Abstract

The tremendous increase in migrations and diasporas of human groups in the last decades are not only bringing along challenging issues for society, especially related to the economic and political management of multiculturalism and culturally effective health care, but they are also creating dramatic changes in traditional knowledge, believes and practices (KBP) related to (medicinal) plant use. The contributors to this volume – all internationally recognized scholars in the field of ethnobiology, transcultural pharmacy, and medical anthropology – analyze these dynamics of traditional knowledge in especially 12 selected case studies.

Ina Vandebroek, features in Nova's "Secret Life of Scientists", answering the question: just what is ethnobotany?

“I was enthusiastic at the prospect of reviewing Traveling Cultures and Plants… and my enthusiasm was amply rewarded. Although exploring the well worn theme of traditional medicine and plant pharmacopoeias, this volume navigates away from 'indigenous' cultures and 'native' floras into the virtually unexplored terrain of diaspora healing andethnobotany… this book represents a noteworthy contribution to an area of emerging interest.” • Economic Botany

Andrea Pieroni holds a PhD from the University of Bonn, Germany. He is an Associate Professor of Plant Biology and Ethnobotany at the University of Gastronomic Sciences in Pollenzo/Bra, Northern Italy and Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine. His research focuses on gastronomic and medical ethnobotany in the Mediterranean and in the Balkan areas, as well as among migrant communities and diasporas in Europe.

Ina Vandebroek holds a PhD in Medical Sciences from Ghent University, Belgium. She is a Research Associate at the Institute of Economic Botany of the New York Botanical Garden. Her research focuses on the dynamics of plant knowledge and plant use among immigrants from the Dominican Republic in New York City. She also conducts community healthcare workshops in Bolivia. She is a Deputy Editor of the Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine.