Reciprocity towards nature in the biodiversity science–policy interface

The notion of reciprocity between humans and the rest of the living world is receiving increasing attention in the environmental sciences and science–policy international bodies. Here we first discuss different meanings of reciprocity, then we discuss this notion in relation to the conceptual framew...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Díaz, S., Pascual, U.
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2025
País:España
Institución:Universidad del País Vasco
Repositorio:Addi. Archivo Digital para la Docencia y la Investigación
OAI Identifier:oai:addi.ehu.eus:10810/78508
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/10810/78508
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:biodiversity conservation
IPBES
nature's contributions to people
people's contributions to nature
people-nature relationships
practices of care
values of nature
Descripción
Sumario:The notion of reciprocity between humans and the rest of the living world is receiving increasing attention in the environmental sciences and science–policy international bodies. Here we first discuss different meanings of reciprocity, then we discuss this notion in relation to the conceptual framework of the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), to date the most prominent international mechanism informing the science–policy interface on living nature. We show that the notion of human–nature reciprocity is recognized and is explicitly included in the IPBES conceptual framework. However, to date, it has received comparatively little attention. To overcome this, we argue that, rather than creating new separate ad-hoc categories that risk compromising the internal consistency and pluralism of the IPBES conceptual framework, co-created across different disciplines, worldviews and policy frames, a more fruitful path would be to interpret all its components in a reciprocity light, with stronger emphasis on the human shaping of, and practices of care towards the rest of the living world. Such attention to reciprocity should contribute to the evolution of IPBES and related science–policy initiatives, by incorporating a plurality of perspectives, while still maintaining the framework operational by the continued engagement of multiple disciplines and stakeholders. In terms of policy and action, this would involve more attention to pre-existing practices of care for nature—of which we provide a few illustrative examples—and new practices inspired by them or created afresh. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog. © 2025 The Author(s). People and Nature published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of British Ecological Society.