In the UN International Year of Indigenous Languages we invite you to join us in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, September 6th and 7th to explore Intersections of Language and Nature: Conservation, Documentation, and Access.  

 

The two-day symposium, supported by a Global Academic Partnership grant through the Office of the Provost at the University of Pittsburgh, brings together scholars from indigenous communities, conservation practice, the arts, and academia to address the parallel threats facing linguistic and biological diversity and explore opportunities for collaboration.

 

As scholarship on biocultural diversity has demonstrated, interesting correlations have been observed across linguistic and biological diversity.  Using ethno-ornithology as a framework, we will investigate the potential for holistic approaches to conservation and scholarship implicit in these observations. 

 

We believe opportunity can be found in:

• Greater interdisciplinary and intercultural synergy; 

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• Global connectivity and citizen science initiatives enabled by current technology; 

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• And in decolonization of local knowledge through local-to-global networks, recognition of a multiplicity of knowledge systems, and improved accessibility.

 

Integration of local linguistic and cultural knowledge systems with biological conservation practice is key to political and community engagement efforts, particularly within a locally managed conservation framework.  Equally, working together across disciplines in recognition of the interrelatedness of people, language, and place may lead to better systems of language documentation and a more nuanced understanding of local knowledge in conservation practice, as well as provide a global stage by which local communities can actively engage in dialogue relevant to their cultures and environments.