Linguistic diversity and biodiversity: Hotspots and conservation priorities

语言多样性和生物多样性：热点和保护优先事项

• 批准号: AH/G00465X/1
• 负责人: Suzanne Romaine
• 金额: $ 3.34万
• 依托单位: University of Oxford
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Research Grant
• 财政年份: 2009
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2009 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=AH%2FG00465X%2F1
• 关键词: Linguistic; diversity; biodiversity; Hotspots; conservation

Understanding of the ramifications of diversity in ecosystems, species, cultures and languages is in its early stages. Nevertheless, a growing number of indicators points to an extinction crisis in both biological and cultural-linguistic diversity. Linguists predict that 50% to 90% of the world's 6,900 languages may soon become extinct. Global biodiversity is also threatened, with annual losses of plant and animal species estimated at 1000 times or more greater than historic background rates. Although the direct and indirect causes of biodiversity declines and the disappearance of languages are extremely complex, both species and languages are in danger of becoming extinct in the same places due to similar threats. The greatest linguistic diversity is found in some of the ecosystems richest in biodiversity inhabited by indigenous peoples, who represent around 4% of the world's population, but speak at least 60% of its 6,900 or more languages. The overlapping pattern in the spatial distribution of biological and linguistic diversity indicates a need for integrating biological priorities with linguistic ones to identity areas of high diversity and great risk in order to target resources to those areas. The research will use the most recent advances in GIS (global information system) mapping to bring together newly available global datasets on languages and species into a new interdisciplinary framework to identify global 'hotspots', where the highest incidence of linguistic diversity and biodiversity co-occur. This will be done by plotting the number of languages against total vascular plant, mammal, bird, amphibian, and reptile species found in 34 biodiversity hotspots and 5 high buodiversity wilderness areas identified by Conservation International as regions containing exceptionally high occurrences of species found nowhere else. Approximately 75% of all languages are concentrated into about 26% of earth's surface. Languages may be at even greater risk than species because many of the languages located in high biodiversity areas are spoken by relatively few people and are unique to those places. Small languages can disappear much faster than larger ones due to the vulnerability of small groups to external pressures in a rapidly changing world. Resource extraction, the spread of mechanized agriculture and development projects damage the environment at the same time as they displace and marginalize people from places they traditionally relied on for their food, shelter, cultural practices and spiritual well-being. Because regions containing high biological diversity also represent areas of considerable importance to maintaining earth's linguistic and cultural diversity, conservation strategies that promote a community's economic and cultural well-being will be likely to sustain linguistic diversity as well. With much needing to be done quickly with too few resources, setting realistic priorities is paramount in order to direct timely, focused, collaborative efforts towards maintaining human and non-human diversity. Pinpointing priority areas most in need of action to conserve biodiversity as well as languages can guide policy and planning in a holistic way at local, regional and international levels. The results can also establish baselines from which to monitor the future status of combined hotspots and prime further research targeted at understanding better the factors threatening and sustaining hotspots.The findings will be disseminated in a research monograph to be published by Conservation International, one of the world's largest and most highly respected organizations involved in raising awareness of environmental issues and engaged in partnership with a number of governments, NGOs, and local communities around the world in various conservation projects. This increases the likelihood that the results will reach beyond academic audiences to conservation practitioners, planners and policy makers.

对生态系统、物种、文化和语言多样性影响的理解还处于早期阶段。然而，越来越多的指标表明生物多样性和文化语言多样性都面临灭绝危机。语言学家预测，世界上6900种语言中的50%到90%可能很快就会灭绝。全球生物多样性也受到威胁，每年动植物物种的损失估计是历史背景速度的 1000 倍或更多。尽管生物多样性下降和语言消失的直接和间接原因极其复杂，但由于类似的威胁，物种和语言都面临在同一地点灭绝的危险。最大的语言多样性存在于土著人民居住的生物多样性最丰富的生态系统中，土著人民约占世界人口的 4%，但至少讲 6,900 种或更多语言中的 60%。生物和语言多样性空间分布的重叠模式表明需要将生物优先事项与语言优先事项相结合，以识别高度多样性和高风险的区域，以便将资源投放到这些区域。该研究将利用GIS（全球信息系统）制图领域的最新进展，将新获得的全球语言和物种数据集整合到一个新的跨学科框架中，以确定语言多样性和生物多样性同时发生率最高的全球“热点”。这将通过绘制语言数量与维管束植物、哺乳动物、鸟类、两栖动物和爬行动物总数的关系图来完成，这些物种在 34 个生物多样性热点地区和 5 个高生物多样性荒野地区中发现，被保护国际确定为包含在其他地方找不到的物种出现率极高的地区。大约 75% 的语言集中在地球表面大约 26% 的区域内。语言可能比物种面临更大的风险，因为许多位于生物多样性高地区的语言使用人数相对较少，而且是这些地方所独有的。在快速变化的世界中，由于小群体容易受到外部压力的影响，小语言比大语言消失得更快。资源开采、机械化农业的推广和发展项目在破坏环境的同时，也使人们从传统上赖以获取食物、住所、文化习俗和精神福祉的地方流离失所并被边缘化。由于生物多样性丰富的区域对于维持地球语言和文化多样性也具有相当重要的意义，因此促进社区经济和文化福祉的保护战略也可能会维持语言多样性。由于需要用很少的资源快速完成许多工作，因此设定切合实际的优先事项至关重要，以便及时、集中、协作地努力维护人类和非人类的多样性。查明最需要采取行动保护生物多样性和语言的优先领域可以在地方、区域和国际层面以整体方式指导政策和规划。研究结果还可以建立基线，以监测综合热点的未来状况，并启动进一步研究，以更好地了解威胁和维持热点的因素。研究结果将在保护国际组织即将出版的研究专着中传播。保护国际组织是世界上最大、最受尊敬的组织之一，致力于提高人们对环境问题的认识，并与世界各地的许多政府、非政府组织和当地社区在各种保护方面开展合作。 项目。这增加了研究结果超越学术界影响到保护从业者、规划者和政策制定者的可能性。

项目成果

Cultural and Linguistic Minorities in the Russian Federation and the European Union

俄罗斯联邦和欧盟的文化和语言少数民族

• DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-10455-3_2
• 发表时间: 2015
• 作者: Romaine S

Language Policy and Political Economy - English in a Global Context

语言政策与政治经济学 - 全球背景下的英语

• DOI: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199363391.003.0012
• 发表时间: 2015
• 作者: Romaine S

The Oxford Handbook of Sociolinguistics

牛津社会语言学手册

• DOI: 10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199744084.013.0038
• 发表时间: 2013
• 作者: Romaine S

Of speech and species

言语和物种

• 发表时间: 2014
• 作者: Romaine, S

linguistic diversity in high biodiversity regions

高生物多样性地区的语言多样性

• 发表时间: 2014
• 作者: Gorenflo, LJ