Evaluating Biocultural Diversity and Socio-Ecological Vulnerability for the Conservation of Rural Areas in Spain (EmBraCe)

Biocultural diversity is the notion that biological and cultural diversity are dependent on each other, and that biological diversity is managed, conserved, and created by different cultural groups. Agricultural landscapes are visibly shaped by human practices, and in these areas the relationship between nature and culture runs deep, where everyday practices and traditions have coevolved with the environment over millennia. This is especially true in Mediterranean agricultural landscapes where the traditional management of the land have endured over millennia. However, these landscapes depend on human interventions and currently are threatened by their abandonment, driving by migration to more urban areas, intensification processes, or aging of population, having a direct impact on the human well-being of local communities.

Through an interdisciplinary methodology SCALABLE will identify how gender equity can promote pathways for future conservation of mountain agricultural in the biocultural regions of the Sierra Nevada mountain range in South of Spain. To this end, SCALABLE will:

1. evaluate current and future biocultural practices developed by local communities in the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range.
2. map biocultural practices as elements for conservation of landscapes and the ecosystem services provided using a gender perspective.
3. identify future pathways to secure the maintenance of local well-being and the conservation of biocultural landscapes to foster gender equity and landscape sustainability.

By considering traditional ecological knowledge, perspectives and needs, SCALABLE will inherently address broader societal issues such as gender and environmental justice, with the last goal to support future development of rural areas in south of Spain.

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