SEB Fall Symposium 2021 Recording, October 16, 2021

The SEB Fall Symposium: Careers in Ethnobotany took place on Saturday, October 16 from 12-3pm ET. Explored were many of the possible careers in ethnobotany!
The virtual event was available for anyone to attend and kicked off with a retrospective career talk by legendary ethnobotanist Dr. Pablo Eyzaguirre, our 2021 Distinguished Economic Botanist. We then held a panel discussion with a diverse panel of individuals that have moved from academic training in ethnobotany to successful, fulfilling, and impactful careers of many types. The event concluded with breakout sessions where our panelists was able to answer audience questions in a more personal setting.
Please note that there is a lull during the breakout rooms because they were not able to be recorded, but if you skip ahead to near the end (around 2:59:38) there is a wrap-up by Dr. John de la Parra that you can view.

[@infobiodiversity]

excellent information👍
Its great to see this 👍
Stay blessed and connected🌹🌷

[@EthnobotanistMarc]

This was an incredibly stimulating group of presentations that it will certainly take me quite awhile to digest! Grateful for the recording as my schedule did not allow direct participation contemporaneously with this happening. May many take inspiration and heart in regard to the potential future of ethnobotany from these exemplary examples that are on display here. Cheers and respect to all involved!

[@Wildcrafter68]

Survey your native/wild plant options and practice breeding the "best" of those for known goals and for the purpose of modern agriculture. Pass on your "winners" to those that care. People may not hire you to start such an endeavor, but if you succeed, someone may care as much as you and they may take your "winners" to levels beyond your personal abilities. As you choose your goals, remember, I learned that with many plants, humans will pay more for flavor than they will for medicine. Perennials seem to be worth more than annuals which makes cloning a required skill and goal. If your plant "winners" can self sell, the goal of bringing a new plant to modern agriculture is easier. "Winners" most often are plants with high vigor and plants with high vigor tend to survive more environmental extremes and tend to have more desired compounds as well as higher yields. Know what plant industry you hope to help or break into as they are who you will be selling to or selling against. Make sure that neighbors and consumers are the largest part of your "expert" panel when making decisions.