold, Anthony P
- Date: 2012
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141442 , vital:37972 , ISBN 9789086867493 , DOI: 10.3920/978-90-8686-749-3_10
- Description: South Africa is widely recognised as a highly diverse country with regard to its people, culture, landscapes, biological resources and ecology. The importance of policies on protecting cultural diversity and how they relate to the environment is only just emerging at an international level, but in South African we find there is a complete lack of institutional support for rural communities’ attachment to local landscapes. The main objective of this case study is to improve our understanding of the meanings and values that Xhosa people (amaXhosa) of the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa attach to their natural landscapes. It is clear that the amaXhosa are still intrinsically connected to their natural environment, in particular the thicket biome that is called ihlathi yesiXhosa (Xhosa forest). Access to places and spaces within the natural environment provides a sense of wellbeing, a link to ancestral spirits, a location for religious rituals, plus a wealth of culturallyinspired uses of specific species and sacred places in the landscape. We suggest that local cultural values could be incorporated into the formal conservation process.
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- Date Issued: 2012
Voices from the forest: celebrating nature and culture in Xhosaland
- Authors: Dold, Anthony P , Cocks, Michelle L
- Date: 2012
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141427 , vital:37971 , ISBN 9781431402991 , https://www.amazon.com/Voices-Forest-Celebrating-Culture-Xhosaland/dp/1431402990
- Description: The link between people and nature is explored in this fascinating book, revealing how plants, animals, and landscapes are profoundly reflected in South Africa’s Xhosa language, stories, poetry, religious rituals, healing practices, and everyday customs. While the South African landscape has for centuries been molded and manipulated by humans, the country and its plants and animals have in turn influenced South Africans’ cultural and spiritual development. Based on 10 years of research, it consists of unique photographs that portray how both contemporary rural and urban South Africans still find great value in nature. A fresh, positive approach to biodiversity conservation, this volume serves as a guide to sustainable practices in the future.
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- Date Issued: 2012
Cultural importance of non-timber forest products: opportunities they pose for bio-cultural diversity in dynamic societies
- Authors: Cocks, Michelle L , López, Citlalli , Dold, Anthony P
- Date: 2011
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141453 , vital:37973 , ISBN 9783642179822 , DOI: 10.1007/978-3-642-17983-9_5
- Description: There is an increasing awareness that monetary value does not fully represent the complete value and significance of NTFPs. Consequently, there is growing interest in the cultural dimensions of biodiversity and the role that it plays in human well-being. This chapter presents two case studies, one on traditional brooms in South Africa, and the other on amate paper in Mexico, to demonstrate the importance of cultural values on driving demand for NTFPs. Because cultural values are so deeply embedded, the demand for culturally valued NTFPs continue across the rural-urban divide, and are maintained even by modernising urban communities. This poses particular challenges, not only for conservation of the NTFPs, but also to sustain cultural diversity in a rapidly changing world.
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- Date Issued: 2011
'Rich man poor man': inter-household and community factors influencing the use of wild plant resources amongst rural households in South Africa
- Authors: Cocks, Michelle L , Bangay, Lindsey , Shackleton, Charlie M , Wiersum, K Freerk
- Date: 2010
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141211 , vital:37953 , DOI: 10.3843/SusDev.15.3:3
- Description: Biodiversity is recognised as an integral part of people's daily livelihoods. This study therefore aims to understand the use of NTFPs at an intricate level by determining what role these resources fulfil in six rural villages and 1011 households' livelihoods. It examines how the use of NTFPs are influenced by intra-household variables, such as wealth and gender, and inter-community variables, such as accessibility to the natural resource. The results reveal that approximately 4453 kg of wild material is used annually per household, of which 1598 kg is used for cultural purposes. The influence of vegetation type and differences between villages are statistically more significant than inter-household variables. At an inter-household level, an increase in the financial status of households did not result in a decrease in the use of natural resources, nor in the quantity of material used.
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- Date Issued: 2010
Born-frees and worn trees: home grown medicinal plants and poverty
- Authors: Husselman, Madeleen , Cocks, Michelle L
- Date: 2010
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141464 , vital:37974 , ISBN 9781136886072 , DOI: 10.4324/9780203839645-19
- Description: Despite the widespread use of modern medicines, the parallel role of traditional medicine remains popular in both rural and urban areas and among both wealthy and poor African communities in South Africa. A substantial body of literature exists which documents some of the salient characteristics of the trade and use of traditional medicines (Ngubane 1977; Cocks and Wiersum 2002; Cocks and Møller 2002; Cocks and Dold 2006). Mander (1998) estimated that 27 million people used indigenous medicine in South Africa in a decade. The use and trade of plants for medicine is no longer confined to traditional healers but has entered both the informal and formal sectors of the South African economy (Dauskardt 1990, 1991; Cocks and Dold 2000), resulting in an increase in the number of herbal gatherers and traders (Dold and Cocks 2002). The largely informal trade in traditional medicines forms part of multi-million rand ‘hidden economy’ in southern Africa, and it is now bigger than at any time in the past. It is certainly one of the most complex resource management issues facing conservation agencies, healthcare professionals and resource users in South Africa today (Cunningham 1997). Research points towards a trend of increasing harvesting pressures on traditional supply areas linked to a growing shortage in supply of popular medicinal plant species (Williams et al. 1997, 2000; Mander 1998; Dold and Cocks 2002).
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- Date Issued: 2010
Cultivation of medicinal plants as a tool for biodiversity conservation and poverty alleviation in the Amatola region, South Africa:
- Authors: Wiersum, K Freerk , Dold, Anthony P , Husselman, Madeleen , Cocks, Michelle L
- Date: 2010
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141489 , vital:37979 , ISBN 9781402054488 , https://library.wur.nl/ojs/index.php/frontis/issue/view/232
- Description: This paper describes the assumptions and results of a study to assess whether cultivation of medicinal plants can serve as a tool for combined biodiversity conservation and poverty alleviation. The study was carried out in the Amatola region of Eastern Cape, South Africa, where sustained beliefs in medicinal plant use, also under non-traditional conditions, has resulted in an increase in commercial demands. It was based on the assumption of poverty alleviation not only referring to an increase in income and labour, but also an increase in social capital and human dignity. The study assessed the local perceptions of the use and cultivation of medicinal plants and the need for conservation of these plants, as well as the features of already ongoing cultivation practices and options for increased cultivation. It consisted of participatory assessments in three villages involving around 250 persons and participatory trials with 14 rural women selling medicinal plants on urban markets. The study indicated that the growing demand for medicinal plants is related to the great cultural significance attached to medicinal plants.
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- Date Issued: 2010
What is biocultural diversity?: a theoretical review
- Authors: Cocks, Michelle L
- Date: 2010
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141475 , vital:37975 , ISBN 9781441957009 , DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4419-5701-6_5
- Description: Over the past decade, scholars from various fields have increasingly emphasized the detrimental effects of global socioeconomic processes on biodiversity. The industrial revolution, the demographic explosion of Homo sapiens, and the rise of the global exchange economy are all implicated as major factors that influence the loss of species diversity. From the late 1980s onward, biosystematics and conservation biology have successfully brought this concern to the attention of the public. Biodiversity is increasingly recognized as an essential resource on which families, communities, and nations depend. Biologists, ecologists, and conservationists have further recognized that solutions to biological problems lie in the mechanisms of social, cultural, and economic systems, which has led to attempts to place a monetary value on species and ecosystems to calculate the cost of using and conserving biodiversity.
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- Date Issued: 2010