BIODIVERSITY NARRATIVES: the voices and views of Atlantic Forest and Brazilian Cerrado's quilombos about plant diversity, in coproduction

Abstract

The revision of biodiversity research and education requires the development of research tools and theoretical approaches that disrupt the dual relation established between biodiversity erosion and social justice. Brazil, due to its biological and cultural megadiversity as well as biodiversity research protagonism, presents a peculiar relevance in this context. Furthermore, quilombola and native epistemologies as well as theoretical decolonial perspectives have pointed to the need to renew environmental research practices - including biodiversity research and education - so that they do not continue to be post-colonial replicant's devices. This proposal is inserted in the context of Fapesp's Biota-Transformation (2023) call. Its main goal is to make quilombola's perspectives on biodiversity crisis visible, thus putting into evidence local biodiversity roll, specially plant diversity and its conservation - to identities, memories, belonging and future imagination constructions related to Atlantic Forest and Brazilian Savanna, in quilombos from Jalapão region (TO), Vale do Ribeira (SP) as well as flower cather's communities from Serra do Espinhaço (MG). The three locations have been already engaged in previous research, including quilombola schools. It is intended constructuct and analyse of biodiversity narratives of Atlantic Forest and Cerrado biomes, through knowledge co-production, in a dialogic perspective, and to develop innovative methodological tools meaningful for the multiplicity of actors involved as well as to foster capacity-building related to transdisciplinaryty. The research results will be disseminated in multiple products, with a special assessment of their contributions to the sphere of local communities, to the academic sphere and to school environments, quilombolas and urban. The methodological approach will be based on concepts related to qualitative research, in particular Grounded Theory, and transdisciplinary approaches to data production and dissemination of results such as photovoice and autoethnographies. The tools for data production are situated within the scope of participatory and creative methodologies. The data obtained will be triangulated with data from questionnaires, semi-structured interviews, notes, and field diaries for data analysis. Finally, it is intended to develop methodological and result dissemination tools with a strong visual appeal. Moreover, it is intended the development of a participatory botany tool, called herbariovoice, in which communities will register local diversity, making herbaria within their own scope of selection and registration systems, combined with narratives about their importance to culture, ancestry, and local history, highlighting therefore the richness of sociobiodiversity. Moreover, as an intrinsic feature of co-production, all stages of the research will be shared with all participants (formulation of questions, choice of research tools, production and analysis of data, dissemination of results and ethical decisions). In addition to these collective results, we intend to have a broad dialogue with the scientific community, in order to disseminate the results and methodologies implemented. Finally, it is intended to expand the knowledge and perspectives of biodiversity research-education, aiming the construction of just, diverse and sustainable futures, through the construction of narratives and perspectives about the Atlantic Forest and the Cerrado. (AU)