Language: A Resource for Nature 151what they do. It also means that scientists must become much better at listening to
what indigenous and other local peoples around the world have to say about what
they want and need, and be more prepared to ask if and how they can be of serv-
ice.
With these thoughts in mind, in 1996, an international and multicultural
group of scholars and professionals created the non-governmental organization
Terralingua: Partnerships for Linguistic and Biological Diversity, which is devoted
to a mixture of research, information, applied work and advocacy concerning the
world’s linguistic diversity and its relationships with biodiversity (Box 5.1).
Among the basic principles guiding Terralingua’s work are:
- that the diversity of languages and their variant forms is a vital part of the
world’s cultural diversity; - that biological diversity and cultural diversity (of which linguistic diversity is a
major component) are not only related, but often inseparable, perhaps causally
connected through coevolution; - that, like biological diversity, linguistic diversity (represented mostly by indi-
genous languages) is facing rapidly increasing threats that are causing a drastic
loss of both languages and the knowledge of which they are carriers, including
knowledge on the environment and sustainable resource use; - that the continued loss of linguistic, cultural and biological diversity will have
dangerous consequences for humans and the Earth; and - that, therefore, the fate of the lands, languages and cultures of indigenous
peoples is decisive for the maintenance of biodiversity and linguistic and cul-
tural diversity.^18
Acknowledging the link
Over the past two years, Terralingua has been striving to promote this perspective
both locally and globally in support of indigenous as well as minority communi-
ties’ struggle to holistically preserve and protect their linguistic, cultural and nat-
ural environments through self-determination (or local determination in the case
of local communities). It is apparent that these concerted efforts are beginning to
make a difference, and that recognition of the inextricable link between linguistic
and biological diversity is beginning to emerge internationally. The International
Society of Ethnobiology has enshrined this perspective in its Draft Code of Ethics,^19
which states that: ‘Culture and language are intrinsically connected to land and
territory, and cultural and linguistic diversity are inextricably linked to biological
diversity’, and upholds the right to preserve and protect local languages as a part of
the principle of self-determination. International bodies such as UNESCO, UNEP
and the UN Centre for Human Rights are turning their attention to issues of
indigenous languages within the framework of biocultural diversity preservation
and the protection of the rights of indigenous peoples. It is likely that in the near
future the notion of linguistic diversity will become as familiar as that of cultural