WCS 3-Sentence Science

Thinking Locally

May 17, 2019

Photo credit: Stacy Jupiter/WCS

Each year, Wildlife Conservation Society scientists publish more than 300 peer-reviewed studies and papers. “WCS 3-Sentence Science” is a regular tip-sheet — in bite sized helpings — of some of this published work.

Here we present the work of the Melanesia’s Stacy Jupiter and Joe McCarter on developing culturally grounded indicators of well-being.

1. Policies and interventions designed based on indicators of human well-being can potentially do unintentional harm if there is a mismatch between local and global worldviews.
2. Participatory research by a Science for Nature and People Partnership working group on Assessing Biocultural Indicators identified eight broad dimensions that characterize well-being from a Pacific Islands’ perspective.
3. The researchers provide guidance on how to develop culturally grounded indicators of well-being, focusing on two dimensions that are often overlooked in global sustainable development frameworks: connectedness to people and place; and indigenous and local knowledge, practice and beliefs.

Study and Journal: “Developing biocultural indicators for resource management” from Conservation Science and Practice
WCS Co-Author(s): Stacy Jupiter, WCS Melanesia Program; Joe McCarter , WCS Melanesia Program

For more information, contact: Stephen Sautner, 718–220–3682, ssautner@wcs.org.