Ethnobotanical Study towards Conservation of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants in Upper Catchments of Dhauli Ganga in the Central Himalaya

The present study broadly focused on medicinal plant species collected from wild by the villagers for different purposes in the upper catchment of Dhauli Ganga in Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve(NDBR),in the central Himalaya.A schedule based survey was conducted during the years 2003-2005 in 15 villages of Chamoli district part of the NDBR.Information was collected from collectors, vaidya(medicine man)and those dealing with domestication and marketing of the medicinal plants. The aim of the study was to understand the prioritiesed medicinal plants,their mode of collection and document their ethnobotanical uses by the Bhotiya tribal communities,in this world heritage site. During the survey,50 medicinal plants belonging to 31 families and 44 genera were documented.Out of these,70% were harvested from the wild,22% were cultivated and 8% were cultivated as well as wild harvested.Of the cultivated species,8% were found growing in the kitchen gardens and 14%in the agricultural fields.However,42%of the plants had their roots and rhizomes used followed by leaves (26%),seeds(10%),seed and leaf(8%),bark and whole plant(6%)and flower(1%).Most plants were reported to be used for rheumatism(16),followed by stomach disorder(14),cold and cough(11),and jaundice(9).Thirty three plants species were reported to have more than one therapeutic uses,while 17 species were reported to be used against single ailment.The distance of villages from road head was one of the factors contributing to the decline in the medicinal plant population in their natural habitats. The availability of medicinal plants increased with increase in distance from road head and also the peoples'dependence on them.Documentation of the traditional knowledge will help in conservation of knowledge and also opportunity for using it for future training and use.The result of this study will help in promoting sustainable cultivation and implementation in conservation protocol of those species,which are in the verge of extinction in this region.

River Rafting in Mountainous Regions of Uttarakhand:Impacts,Suggested Mitigation Measures and Sustainability

Uttarakhand state in India is well known for its mountainous ecosystems, traditional communities and a variety of ecotourism destinations. Among various tourism activities, River Rafting along the banks of the Ganges River has increased tremendously for two decades, and has had unprecedented impacts on the traditional communities and the bio-diversity. Therefore, it is meaningful to do a comprehensive study on the various impacts associated with river rafting so as to suggest the pathways to achieve the environmental sustainability in this region. In this study, we collected primary data from randomly selected population units across all stake holders such as local people （n = too）, and camp personnel （n = 22）, through a pre-tested questionnaire survey between August 2009 and May 2010. The questionnaire contains issues on culture, social, economic, institutional and associated perceived impacts on pollution and biodiversity including views for sustainability. Secondary information was also collected from various sources and government records to supplement and strengthen the analysis. The impacts were analyzed qualitatively through a ranking mechanism to facilitate the decision making process. The perception of the interviewee about the various possible impacts of rafting was discussed with mitigating mechanism. The ranking analysis as percollected data reveals that economy and education of local community was improved significantly; however aquatic and terrestrial fauna, social cohesion and pollution （water, air, land） were significantly deteriorated. The results show that the existing practices are not sufficient to address the adverse impacts. Improvement in practices is necessary, mainly in the policy regime. Based on the analysis, some measures are recommended on how to protect community interest and environment with the development of river rafting as an ecotourism opportunity.

Application of Traditional Chinese Medicine in medical practice：a survey of community residents in Beijing,China

OBJECTIVE:To investigate how community residents in Beijing understood and used Traditional Chinese Medicine(TCM) in their medical practice.METHODS:This was a cross-sectional study conducted on 3410 community residents from four large communities of Tongzhou district in Beijng,China.A validated, self-administered questionnaire comprised of three sections was used to gather the data.A systematic sampling procedure was applied to recruit the community residents.RESULTS:A total of 3410 participants completed the questionnaire survey.It showed that in highly educated residents, 33.4%(170) knew of the names of 3-10 Chinese herbals, 35.8%(182) knew of names of 3-10 traditional Chinese patent drug.Among all the respondent residents, 80.7%(2753)believed that TCM herbal therapy and TCM non-drug treatments were effective in disease treatment, health enhancement, 85.7%(2923) had taken traditional Chinese patent drug in their life,56.8%(1937) of residents had used herbal decoction, 40.0%(1365) had received non-drug treatment of TCM, such as acupuncture, massage, cupping, auricular acupuncture.Among the elderly residents, 11.4%(98) often used Chinese patent drug and 9.8%(85) often used herbal decoction.In addition, 70.8%(2415) of residents were willing to accept knowledge and information on TCM for health enhancement and disease prevention, such as medicated diet, medicinal tea, Tai Chi and Qi Gong, although 82.8%(2825) of residents had never used them.CONCLUSION:Chinese patent drug and herbal decoction are widely used in the communities in Beijing, and there existed a possible close correlation between high educational level and better understanding of TCM.Age and occupation also correlated with the attitude to TCM therapies.The characteristics of the residents should be considered seriously in the course of promoting the understanding and application of TCM.

State’s Technical Cartography and Social Cartography’s Participatory Mapping: Contributions to a Contemporary Reflection on the Use of Maps

The use of cartography in geographical approaches, notably in those focused on territorial discussions, is gaining more and more importance. However, the use of technical maps still prevails, which often act to hinder its use and appropriation by traditional communities. Based on this assumption, this article seeks to show that, in addition to technical cartography, there are other methodologies, which should also be used, in both elaboration and representation of territories, such as the participatory mapping. For that, some recommendations and suggestions are presented in this paper, aiming to subsidize the application and the collaboration of maps, through the mentioned methodology. These suggestions and contributions are the result of both theoretical debates and in loci observations, in workshops held in traditional communities of Brazilian Amazonia. From these discussions, it is concluded that the adoption of participatory mapping in the process of valuing and understanding the knowledge of traditional communities is of great value, in addition to serving as a subsidy for the claims of rights of both appropriation and possession of the territory.