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A really unsettling thing: American (I'm sure also European) scientists traveling to much lower income countries, doing science on sexy ecosystems and organisms, and then coming back to the States and publishing in high impact journals.
Who is talking/thinking abt this?
Who is talking/thinking abt this?
I am asking the google who and where are we discussing this serious problem. Modern intellectual colonialism? Modern scientific colonialism? You know, where you head off somewhere and take their science, bring it back and publish/build your career.
The thing is, it looks to me like entire labs are built on this, without a thought on its implications. Students come out of these labs trained in this as a perfectly valid way of studying ecology - and they never have to think about those implications.
Sure, I get it, hire folks wherever you go, maybe do some advocating and some outreach and you make some friends and feel like you're helping. Maybe you even have someone as a co-author here and there.
But... it's still going somewhere else and taking their science.
But... it's still going somewhere else and taking their science.
I realized today another ramification of this I haven't had to even consider before now. Labs that operate this way turn out highly qualified scientists w/expertise in foreign ecosystems. These scientists are more likely to get jobs wrt science in those countries moving forward.
.@Drew_Lab kindly just reminded me this is called "parachute science" - but of course searching so far has provided me with many fun parachute experiment ideas to try with kids...
@Drew_Lab We can't make real change *globally* if we don't face the impacts of parachute science and the need to move beyond local hiring and minimal engagement. We have to find ways to lift up local science and scientific enterprises.
We need to partner, not lead.
We need to partner, not lead.
@Drew_Lab "Advancing Biodiversity Research in Developing
Countries: The Need for Changing Paradigms": creating valuable partnerships esp wrt biodiversity. Touches briefly on parachute science,but overall highlights better ways forward in advancing science globally: digitalcommons.csumb.edu/cgi/viewconten…
Countries: The Need for Changing Paradigms": creating valuable partnerships esp wrt biodiversity. Touches briefly on parachute science,but overall highlights better ways forward in advancing science globally: digitalcommons.csumb.edu/cgi/viewconten…
@Drew_Lab Another on mutually valuable international collaborations from @HarrisProgram in 2004: "One major point worth emphasizing is that true international partnerships require a huge investment of time from all participants—and are hugely rewarding in return"
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/P…
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/P…
@Drew_Lab @HarrisProgram .@HarrisProgram also notes lack of incentives to invest: "... teaching, mentorship &collaborations are not part of the institutional reward sys in developed &middle-income countries, bc tenure committees & funding agencies look only at PI of a grant & 1st or last author on a pub"
@Drew_Lab @HarrisProgram In my googling on parachute science, found this nice discussion from @NPRGoatsandSoda regarding language: npr.org/sections/goats…
"Some people use the term "Majority World" - a reminder to those of us in the West that we are but a very small minority on the globe."
"Some people use the term "Majority World" - a reminder to those of us in the West that we are but a very small minority on the globe."
@Drew_Lab @HarrisProgram @NPRGoatsandSoda All of this should resonate even w/those of us who don't science overseas. Marginalized communities in the US will suffer the brunt of #ClimateChange, and we parachute in there, w/similar consequences domestically.
@Drew_Lab @HarrisProgram @NPRGoatsandSoda For example, as a field research intern before going to grad school in Hawai'i, the project routinely had field stations vandalized -- likely due to a lack of engaging w/local Hawaiian communities, in addition to, well, colonialism here at home, folks.
Also thinking abt this more:
1. Parachute or helicopter (better as describes leaving just as fast) science: scientists show up, science, take knowledge, no add’l actions. #kthxbai
2. White savior science: “We have to bc ‘they’ can’t/won’t by themselves and/or ‘in time’”.
1. Parachute or helicopter (better as describes leaving just as fast) science: scientists show up, science, take knowledge, no add’l actions. #kthxbai
2. White savior science: “We have to bc ‘they’ can’t/won’t by themselves and/or ‘in time’”.
Also whew! Thanks for all the reaponses and resources! I’ll be back on this tomorrow for sure! Yay science twitter!
I've started a thread summarizing resources +contacts, but pls note!! This should NOT be seen as an exhaustive list by any means, just what I could get from what the Twit would let me recover. PLEASE ADD others to this thread and I will cont to also! TY!!!
I also followed up w/some additional thoughts today...
