Abstract
Considering that both Western Science and Local Knowledge Systems share a common ground—observations of the natural world—the dialogue between them should not only be possible, but fruitful. Local communities whose livelihoods depend on traditional uses of the local biodiversity not only develop knowledge about nature, making several uses of such knowledge, but, with that process, several inquiries about nature can be raised. Here we present our experience with the engagement of Western Science with golden grass artisan’s knowledge about the buriti palm (M. flexuosa). We applied 25 semi-directive interviews, combined with field diary and participative observation, in two quilombola communities from Jalapão region (Central-Brazil). One of the inquiries that emerged from the artisan’s perspectives was about the differences between male and female buriti palms’ fiber. We then engaged both local and scientific perspectives regarding this issue using plant anatomy as a dialogue instrument. Here we describe this experience and resort to Paulo Freire’s ideas on dialogue to argue that, to integrate Western Science and Local Knowledge Systems in a collaborative and contextualized perspective, the research should be faced as a mutual learning practice.
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(Photos: M. Eichemberg)
(Photos: M. Eichemberg)
(Photos: V. Scatena (3a) and M. Eichemberg (3b–d))
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Acknowledgments
The authors thank FAPESP (Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo; Grant 2010/14534-9) and CNPq (Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico; Grants 307100/2009-0 and 301692/2001-6); Idea Wild and Neotropical Grasslands Conservancy for financial support; NATURATINS (Instituto Natureza do Tocantins) and PEQUI (Pesquisa e Conservação do Cerrado) for the logistic support. We would also like to thank the CSSE revisor careful revision, that certainly enhanced this article quality. We are deeply grateful to people from Jalapão, especially those from Mumbuca and Prata.
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Lead editor: C. Castano Rodriguez.
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Viana, R.V.R., Scatena, V.L., Eichemberg, M.T. et al. Engaging plant anatomy and local knowledge on the buriti palm (Mauritia flexuosa L.f.: Arecaceae): the microscopic world meets the golden grass artisan’s perspective. Cult Stud of Sci Educ 13, 253–265 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11422-016-9785-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11422-016-9785-x