Humans, plants, and animals have co-existed and impacted one another for millennia. Archaeology provides a distinct view of the entangled histories of people, animals, plants, and ecosystems over long timescales offering insights into these relationships and the effects of co-existence. This session explores how zooarchaeological and paleoethnobotanical data illuminate biocultural diversity across many different environments, from waterscapes to landscapes. We invite papers that explore how human-environment interactions reveal enduring patterns of biocultural diversity, adaptation, and resilience.
The 47th Annual Conference of the Society of Ethnobiology at the University of the South, May 20–23, 2026
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2026 Sessions
Session Type:
Oral
Session Organizer(s)/Chair(s):
Jonathan Dombrosky
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Additional Organizers: Martin Welker, Arizona State Museum
Session Type:
Oral
Session Organizer(s)/Chair(s):
Daniela Shebitz
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Additional Organizers: Steve Wolverton
This session convenes researchers working with Indigenous, local, and other community partners to conserve culturally significant species and ecologically or culturally meaningful places. Presentations will explore collaborative approaches to understanding place-based relationships and developing strategies for restoration and conservation.
Session Type:
Roundtable
Session Organizer(s)/Chair(s):
Armando Medinaceli
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Even before the development of the Latin American Society of Ethnobiology’s (SOLAE) code of ethics, Latin American ethnobiology aimed to engage in collaborative research that reflects the reality of the region and its peoples. The SOLAE code of ethics encourages ethnobiologists to engage in research that supports the self-determination of local and Indigenous communities across Latin America. This roundtable invites participants to engage in a dialogue with several ethnobiologists from SOLAE who will share their research and the local impact and benefits of their work. This discussion aims to reinforce the collaborative effort initiated in 2017 between both the North American and Latin American ethnobiology societies. We encourage more ethnobiologists to join these conversations about research ethics and collaborations in Latin America. SOLAE organized this session to serve as a path towards increased collaboration between ethnobiologists across the Americas. We invite members from both societies to engage in conversation that represents research approaches from all regions of the continent.
Session Type:
Oral
Session Organizer(s)/Chair(s):
Dr. Scott M Herron
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Additional Organizers: Ricky Rietjens
Ethnomycology, the cultural uses of mushrooms and fungi, is understudied and underpublished in our profession. Archaelogical evidence is difficult but not impossible with these soft-bodied organisms, and pre-historic evidence comes from "mushroom stones", iconography on cultural artifacts, and rock art. Chemical analytical methods have shown that mushroom compounds are found on stoneware, on dental artifacts, and occasionally on woody items found in archeological settings. Muchy of ethnomycology has been centered on ethnographic work around the world, especially focused on sacred mushrooms and psychoactive or neurotropic species. This session aims to update our Society on current methodologies, historical understandings, and new hyphae of research studies, given the recent mycophilic facination around the globe.
Session Type:
Roundtable
Session Organizer(s)/Chair(s):
Maria Bruno
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Additional Organizers: Cynthia Fowler, Wofford College
This roundtable is aimed at helping early scholars transform a thesis/research paper into a peer-reviewed publication such as a journal article or book chapter. Perhaps the research has been presented as a conference paper or poster, this roundtable will work through the next steps towards developing it further. Participants are welcome to come with works in progress or simply looking to get started with questions. We will also share guidelines and suggestions for submitting to the Society of Ethnobiology publications including Ethnobiology Letters and Journal of Ethnobiology.
Session Type:
Roundtable
Session Organizer(s)/Chair(s):
SREELEKHA K
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The sacred groves are patches of land that preserved due to their cultural and religious affiliations. In the state of Kerala as in many other parts of India and across the world, sacred groves are also home to water bodies which are preserved in their pristine form due to belief systems. The Palliyane sacred grove in Vadanappily, Thrissur is home to 3 ponds which add to the wealth of flora and fauna in the 2.17 acre piece of land. The story goes that even when the family that owns the sacred grove had not laid claim to the land, the locals were still respectful of the well in the premise and were engaged in protecting and preserving it. The belief that a well in the sacred grove is as sacred as the grove itself and should not be defiled. Professor Unnikrishnan Palliyane who led the restoration of the Palliyane sacred grove recollected the support his family received in the restoration of the sacred grove.
The water bodies present in the sacred groves are testimonials of the role of faith in ecological restoration. The round table examines various sacred groves in India and how cultural norms dictate their conservation adding to ecological wealth of the place.