Reassessing the role of plants in society

Abstract

Plants have been and will continue to be fundamental to the evolution of human society. However, the law's traditional approach to plants, based broadly on the need to facilitate the exploitation of plants for the benefit of humans and to regulate the impacts of that exploitation, fails to recognise the ways in which plants can be said to participate in society. This participation takes three forms: a contribution to the achievement of social goals, the shaping of social spaces and the influencing of individual and collective human behaviours. It is argued that the recognition of these roles that plants play in society in law and policy could begin to redress the continuing decline in plant diversity, and lead to a reformed understanding of society's relationship with plants and the wider natural world.1 This paper is based on the assumption that the plants in question contribute positively in any given situation.However, it should of course be noted that some plants will have an adverse effect, on either human interests or the natural environment. Japanese knotweed (Fallopia japonica), for example, can cause extensive structural damage to property and undermine the health and functioning of an ecosystem.

In Vitro Technology in Plant Conservation: Relevance to Biocultural Diversity

“…Plants play a pivotal role in maintaining ecosystem resilience, and their diversity is considered critical to the survival of human societies, and yet, plant diversity is increasingly threatened [2][3][4][5][6][7]. Plant diversity, framed here as a sub-theme of biodiversity, is defined as the variability of plant life on Earth at the genetic, species, and ecosystem levels [8].…”

“…The loss of diversity has been connected to the weakening of ecological food webs, agricultural decline, and economic losses [7,9,11]. Thus, biodiversity loss can be regarded as a complex problem with no linear solutions and as a common denominator to biological and societal challenges [6,12,13]. Biodiversity loss is a global phenomenon occurring despite numerous conservation initiatives and innovations initiated since the 1970s, when the importance of biodiversity loss was formally acknowledged [9,14,15].…”

“…This species has directed global attention to Borneo while orchid species, many of them endemic, have not been fully identified in that region [100]. This neglect has been called plant blindness and continues to happen regardless of calls for action by scholars such as Amos [6], Thuiller et al [31], and Sharrock et al [101]. Further, Wandersee points out that specific social attitudes and conservation targets need to be developed to protect plant species [102].…”

“…Plants do not have neurons, thus pain cannot be observed or measured with the tools used for animals with nervous systems [104]. Second, in conservation science, policy, and law, plants are generally seen either as resources or as components of nature that hold intrinsic value [6]. In either case, plants may or may not warrant protection based on what is prioritized and by whom.…”

“…Relating to plants in this manner has allowed the Ngobe to reduce the harvesting of certain plants during drought years [111]. Although western scientific research about plants is widening, framing plants as social participants or as capable of feeling places western plant biologists and policymakers in uncomfortable epistemological situations [6,104]. Nonetheless, plant scientists who intend to deploy in vitro technology in conservation should be aware that the socio-cultural roles of plants in IKS diverge from western technoscientific visions [51,110].…”