Page 374 - Cultural Studies of Science Education

Chapter 30
Considering the Consequences of Hybridity:
Protecting Traditional Ecological Knowledge

from Predation

Deborah J. Tippins, June George, and Stacey Britton

Deb: In this age of globalization, where lives depend on multiple and constant
interconnections, Lyn Carter and Nicolas Walker problematize the notion of borders
and border crossings in light of how they have traditionally been conceptualized in
science education. In their chapter, they share theoretical and practical insights that
challenge us to rethink the idea of borders in the context of traditional knowledge
and justice. Drawing on examples from Australian indigenous cultures, they prompt
us to consider the ways in which emerging ideas about borders and border spaces
contribute to the discussion surrounding ecojustice.
Carter and Walker begin by describing physical and functional conceptualizations
of borders, and the ways in which these have reinforced polarities and contributed to
normative constructions that attempt to legitimize a “belief in their territorial and
conceptual binding power for shaping the world and its discourses” (p. 4). They
emphasize the need to complicate and extend a pluralistic notion of borders that take
into account the complexity of our twenty-first century world. In their discussion,
they highlight the fluid, contextual nature of borders, and the merit and criteria by
which they are judged, the many possible ways that borders can be drawn and called
into question, and the dialectical relationship between the multiple existence of
borders and the very nature of drawing these borders. Their discussion of ideas that
are emerging within contemporary border studies research emphasizes notions of
pluralism and hybridity. These ideas are particularly relevant in juxtaposing concep-
tualizations of borders and border crossing alongside conceptions of ecojustice.
The world is a web of relationships, which necessitate openness to pluralism. The
need for diversity is essential if we are to protect communities from enclosures and
move forward new ideas. Because communities are diverse and their boundaries are
fluid, we need to complicate the notion of borders within specific communities,

D.J. Tippins and S. Britton
University of Georgia
J. George
University of the West Indies

D.J. Tippins et al. (eds.), Cultural Studies and Environmentalism, 349
Cultural Studies of Science Education, Vol. 3, DOI 10.1007/978-90-481-3929-3_30,
© Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2010