A call to break down barriers
The field of ornithology systemically excludes researchers and research from Latin America and the Caribbean, according to a paper published February 7 in Ornithological Applications.
The paper, signed by 124 ornithologists (including professional scientists, naturalists, park rangers, and technicians) from 19 countries, also explains what the field should do to start addressing the problems identified.
A major barrier tolowland tropical rainforest to the High Andes. They also include more than 40 countries and a human population comparable to that of Europe. Yet the authors say peer-reviewed science from the Global South gets short shrift from northern ornithologists, a practice that stems from a long history of colonialism that scientists continue to sweep under the proverbial rug. “Foreign-based scientists unquestionably contribute to the development of Neotropical ornithology, but exclusion of the Latin American and Caribbean scientific community is a long-standing pattern with deep roots in the scientific colonialism of the 19th and 20th centuries,” the paper states. “Today, it is still common for high-impact reviews, proposals, and research articles focused on the Neotropics to neglect contributions, perspectives, and goals from within the region, often overlooking important developments and key barriers to advancing knowledge. This pattern is visible not just in Neotropical ornithology but across academic disciplines and across the Global South.”
