This 3 page popular article brings out the importance of integrating sacred sites in conservation and development approaches. It features the Sacred Natural Sites Guidelines for Protected Area and a case study of an indigenous Guatemalan law proposal on Sacred Sites. The Article can be downloaded by clicking here.
The Authors
The article has been written by Bas Verschuuren and Wim Hiemstra. Wim Hiemstra is the international coordinator of the Compas network for Endogenous development and Biocultural Diversity.(Comapas; www.compasnet.org). Bas Verschuuren is the Deputy Leader of the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas Task Force on Cultural and Spiritual Values of Protected Areas (CSVPA; www.csvpa.org) and Coordinator of the Cultural Values and Nature Initiative (CVNI; www.culturalvalues.org) with EarthCollective (Eco; www.earthcollective.net).
Endogenous Development Magazine
Endogenous Development Magazineis produced by Compas COMPAS (comparing and supporting endogenous development). The six-monthly Endogenous Development Magazine is free of charge for those interested in the role of culture, indigenous knowledge and worldviews in rural development. Please subscribe to the Endogenous Development Magazine.
Endogenous Development
Endogenous development is based on local peoples' own criteria of development, and takes into account the material, social and spiritual well-being of peoples. Activities of the COMPAS network are related to Natural Resource Management, Education, Health and Systems of Governance. Partners in the COMPAS network are NGOs and Universities in Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America.
Compas
Compas is an international network implementing field programmes to develop, test and improve endogenous development methodologies. The Compas programme has a focus on showing the importance of material, spiritual and social values for securing wellbeing of communities. Compas has developed an extensive network of partners in Latin America, Asia and Africa which assisted with developing biocultural approaches and participatory tools for over ten years. The main objectives of COMPAS are:
To systematically develop, test and improve methodologies for endogenous development based on rural peoples' worldviews.
To mainstream the endogenous development approach into policies and development programmes.
To enhance the capacity of NGOs in endogenous development.
To initiate and support local initiatives that enhance bio-cultural diversity and indigenous knowledge development.
To support an international platform for information exchange on culture, worldviews and development.
The Cultural Values and Nature Initiative
CVNI aims to develop a comprehensive platform and knowledge base for the integration and communication of biocultural values and sacred natural sites in ecosystem and conservation management.
CVNI aims to address the importance of biocultural diversity in nature conservation and ecosystem management strategies. CVNI is based on development from within a culture. Based on this principle CVNI engages with local people, ecosystem managers, policy-makers and scientists at various levels. Taking a peoples based approach towards conservation management CVNI’s strengths lay in putting local people’s perceptions to practice. This way, the results of CVNI's work may be locally owned, implemented, sustained and further developed.
The work of CVNI takes place along two main themes. Integrating cultural and spiritual values into nature conservation Management & Policy and the management of Sacred Sites. Both themes run parallel at various Case Studies.
CVNI combines the interests of its Partners in order to be effective and create sustainable results and Resources. CVNI aims to stimulate multidisciplinary and intercultural ways of learning through providing a platform for educational programs of universities and community based organizations. In addition, CVNI will produce and make available management and policy guidance through Publications, as well as communicate on the importance of biocultural values in conservation and ecosystem management through the means of information leaflets, posters, books, reports, web-based media and disseminating related News and Events.
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