Weekly Seminar: Towards Good Practice in 'Participatory' Research in Conservation, Dr. Helen Newing

Join us for our weekly seminar this Thursday, November 10th from 3:45-5pm in River Road RM 325, LeFrak 1158 or via Zoom! Dr. Helen Newing from the University of Oxford will be presenting "Towards good practice in ‘participatory’ research in conservation."

Abstract: What counts as 'participatory' research, especially where it involves indigenous and traditional communities? How have approaches to participatory research evolved in different disciplines since the 1970s and what specific challenges arise in conservation research? Greater clarity on good practice approaches to participatory research is particularly crucial to current debates in conservation about rights, equity and local environmental stewardship. In this seminar, I will explore these issues with examples from my own research and open up a question for debate: given that there are widespread calls for a paradigm shift towards more equitable, rights-based approaches to conservation, what are our roles and responsibilities as researchers in supporting this shift?

Bio: Helen Newing is a research fellow at the Interdisciplinary Centre for Conservation Science (ICCS) at the University of Oxford and an Associate of human rights organisation Forest Peoples Programme. She has been working on issues related to biodiversity conservation and indigenous peoples / local communities for over twenty-five years. Her work is principally in three areas: conservation and human rights, enabling community-led conservation, and collaborative and participatory research.

Zoom Meeting Info: Please email pbasak@umd.edu for Zoom details.