ABOUT TIEC
In 2009, Traditional Owners in North Queensland identified that an
ethnobotany research and resource centre could support them in the
conservation, management, use and communication of their Traditional
Ecological Knowledge. The Tropical Indigenous Ethnobotany Centre
(TIEC) - the first Indigenous-driven ethnobotanical research centre in
Australia - was established to meet that need.
TIEC is a partnership between Traditional Owners, the Queensland Government, CSIRO, James Cook University's Cairns Institute, and the Australian Tropical Herbarium joint venture. It is housed at the Australian Tropical Herbarium, on James Cook University's Cairns campus in tropical north Queensland, Australia.
TIEC MODEL
TIEC OBJECTIVES
Recording & Documenting | Training & Education Research
• Bridge Traditional Ecological Knowledge and Western plant science
• Record and preserve Indigenous plant cultural knowledge
• Promote awareness of Traditional Ecological Knowledge
• Develop projects of mutual benefit with Traditional Owner groups
• Promote and carry out research in a respectful and culturally appropriate way
• Provide cultural awareness, training and education about cultural use of plants
• Develop and enhance cultural capability
• Develop partnerships with Traditional Owner groups across northern Australia and neighbouring countries