Rethinking resource identification and utilization: The reconstruction of indigenous ethnoecological knowledge in Fata'an Wetland, Taiwan

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to explore the following questions: What are resources for humans and what are not? How does nature “become” a resource? Does the result of cultural resources' re‐identification and utilization benefit cultural conservation?

Design/methodology/approach

The main methods used were participant observation (from 2005 to 2007) and in‐depth interviews. In‐depth interviews included local elites, wetland farmers, and local tourism business owners.

Findings

The process of culture becoming resources includes three stages: resource identification, meaning‐giving, and social reduction. The achievement of each stage is a result of the interactions of local powers. When the aims of the identification and utilization of cultural resources excessively combine with some interests of capitalism, there is often a conflict between preservation and development.

Practical implications

The results of the analysis suggest that, if this program could acquire local consensus and local participation, it could really benefit cultural resource conservation.

Originality/value

This study proposes the “indigenous concept of resource” as a critical viewpoint on the current concept of resource.

Citation

Chang, W. (2011), "Rethinking resource identification and utilization: The reconstruction of indigenous ethnoecological knowledge in Fata'an Wetland, Taiwan", Management of Environmental Quality, Vol. 22 No. 2, pp. 187-199. https://doi.org/10.1108/14777831111113374