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Stream/Area:
-
Subject:
-
Paper ID:
10.55041/IJSREM.ISTCESD019
Volume:
10 |
9 |
Sep 2026
Pages:
1-4
Publication Frequency:
Monthly (12 issues per year)
License:International Journal of Scientific Research in Engineering and Management follows the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0) License, allowing free use and distribution with proper attribution.
Department of Botany
V.D.M.D. College, Degloor (MS)
Ethnobotany is an interdisciplinary field that explores the ways in which people interact with and utilize plants. Across cultures, plants have long served as sources of food, medicine, materials, agricultural resources, and components of religious and cultural practices. Knowledge developed and maintained by Indigenous and local communities has contributed to the understanding and use of medicinal plants, conservation of biological resources, and sustainable management of natural ecosystems. At the same time, this knowledge is increasingly threatened by urbanization, habitat loss, climate change, and rapid social and cultural transformation. This paper provides an overview of the development, significance, applications, research approaches, major challenges, and future scope of ethnobotany, with particular attention to India. It highlights the need for responsible documentation, protection of traditional knowledge, biodiversity conservation, and equitable community participation in sustainable development.
KEYWORDS
Ethnobotany provides an important link between traditional knowledge and contemporary scientific inquiry. The study of human–plant relationships can contribute to medicinal research, biodiversity conservation, sustainable resource use, food security, and the preservation of cultural heritage. India, with its exceptional biological and cultural diversity, offers considerable scope for ethnobotanical research and community-based conservation. At the same time, traditional knowledge and plant resources are increasingly affected by habitat loss, climate change, social transformation, and the weakening of intergenerational transmission. Future ethnobotanical work should therefore move beyond simple documentation toward participatory and ethically responsible research. Recognition of community rights, prior informed consent, fair benefit-sharing, sustainable resource management, and collaboration between traditional knowledge holders and scientific institutions can help ensure that ethnobotanical knowledge remains a living resource. Protecting plant diversity and the knowledge associated with it is essential for building a more sustainable and culturally respectful future.
1. Convention on Biological Diversity. (1992). Convention on Biological Diversity. United Nations. 2. Cotton, C. M. (1996). Ethnobotany: Principles and applications. John Wiley & Sons. 3. Harshberger, J. W. (1896). The purposes of ethnobotany. Botanical Gazette, 21(3), 146–154. 4. Jain, S. K. (1991). Dictionary of Indian folk medicine and ethnobotany. Deep Publications. 5. Martin, G. J. (2010). Ethnobotany: A methods manual. Earthscan. 6. Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India. (n.d.). Medicinal plants and traditional medicine resources. Government of India. 7. World Health Organization. (2013). WHO traditional medicine strategy: 2014–2023. World Health Organization.
Publication Date
9/28/2026
Peer Review Type
Double-Blind Peer Review
Review Rounds: 2
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The authors declare no conflict of interest related to this research work.
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